BT Tower

:For other BT Towers, see BT Tower (disambiguation).

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The BT Tower in London, previously the Post Office Tower, is a strikingly tall cylindrical building at 60 Cleveland Street, W1. The main structure is 175 metres (574 feet) tall, with a further section of aerial bringing the total height to 188 metres (620 feet).

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The tower was commissioned by the General Post Office (GPO). Its primary purpose was to support the microwave aerials then used to carry telecommunications traffic from London to the rest of the country.

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The tower was designed by the architects of the Ministry of Public Building and Works: the chief architects were Eric Bedford and G. R. Yeats. Typically for its time, the building is concrete clad in glass. The narrow cylindrical shape was chosen because of the requirements of the communications aerials: the building will shift no more than 25 cm in wind speeds of up to 150 km/h. Initially the first sixteen floors were for technical equipment and power, above that was a 35 metre section for the microwave aerials, and above that were six floors of suites, kitchens, technical equipment and finally a gridwork aerial. To prevent heat build-up the glass cladding was of a special tint. The construction cost was ?2.5 million.

General Post Office: The General Post Office (GPO) was officially established in England in 1660 by Charles II and it eventually grew to combine the functions of both the state postal system and telecommunications carrier. Similar General Post Offices were established across the British Empire. In 1969 the GPO was aboli...

Microwave: This page is about the radiation; for the appliance, see microwave oven....

Aerial: Aerial can mean:...

BT Tower related Images and Photos (experimental)

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