The clock consists of four faces equipped with the size of the two front and rear faces amounting to 43X43 meters and the size of the side fronts reaching 43X39 meters. The four faces were also equipped with devices which emit laser beams on various occasions in addition to light signals at the time of the call to prayer. For protection against dust, wind and rain, the clock is equipped with a comprehensive system of protection from these elements. The length of the Arabic letter 'alif' in the phrase "Allah Akbar" (God is great) which can be seen above the watch is more than 23 meters and the diameter of the crescent is 23 meter making it the world's biggest man-made crescent. The electricity required to operate the Makkah al-Mukarramah Clock comes from solar panels, and it is connected to the Makkah al-Mukarramah electric power grid for extra power. The gross weight of the clock is 36,000 tons, constructed on an 14,000 pieces of iron chassis weighing nearly 12,000 tons. Some of the clock's heaviest parts weigh as big as nearly 15 tons. Around 250 highly-silled laborers were recruited to achieve the iron works of the clock, particularly to fix and install the highest parts of the clock tower as well as the iron chassis at a highet of 600 meters. --More 14:26 LOCAL TIME 11:26 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w