The first tall building with a metal frame in Romania is the Telephone Palace

The Palace of Telephones is a representative building of Bucharest, being the first tall building with a metal frame in Romania. With a height of 52.5 m, it was once the tallest building in Bucharest.

Built between 1929 and 1933, in a style specific to American skyscrapers. The building has representative characteristics of the Art Deco style. The choice of this architectural style was not accidental: the telephone was considered a symbol of progress, and this architectural style conveyed, at the time, the same ideas.

Tall building with a metal frame – its realization and benefits

The metal skeleton of the palace was executed by Uzinele de Fier si Domeniile Resita (U.D.R.). The largest interwar company in the field of steel and metallurgy, founded in 1920 in Resita. In the interwar period, the UDR grew permanently. These end up holding a monopolistic position in numerous branches of the steel and metallurgical industry.

The evolution of tall buildings is closely related to the development of cities. Steel structures are used in all aspects of modern life, including logistics, retail, commercial and manufacturing, providing the infrastructure that society depends on.

In the multi-storey construction sector. The benefits of steel depend to a large extent on the „fast” nature of the construction process. The high speed of construction leads to financial, management and logistics benefits.

One of the main benefits of using steel for a building is that it is very light while maintaining a high level of resistance. The flexibility of steel will allow a building to easily survive moderate seismic activity without causing real structural damage.

The architectural plans of the building were signed by the architects Louis Weeks, Walter Froy and Edmond Van Saanen Algi. Compared to the initial appearance, the building was enlarged by raising the rear body (from 2 to 4 floors) and by adding new spaces to the main tower.

It is important to specify that this building survived the earthquakes of 1940, 1977, 1986 and 1990. Also, the Allied bombing of 1944. Currently, the Telephone Palace is declared a category B historical monument. This fact implies that the building’s lobby cannot be modified, exterior cladding and the eighth floor.