Standing approximately 1,004 ft high, the Shard is currently the tallest building in the European Union. It is the second tallest free-standing structure in the United Kingdom after the concrete tower at the Emley Moor transmitting station. The glass-clad pyramidal tower has 72 habitable floors, with a viewing gallery and open-air observation deck – the UK's highest – on the 72nd floor, at a height of 802 ft. It was designed by the Italian architect Renzo Piano and replaced Southwark Towers, a 24-storey office block built on the site in Southwark in 1975.