Samer Choucair: 71% Reduction in Tower Acceleration: An Engineering Breakthrough Could Reprice High Rise Real Estate
Investment leader Samer Choucair said a recent engineering study published in Nature Communications points to a new direction in supertall building design, using part of the mass already contained within a building to reduce its dynamic response to wind and earthquakes, rather than relying on additional dedicated damping masses.
Choucair explained that the study tested a dynamic model of a 300 meter tower at a 1:300 scale in a wind tunnel. Compared with a conventional undamped design, the system achieved reductions of up to 71% in peak acceleration and 50% in base overturning moment. The results also showed a reduction of up to 46% in base shear under one damping configuration, while relative movement between the separated building sections and the core remained below 50 millimeters in the principal wind tests.
Samer Choucair noted that numerical simulations of seismic scenarios produced an average reduction of approximately 42% in roof displacement and 34% in acceleration. In some cases, acceleration in the separated sections of the building fell by as much as 74%. He emphasized, however, that these figures came from numerical simulations rather than full scale physical earthquake testing.
For investors, Choucair argued, the significance of the innovation goes beyond the engineering performance figures themselves. The greater opportunity lies in whether reductions in dynamic structural response can ultimately translate into lower material consumption, more efficient structural and foundation design, and a smaller embodied carbon footprint, provided commercial applications can demonstrate that these savings are achievable in practice.
“The structure is no longer simply an engineering cost within the project model. It is becoming a financial variable that can influence construction costs, insurance, financing, and the asset’s long term value,” Samer Choucair said. “An investor who measures only the cost per rentable square meter is overlooking an important part of the economics of a high rise building.”
Choucair added that the transition from laboratory research to commercial deployment will depend on several critical factors, including acceptance within structural codes and regulatory frameworks, integration with elevators, façades, mechanical and electrical systems, and other building services, as well as evidence that the technology can generate measurable savings throughout the property’s full life cycle.
He said the Gulf, with its expanding pipeline of towers, major developments, and new cities, could become a significant potential market for this type of structural innovation. However, investment decisions should not be based solely on building height or architectural symbolism.
“The future does not belong to whoever builds the tallest tower,” Choucair said. “It belongs to whoever can turn height into an asset that is more efficient, less costly, and better able to withstand risk.”
Samer Choucair concluded that the real transformation in high rise real estate will occur when structural efficiency, dynamic performance, and embodied carbon become measurable variables within investment models rather than simply marketing language associated with sustainability.