China Construction: Shouldering the Dream of a Great National Brand

　　Pakistan Peshawar-Lahore Expressway (financed by Export-Import Bank of China), Brunei Temburong Bridge, Congo (Brazzaville) National Highway No. 1, Grand Mosque of Algiers, Alexander Hamilton Bridge in the United States, Baha Mar Resort in the Bahamas... Did you know that these landmark buildings, which make people around the world proud, are all "Made in China", or more precisely, are the outstanding works of a Chinese central enterprise – China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC)? Not only that, 90% of China's super high-rise buildings over 300 meters, 3/4 of key airports, 3/4 of satellite launch bases, 1/2 of nuclear power plants, 1/3 of urban utility tunnels, etc., domestic key engineering projects that are "high, difficult, urgent, risky, and heavy" are also built by CSCEC.

　　Today marks the "China Brand Day" since its approval by the State Council. As a central enterprise, China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) has also presented gifts to the motherland with numerous challenging landmark buildings. For decades, relying on superb technology, excellent quality, and trustworthy performance, CSCEC has used its brand image to win trust, honor, and a larger and broader market for Chinese brands and even China's image. CSCEC employees worldwide are turning their brand dreams into national calling cards, shouldering the nation's brand aspirations. The brand story of "China State Construction" is both the experience of one of the world's largest investment and construction enterprises and a footnote to the era.

　　Brands are a nation's calling card.

　　Brands are a nation's calling card and an important manifestation of national soft power. Building internationally renowned brands often generates tremendous exemplary power, enhances national pride and confidence, drives global resource allocation and market expansion, and strengthens a nation's voice in the global economic system.

　　The Communist Party of China and the Chinese government have always paid close attention to brand development and have consistently placed brands at the highest point of national strategy. The Central Committee of the Party issued an important instruction to "promote the transformation of Chinese products into Chinese brands"; the government work report pointed out the need to "create more 'Chinese brands' renowned worldwide"; the "13th Five-Year Plan Outline" proposed to "strengthen quality and brand building"; and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (SASAC) issued the "Guiding Opinions on Strengthening Brand Building of Central Enterprises," pointing the way for central enterprises to build international brands.

　　China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) actively responds to the calls and deployments of the Party and the state, taking the creation of the "China State Construction" brand and assisting the "China Construction" brand as an undeniable responsibility of the era. Combining the characteristics of the investment and construction industry, it accurately positions itself, drives industry progress, innovates ideas, completes top-level design, and makes solid progress to ensure practical work results.

　　China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) entered the Fortune Global 500 in 2006, ranking 486th. After eleven years of striving, it leaped to 27th place in 2016. For two consecutive years, it has received the highest global credit ratings in the industry from the world's three renowned credit rating agencies: S&P, Moody's, and Fitch. It was also awarded the highest honor in the quality field by the Chinese government – the China Quality Award.

　　In response, Guan Qing, Chairman of China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC), stated, "An excellent internationalized enterprise must possess a globally renowned brand and a more influential and inspiring corporate culture."

　　After years of development, the "China State Construction" brand image has gained widespread recognition in the domestic market and the international community, gradually becoming a beautiful calling card for "China Construction." The "China State Construction" brand has been selected for the "World's 500 Most Influential Brands" list compiled by World Brand Lab for 5 consecutive years; it ranked 44th in Brand Finance's "Brand Finance Global 500 2016" ranking, one of the world's five authoritative brand valuation agencies; and it was awarded the title of "Excellent Brand Building Enterprise" by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council.

　　The Soul of the Brand

　　China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) deeply recognizes that a company's culture and brand are symbiotic and interdependent. To become an internationally competitive investment and construction group, CSCEC relies heavily on culture to accelerate brand building, designing a brand work system and plan with high standards and starting points. It has focused on key matters such as establishing a brand system, integrating brand influence with cultural connotations, and unifying brand promotion with cultural publicity.

　　Amidst the stormy transition from China's planned economy to a market economy, China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) has innovated through inheritance and made breakthroughs through competition. Its brand and cultural development have also undergone a process from spontaneity to consciousness, from "crossing the river by feeling the stones" to top-level design.

　　In 1996, China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) was the first in China's construction industry to introduce the CI (Corporate Identity) strategy, implementing cultural integration and brand unification, and vigorously promoting the "China State Construction" brand building, laying an image and cultural foundation for the company's rapid development. In particular, the "trinity" cultural construction project of cultural philosophy, CI strategy, and behavioral norms became a breakthrough for internal brand-culture integration within the group and an example for peers to learn from externally, generating positive social impact. It spurred a whirlwind among domestic construction enterprises to create CI images, effectively promoting the improvement of civilized construction levels in the construction industry.

　　By implementing comprehensive and multi-faceted image coverage for projects, China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) found a vehicle for brand building and communication through visual image design. Simultaneously, it organically integrated the CI strategy with project management, creating a new project management model of "process excellence, price-value separation, and CI image." This model displays the brand image with high reputation, high intensity, and high impact information, allowing the "China State Construction" brand, along with the image of "garden-style" construction sites, to deeply resonate with people.

　　In 2012, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC), the "CSCEC Credo" was officially released, followed by the promulgation of the behavioral norm manual "Ten Canons and Nine Chapters." This marked the formal establishment of CSCEC's brand culture system with "Expanding Happy Space" as its mission, "Quality Assurance, Value Creation" as its core values, and "Integrity, Innovation, Transcendence, Win-win" as its spiritual core.

　　Thereafter, a group of personified pioneers, represented by Chen Chaoying, Lu Jianxin, Zhai Saihong, Wang Hua, Zhou Yuqi, and others, continuously emerged. Through the deeds of these pioneers, "CSCEC Credo" and "Ten Canons and Nine Chapters" resonated deeply, becoming the entire group's pursuit of values and behavioral norms, making active responsibility and the spirit of craftsmanship a universal pursuit and conscious action for all CSCEC employees.

　　At the same time, China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) integrates brand building with management improvement. By driving innovation in corporate management philosophies, systems, mechanisms, and methods through core value concepts and behavioral guidance, it promotes enterprise transformation and upgrading; by carrying out systematic top-level design, it enhances the scientific level of overall brand and cultural building; by promoting a unified brand image and clarifying parent-subsidiary brand relationships, it forms CSCEC's "brand galaxy." The spiritual foundation and value pursuit of the enterprise's business philosophy are increasingly integrated into the larger "China State Construction" brand, ensuring continuous improvement of brand reputation. Professional sub-brands like CSCEC Design and CSCEC Steel Structure have become preferred choices for owners in relevant fields, and China Overseas Land & Investment (COLI) has ranked among the top in brand value for 13 consecutive years.