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CIOB to beef up presence in Chinese mainland

By Yu Hongyan (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2009-01-12 16:31

The Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB), a global body of building professionals, expects its membership in Chinese mainland to grow 15 to 20 percent annually over the next few years, according to its regional manager Bryan He.

The UK-based CIOB, which specializes in construction management, has more than 43,000 members spreading across 100 countries. Of this 1,300 members are from the Chinese mainland.

"We saw a 33 percent increase in our mainland membership last year," said He. "We have set a goal for the institute to expand by 15 to 20 percent in future to ensure the high standard in our members' professionalism."

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is CIOB's largest branch outside the UK, while the Chinese mainland is one of the fastest growing regions in terms of membership enrollment, He said.

CIOB China has three offices in Beijing, Chongqing and Shanghai, and plans to set up another office in Guangzhou to cover its business in southern China, according to He.

The CIOB develops educational standards in construction at a national and international level. Since its entry into China, it has set up cooperation programs with the country's Ministry of Construction, now known as Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, as well as major building enterprises and prestigious universities.

To enhance its influence in China, the CIOB members will focus on fundamental research in key issues within the construction industry to enhance China's construction standards, where construction safety problems remain a headache, said He.