Alfa Tech VestAsia
Invest in SE Asia Asia Outlook talks to Zach Wilson, the Managing Director of Alfa Tech VestAsia, and learns more about the company's growth in Southeast Asia. Writer Ian Armitage Project manager James Mitchell When Zach Wilson set about establishing Alfa Tech VestAsia he was regularly told he was "wasting his time" and "didn't stand a chance". For a while it looked as though the critics were right. Despite successfully entering the market in 2007 - thanks to long time partner Ultratech who needed help in setting up its own operations in Singapore - it was several months before the next contract was signed. "Moving to a new market is difficult," says Wilson, Managing Director of Singapore-based Alfa Tech VestAsia (ATVA). "It is even more difficult when that market is a mature market. We built this business from scratch and carving out a niche wasn't easy. After we finished the Ultratech job we didn't have any concrete opportunities. Eventually we won several prospects and we haven't looked back." ATVA is today renowned for an almost unrelenting focus on customer service and delivery. Wilson says, "It is like a restaurant, if you go somewhere and have bad service and terrible food, which is late and cold, you don't go back. And you certainly don't tip. We want to make sure people come back and tip!" The result is a brand that even its biggest competitors envy. "There is great potential here," Wilson says. "Despite the global downturn Asia-Pacific economies continue to grow and as international businesses -…
Lian Beng Construction
Dare to dream It pays to dream big. And dream big is what Lian Beng has done. Within the first four months of 2013, it has secured six construction projects worth about S$750 million, taking its orderbook to record highs. Construction Director Jeffrey Teo tells us more. Writer Ian Armitage Project manager James Mitchell In 1978, Ong Pang Aik joined his father to help run the family business. At the time, the company, Lian Beng, was a civil engineering sub-contractor. Mr Ong wanted more. He wanted to expand. It was his dream and a lot can be said for the power of the dream – he helped grow Lian Beng from a subcontractor that took on small-scale civil engineering a to a Building and Construction Authority Grade A1 main contractor, and subsequently to an SGX-listed company with close to $250 million in market capitalisation and an annual turnover of close to $450 million . Today Lian Beng's wholly-owned subsidiary, Lian Beng Construction, is the chief revenue driver. While it has gone into property development and continues to grow along the value chain into other construction support services such as ready mixed concrete, construction equipment and machinery leasing and engineering works, they are a secondary focus. "While we have ventured into property development and other fields, construction remains our group's main business, forming more than 75 percent of our turnover," Mr Ong said in a recent interview. Notable on-going construction projects include Thomson Grand, developed by the Cheung Kong Group from Hong Kong, Waterfront Isles, developed by…
China’s economic growth slows
China's economy, the world's second largest, has slowed and performed worse than expected in the first three months of the year. Annual growth was 7.7 percent in the first quarter of this year, down from the previous quarter's 7.9 percent, the government said on Monday. That fell short of many forecasts which predicted growth would accelerate slightly to eight percent. China's economy expanded 7.8 percent in 2012, its slowest pace for 13 years. Inflation hit a 10-month high of 3.2 percent in February, up from January's 2.0 percent. Beijing has set a 7.5 percent GDP growth target for 2013. Image: © Kitsen | Dreamstime Stock Photos & Stock Free Images Copyright is owned by Asia Outlook and/or Outlook Publishing. All rights reserved.
