PBCom Tower

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Information
PBCom Tower

Location	6795 Ayala Avenue, Makati, Philippines
Status	Complete
Constructed	2000
Use	office
Technical details
Floor count	59
Elevator count	17
Companies
Architect	Skidmore, Owings and Merrill

PBCom Tower is the tallest building in the Philippines and the eighty-third (as of 2007) tallest building in the world. It has a height of 259 meters, soaring at 52 storeys high plus an 8-level radio tower. The building is the home of the Philippine Bank of Communications, or PBCom, one of the oldest Philippine banks. The bank occupies the building's first ten floors, with a foodcourt on the seventh floor. It is also home to a competitor bank, East West Bank, which is based in the building's twentieth and twenty-first floors, which are controlled by Filinvest Land.

The building is located at 6795 Ayala Avenue corner V.A. Rufino Street in Makati City and was constructed as a joint venture between Filinvest Land and PBCom. The stretch of Ayala Avenue where PBCOM Tower lies also has branches of Quadrant Information Services Inc., Metrobank, Bank of the Philippine Islands, Banco de Oro, Export and Industry Bank and International Exchange Bank. The building is also across from the main office of Union Bank of the Philippines. It houses international call centers such as eTelecare Global Solutions, Citibank, Convergys, HSBC HDPP, IBM Daksh, and ICT.

PBCom Tower is designed by international architects Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. Its exterior double-glazed, unitized curtain walls create a facade that reflects a fusion of art and function. Its interiors are an elegant interplay of glass, natural stone and metal.

[edit] Features

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Offices

2.6 meter high ceiling
200 to 300 square meters per unit
provisions for powder-coated T-runner and acoustic board ceiling
perimeter columns for flexibility in space planning

Elevators

17 high-speed passenger lifts
4 shuttle lifts for parking levels
service elevators
6 zoning elevators lobby

Air-conditioning

2 individually-controlled chilled water air handling units per floor
provision for variable air valve (VAV) to meet tenants' individual air-conditioning requirements

Building Automation

fully computerized building management system

Communications

high-speed backbone access to voice, data and video
100 telephone lines per floor (2 carriers)
with provision for expansion of fiber optic cable risers
communication/radio tower

Parking

889 slots
paging system
parking management system

Other Features

100% full power back-up
24-hour security
banking facilities
control room
food court (7th floor)
garden
business center
executive dining area
smoke control for Life Safety Evacuation
helicopter pad

PEZA (Philippine Economic Zone Authority) Incentives

Income Tax Holiday from 4 to 6 years
Option to pay a special 5% tax on gross income earned
Exemptions from import duties & taxes on imported machinery, equipment and raw materials
Additional deduction of up to 50% of training expenses
Permanent resident status for foreign investors with initial investments of at least US$ 150,000
Employment of non-resident aliens required in the operation of IT Enterprises
Other incentives, as may be determined by the PEZA Board