Citicorp Tower Case Study

Contoso Ltd.

Citicorp Tower

Standing 59 stories high, Citicorp Tower was built in 1978, designed by Lemessurier, and located on Lexington Avenue in New York City.

Challenge 1

Land restrictions – Needed to accommodate existing structures

Challenge 2

Height of design – 7^th Tallest Building in the World

Challenge 3

Suspension design – Pillars Not in Corners

Problem

Likely collapse when exposed to mildly strong winds

2

Contoso Ltd.

Elements of Ethical Failure

Lure of Savings

Citicorp accepted a $250,000 credit from a Contractor

Bad Deviation

It departed from original design.

Shortsighted

Original engineer not consulted regarding change.

Echo Chamber

Poor impact alalysis

Disregard for Safety

​

Desire to save money took priority over the safety of thousands.

3

Contoso Ltd.

Possible Solutions

The Road Not Taken

Smaller building to insure stability.

Use of welded joints for added resistance.

Alternate site location to avoid design challeges.

4

Contoso Ltd.

Ultimate Solution

Student Spotlight

• An architecture student reviewed the building plans
• The student questioned the stability of the building.
• This caused, LeMessurier, to review the engineering plans.
• He discovered the deviation from welds to bolts
• He conferred with a colleague, who confirmed the flaw
• Hurricane season elevated the risk of collapse
• Mitigating repairs consisted of melding of two inch plates to the 200 bolt connections
• Repairs were conducted under the cover of night to avoid panic

​

5

Contoso Ltd.

Conclusion

• Citicorp demonstrated poor judgement
• Fortunately, LeMessurier took action to fix the building once the flaw was identified
• In trying to save $250,000 Citicorp paid $8,000,000 in cost to repair

​

Contoso Ltd.