A new high! Tower gets crowning glory

Shanghai Tower reached its full height of 632 meters, with the final beam placed on top of its 20-story crown structure.

A crane on top of the skyscraper hoisted the final 3-meter beam — tied with a red ribbon for the occasion — from the ground and carefully lowered it into position.

The crown includes a sightseeing platform at the 560-meter mark and floors for power and telecommunications equipment.

It also features a state-of-the-art damping system to stabilize the 137-floor skyscraper.

The 15 billion yuan (US$2.42 billion) tower in the Lujiazui financial hub in the Pudong New Area is the world's second-tallest building — surpassed only by Dubai's Burj Khalifa, which soars to 829.8m.

However, it will slip to third-tallest in 2016, with the completion of the 660-meter Ping'an International Financial Center in Shenzhen, in the southern province of Guangdong.

Along with the neighboring 492-meter Shanghai World Financial Center and the 420-meter Jin Mao Tower, Shanghai Tower is intended to cement Lujiazui's reputation as a center for top financial companies and corporate headquarters.

Work began in 2008, and the tower, which includes four underground stories, is scheduled to open by late 2015.

It will feature offices, stores, a hotel and cultural facilities.

The crown will include a 2,000-square-meter screen and lighting system for light and laser shows, said Ge Qing, chief engineer for the Shanghai Tower construction project.