Lever House vs 7 World Trade Center

Comparing the Lever House and the 7 World Trade Center is particularly interesting because they share the same skyline in New York, NY, and were both designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. However, they were completed more than 54 years apart.

This offers a unique perspective on how the architect's style and the city's architecture evolved over time.

The 7 World Trade Center is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 741ft (226m) with 51 floors above ground, while the Lever House reaches 307ft (93.57m) with 21 floors above ground.

7 World Trade Center also offers more total built-up area, a total fo 1,681,117 sqf (156,181m²), which is about 1,418,172 sqf (131,753m²) more than what the Lever House offers.

The 7 World Trade Center also concentrates more floor area on its site, indicating a higher floor area ratio.

Of course, each project may have faced different briefs or regulatory constraints, which we don't really know about and could also explain the outcome.

The Lever House was designed in the International Style style, while the 7 World Trade Center reflects the principles of Contemporary.

At the time of their completion, both styles were well established. This makes the comparison especially interesting, because both buildings represent a dominant aesthetic at a particular point in time.

Built 54 years apart (1952 vs 2006), these two buildings are a perfect example of how different architectural styles have shaped the architectural landscape of our cities over time.

Both the Lever House and the 7 World Trade Center were designed to serve as commercial towers, and that has remained their main use since their completion, serving similar roles in the urban fabric.

Both the Lever House and the 7 World Trade Center rely on a Frame structural system.

A frame structure uses a grid of columns and beams to carry the building's loads. This frees the walls from structural duties, allowing for flexible floor plans and larger windows.

They also employ the same type of facade, a Curtain Wall facade.

A curtain wall is a non-load-bearing facade hung from the structural frame. It is anchored to floor slabs and transfers only its own weight and wind loads, allowing for sleek, glassy exteriors.