Derzhprom, the House of State Industry, is the first Soviet skyscraper. Built in the constructivist style between 1925 and 1928, it stands 13 storeys high as an enduring architectural monument on Maidan Svobody (Freedom Square) in central Kharkiv.
The Derzhprom itself is 63 meters high, and together with the television tower, built in 1954, it reaches 108 meters. The usable area of the building is 60,000 m², and the entire plot covers 10,760 m².
Derzhprom was the first building in the world to be built from monolithic reinforced concrete, using 1,315 wagonloads of cement, 9,000 tons of metal, 3,700 wagonloads of granite and 40,000 m² of glass. The building has 4,500 window openings and 17 hectares of exterior glazing. The skyscraper features 12 elevators, 7 of which have been in operation without replacement since it was opened in 1928.
The building was damaged during the Second World War. Before the German troops withdrew in August 1943, a series of bombing raids and arson attacks damaged the parquet floors and window frames and resulted in the doors being burnt down. The restoration of the tower block took until 1947 to complete. The Derzhprom is a candidate for the provisional list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.