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CNR on right lines for world rail leadership

By Wang Danna (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-07-21 15:56

The first half of 2009 has proved another bumper period for China CNR Corporation Limited (CNR), a leading manufacturer of railway transport equipment in China. It has seen a huge surge in orders from overseas customers, successfully completed a number of high-profile international projects and made major inroads towards becoming a truly global brand.

In first half of this year alone, CNR signed export contracts worth $660 million. This compares with the $1.1 billion worth of contracts signed in the whole of last year, a figure that cemented CNR's market-leading position.

Cui Dianguo, CNR's chairman, was ebullient: "Through technology import, joint venture operations, product exportation and a growing reputation for having both a quality after-sales service and a real rapport with our customer base, CNR has built up a huge number of mutually beneficial business relationships with both international and domestic clients."

In line with the rapid economic growth in many of China's other industrial sectors, CNR's globally-aspirant management committed themselves to developing the business on an international basis.

A clearly delighted Zhao Guangxing, deputy CEO of CNR, said: "Our policy of going global has paid dividends. We have proved that our skills are world-class and that our products can meet the expectations of even the most demanding international clients."

Once assured of its world-class credentials, CNR then began an aggressive marketing campaign that saw it establishing a high-profile presence at a number of international trade fairs and expos.

According to Cao Guobing, general manager of CNR's global business department, it is a policy that has more than paid off: "We are now confident that we can meet the needs of clients in the locomotive and rolling stock industry anywhere in the world."

Cao ascribes the company's global success to a number of factors, including central government support, its own highly-efficient internal systems, the excellent price-performance ratio of its products and its ability to work to highly-competitive delivery schedules.

A benchmark result of this globally-competitive policy came on July 1 this year when CNR delivered its first four stainless steel double-deck coaches to New South Wales, Australia's most populous state. The coaches began their journey on May 6 when they were freighted out of Dalian to become the first Chinese passenger coaches ever accepted for service in a developed country.

A total of 626 double-deck passenger coaches and 4,136 heavy haul freight wagons manufactured by CNR are now set to enter the Australian market.

As fast as it has been delivering on contracts, CNR has also been signing new ones. On June 20 the company entered into a deal to supply 20 diesel electric locomotives to New Zealand. According to the contract, CNR has undertaken to deliver the first six locomotives to KiwiRail, New Zealand's leading transport operator, within 10 months.

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Away from the Antipodes, the company has also been making significant inroads into South America and the Middle East. At the end of June, CNR signed a contract with the government of Brazil to supply 30 electric multiple units (EMUs). The deal, worth some 1.2 billion yuan ($176 million), was signed in Beijing's Great Hall of the People and is a key part in Brazil's drive to create a major upgrade for its public transport network.

Back in April, CNR was also appointed to supply 17 sets of its 204 type A metro cars to Saudi Arabia. The cars will go into operation in November 2010 on lines to Mecca and will help ease congestion during the busy pilgrimage month.

Lin Wanli, deputy Party secretary of CNR, is confident that the company will continue to remain buoyant: "Even though the economic downturn is still a problem for many countries, this has not had a knock-on effect to our workshops. We currently have a packed order book that will take us well into 2012."

With an export business that now encompasses nearly 50 countries and regions across the world, "Made by CNR" has become a powerful international brand. It is now firmly established as a preferred supplier throughout the Middle East, Southern Asia, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Australia, Africa, and Latin America.

As well as its success in internal restructuring and export sales, CNR has also considerably expanded its overseas research and production facilities. This has seen it launch joint venture operations in both Iran and Mexico. This expansion has further enhanced CNR's reputation as a world-class manufacturer of railway transport equipment.

Commenting on the company's transformation in recent years, Sun Yongcai, chief engineer of CNR, said: "CNR is a hugely competitive player in the international market for railway transportation equipment. It now has state-of-the-art R&D, design, manufacture, maintenance and after-sales facilities."