EST (European Solar Telescope) is a 4-m class solar telescope, which is currently in the conceptual design phase. EST will be located in the Canary Islands and will aim at high spectral, spatial and temporal resolution observations in the photosphere and chromosphere, using a suite of instruments that can produce efficiently two-dimensional spectropolarimetric information of the thermal, dynamic and magnetic properties of the plasma over many scale heights. The pier is defined as the construction that supports the telescope and the enclosure. It needs a certain height to minimize daytime ground turbulence. At the bottom of the pier a large instrument lab is located, 16 m in diameter and 10 m high. To the pier is attached a service building that accommodates all auxiliary services, possibly together with a separate building. Solid concrete- and open framework piers are compared, in terms of stability, thermal properties and flow characteristics and building structures in terms of construction issues. FE and CFD analysis are used to give qualitative insight in the differences between the alternatives. The preferred alternative is a cone shaped pier surrounded by an open framework.