Leaving a lasting imprint of friendship in New York

Construction company expands reach in the United States with partnerships, reports Zhang Yuwei

From looking at the renovated Alexander Hamilton Bridge between Manhattan and the Bronx, or the new ventilation shafts for New York's No 7 subway line extension and the Yankee Stadium Station, you would not realize that they all have a Chinese company as their construction general contractor.

The China Construction America projects in New York are among more than a dozen the company has in the country.

CCA has come a long way since establishing its US operations in New York nearly 30 years ago. That success did not come easily.

"There have been quite some ups and downs in the past three decades, especially during the first 15 years," said Yuan Ning, president of CCA.

CCA is the US subsidiary of China State Construction Engineering Corp Ltd, the top global contractor as ranked by ENR, an industry magazine.

Like many Chinese companies that would face challenges in overseas markets, CCA spent much of its first 15 years learning about the business environment in the US, which accounts for about 2 percent of the parent company's total revenue. The importance and potential of that market are reasons why CCA has persevered.

"Persistence is the key," Yuan said, referring to what the company has learned most in operating its business in the US. "We understand that it would take some time for us to get a better understanding of this market, and we need patience to achieve what we had planned for the US market."

The company had to pay large sums for its initial investments in real estate projects in the US. It eventually took the company about 15 years to wrap up those projects before it moved on to construction management.

In 2012, CCA was awarded a contract with the New York State Department of Transportation and began the reconstruction of the Staten Island expressway and bus/high-occupancy vehicle lane extension. The $109 million deal was the first CCA won as an independent contractor in the state of New York, said Yuan.

Yuan leads some 1,000 employees of CCA in the US. The company's workforce grew rapidly in the past 10 years along with the projects, and 90 percent of the employees are local hires, according to Yuan.

"We have stepped up staff training, which is part of our effort to strengthen our corporate culture so that we are a responsible local corporate citizen," Yuan said.

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