International Foundation Engineering Exchange

Opportunities for Chinese Enterprises Undertaking Foundation Construction Projects in Thailand
International Foundation Engineering Exchange

In January 2023, Foundation Engineering Network and Luyinghui International joined hands to establish the "Foundation Engineering Network International Brand Service Center" in Wuxi, Jiangsu, aiming to combine Luyinghui International's global offline site resources and Foundation Engineering Network's communication influence in the foundation engineering industry to provide international industry information services for domestic foundation engineering enterprises. This year, the domestic foundation engineering industry has been sluggish, and overseas construction business has become the focus of everyone's attention—but is overseas business really easy to do?

Photo of Sun Jinshan, President of Foundation Engineering Network Magazine, and Xin Peng, Chairman of Taixin Machinery

Foundation Engineering Network specially invited Manager Zhang Hefei, who is stationed at Luyinghui International's Thailand project department, to analyze the current situation and opportunities for Chinese enterprises undertaking foundation engineering construction projects in Thailand.

Zhang Hefei, Project Manager of Luyinghui International, in dialogue and exchange with Peter (Thailand), General Manager Cao Gaojun of Wenzhou Zhenzhong

Group photo at the international engineering exchange site

01. Undertaking construction in Thailand requires a relationship-based economy

Domestic foundation engineering enterprises, especially small and medium-sized foundation construction enterprises, have no overseas construction experience at all, but if they want to undertake foundation construction projects in Thailand, what do they need to do first?

Zhang Hefei said that when expanding into international markets, we place great importance on close cooperation with local partners. Our development of the Thai market was built on the foundation of our ten-year cooperation with our Thai client Peter. Ten years ago, Peter purchased only one of our rotary drilling rigs, TYSIM. With the gradual development of Thailand's infrastructure construction, Peter's business also expanded rapidly, and now he owns 22 of our rotary drilling rigs. Over time, our cooperation has gradually expanded from simple equipment purchases to comprehensive in-depth cooperation, including technical support, project management, and many other aspects. This long-term cooperative relationship is not merely commercial; it is more like trust and rapport between friends, and this has laid a solid foundation for our steady development in the Thai market.

02. Undertaking construction in Thailand requires preparation for hardship

Although Thailand is very close to China, it is, after all, a foreign country, with different culture, policies, and geographical environment, so is construction in Thailand actually very difficult?

Zhang Hefei said that although Thailand's market development is not as fast as our country's, it has very strict requirements for construction control. For example, at one of our current soil mixing sites, core parameters such as pressure, flow rate, rotation speed, and lifting speed must all be strictly controlled within specified ranges. The strict requirements for these parameters mean that we need to carry out repeated adjustments many times before we can meet the strict requirements of the general contractor. Although these strict requirements have brought considerable challenges to our preliminary work, they have also forced us to continuously optimize and improve our technology, laying a solid foundation for future projects. It can be said that these challenges have not only enhanced our technical capabilities but also strengthened our confidence in handling complex projects. Of course, different food, hot weather, and mosquitoes and venomous snakes all around are also matters requiring extreme attention.

Thailand construction site

03. Undertaking construction in Thailand requires long-term planning
So, are Thailand's infrastructure construction opportunities just a flash in the pan? In other words, can this be done for the long term?

Zhang Hefei said that on the whole, the Thai market is relatively small in scale, but in recent years, with the continuous advancement of Thailand's infrastructure construction, construction projects and equipment demand are growing steadily. We have observed that if market layout and strategy adjustments can be carried out reasonably, the Thai market is an area very much worth cultivating in depth. Especially at present, the Thai government is vigorously promoting infrastructure construction, which has brought us many opportunities. We believe that through long-term investment and patient market cultivation, the Thai market will bring us considerable returns.

Technical personnel exchanging on site

04. Undertaking construction in Thailand requires win-win cooperation

Safety and trust are always the ** guarantee. If one really undertakes foundation construction projects in Thailand, is there a most suitable cooperation model?

Zhang Hefei said that our cooperation model is built on the basis of full trust and in-depth cooperation. Specifically, Peter is responsible for undertaking local business and market development, while our Luyinghui International provides comprehensive technical support and labor services. This cooperation model not only gives play to the advantages of both sides but also ensures the smooth progress of projects. In terms of profit, we adopt a proportional profit-sharing method to ensure that both sides can obtain reasonable returns from the cooperation. This cooperation model has not only enhanced mutual trust but also laid a solid foundation for the long-term cooperation between both sides.

05. Undertaking construction in Thailand requires full confidence

If one wants to use Thailand as a base and then strive for foundation construction business across the whole of Southeast Asia, is that possible?

Zhang Hefei said that Thailand has a one-hour time difference from China, and the infrastructure market in Southeast Asia as a whole lags considerably behind our country. Much of the construction equipment is still second-hand or even third-hand equipment from Japan or Europe, and some equipment has even been in use for more than thirty years. At present, a large batch of old equipment urgently needs to be updated, and the equipment produced in our country is known for its high quality and low price, giving it strong competitiveness in the Southeast Asian market. We believe that as Southeast Asian countries continue to invest in infrastructure construction, market demand for high-quality, cost-effective equipment will continue to grow. Therefore, I am full of confidence in and expectations for the Southeast Asian market, and I believe this will be an important growth region for us in the future.

Machinery in operation on site

Bravely venturing into the world and using innovation and determination to help foundation engineering enterprises achieve success—this is the goal and vision set when the Foundation Engineering Network International Brand Center was established. Through this online exchange and Manager Zhang Hefei's sharing from Luyinghui International, we have gained a deeper understanding of the efforts and achievements in the Thai and Southeast Asian markets.

In the days to come, our Foundation Engineering Brand Service Center will also conduct online interviews with partners around the world and share more foundation engineering information with all enterprises. We look forward to more people from the foundation engineering industry coming to the Jiangsu Wuxi Foundation Engineering Industry Service Center to talk about industry information, and to joining hands with more partners in the future to jointly explore and develop the international foundation engineering industry market and achieve greater success.