DAILY Wednesday, August 24, 2016 special 15

LOCAL

GOVT SETS A worker at a Chenchun plant shows a visitor the high- quality marble slabs that are produced by the company. YANG JUN / CHINA DAILY ITS FUTURE Enterprise taps PLANS IN city’s rich and growing market

STONE By YANG JUN and LI JIAXU

For many centuries, people in Anshun have viewed the city’s rich stone resources as the driving force of the local economy. Stones have long been used in the city to build houses, make furniture and many di erent kinds of handicraft items. And today, as the city in ’s Stone craftworks created by artists from Anshun and across China are displayed at the fi rst Guizhou International Stone Exposition. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY devises plans to develop its stone industry into a local economic pillar, the business community has begun to tap the huge potential of the abundant natural resource. By YANG JUN and DONG XIANWU city now has 12 large and medium-sized According to local statistics, Anshun’s stone reserve If you go stone processing enterprises, which can with industrial value stands at roughly 36.7 billion nshun, a city in Southwest Chi- produce 34.5 million square meters of cubic meters, including yellow, gray and black-grained na’s Guizhou province, has a stone products per year. marble, all of which are well-known in the international long history of using stones as The second Guizhou International Stone Exposition will be held in the Duocai marketplace. A building materials. Wanxiang Tourism City in the Anshun Economic and Technological Development Industry park plan Anshun’s stone products are currently sold to numer- During the early years of the Ming Zone. Last December, the Anshun city gov- ous regions and countries including the United States, Dynasty (1368-1644), Emperor Zhu The site is 4.5 kilometers west of Anshun city ernment released a plan for establish- the Middle East, Italy, Japan, South Korea and Africa. Yuanzhang sent a 300,000-strong army center and about 99 km southwest of , ing a Belt and Road Stone Industry One leading local enterprise that has attracted sig- to quash a rebellion in the southwestern the provincial capital of Guizhou. Park. nificant international attention is Chenchun Stone part of China. Those arriving in Guizhou by plane should Guizhou The park is located in Dingqi town- Industry Co Ltd. Later, when the army was stationed transfer to Anshun at the Jinyang Bus Terminal. Guiyang ship in Zhenning county, some 27 kilo- The company was established in the Anshun Stone in Anshun, many of the rank and fi le Numerous buses run from Anshun to the Anshun meters from Anshun city center. Industry Park in 2012, and with total investment of soldiers and officers settled in the Duocai Wanxiang Tourism City, and you can According to the plan, the park will nearly 1.5 billion yuan ($225 million), it will become region to start families and work on the also take a coach from the Guizhou Provincial Guangxi be home to some 300 stone processing fully operational next month. reclaimed farmland while still serving Stadium Coach Station. Coaches are available and trading enterprises by 2020, and According to company executives, Chenchun expects as active members of the army. from 7 am and run every 30 minutes. they will produce 60 million square to produce 1 billion yuan worth of products this year. They left a number of precious lega- If you plan to take a self-drive tour, the site meters of stone products and generate “We have secured so many orders thanks to the high cies including the ancient vil- can be reached via the Guiyang-Huangguoshu annual sales volume of 5 billion yuan. quality of the local stones that we’ve had to arrange lages which are scattered throughout Expressway or 320 National Highway. CHINA DAILY The plan said the park will produce additional work shifts to meet the demand,” said Tang Anshun. Tunbao means “fortress”, and 70 million square meters of stone Shuhua, purchasing manager at Chenchun. the people that lived in the villages are building materials and up to 2 million He said the company’s most popular product among called the “Tunbao People”. pieces of stone craftwork annually by international buyers is its black-grained marble slab. The Tunbao villages are a real king- rently as an important part of the expo. are optimistic that the expo will help 2025, with yearly sales revenue of 30 Tang noted that Chenchun now has Anshun’s largest dom of stones that feature cobbled The first stone expo had attracted upgrade the stone industry in Anshun billion yuan. single stone processing plant, with a capacity to produce roads and numerous stone construc- about 110,000 visitors, including 15,000 by attracting more investors and mod- It is predicted that the park will 4 million square meters of slabs per year. tions. industry professionals. ern technologies. create up to 25,000 jobs for local peo- “About 85 percent of our raw materials are from local In Anshun, the widespread use of Agreements on 24.3 billion yuan Li Chenchun, chairman of Chenchun ple, giving a strong boost to the local mines, which means that we make substantial savings stones as building materials continues ($3.66 billion) worth of investment Stone Industry Co Ltd, said that previ- economy. on both time and transportation costs,” added Wu Hon- to this day. deals and 32.25 billion yuan worth of ously, local companies had only been In addition, the park will promote gwen, administrative manager at Chenchun. Marble is an abundant resource in trade deals were signed during engaged in the lower end of the value the development of a number of Tang described the Guizhou International Stone counties such as Zhenning, Ziyun, the expo. chain due to a lack of brand promo- related industries including construc- Exposition, which will be held in Anshun from Aug 26 Guanling and Puding. It is widely used Marco Maher Laila, tion, capital and technology. tion, logistics, fi nancial, catering and to 29, as a great opportunity for the company to learn, as an ornamental item for furnishing deputy chairman of the “Most of the stone products advertising, with an estimated annual expand its network and secure more orders. the interior of buildings and is also Canadian Chamber of were not manufactured in output value of up to 8 billion yuan. “We will also have the opportunity to contact lead- used by artists for sculptures and carv- Commerce in South Anshun, we only sold Building on the success of the fi rst ing domestic and foreign equipment and technology ings. China, described raw materials,” Li Guizhou International Stone Expo- providers,” Tang said. The modern stone processing indus- the expo as “a said. sition, Anshun will host the second Anshun Stone Industry Park’s location means that it try in Anshun began in the early 1980s, gala that gathers The stone expo edition of the expo from Aug 26 to 29. can be easily reached via nearby highways and railways, however the development of the sector the best stone has brought more According to the event’s organizers, and this is another draw for local enterprises such as was somewhat ponderous until the Gui- products from investors and 240 companies, including 30 from Chenchun, Tang added. zhou provincial government proposed China and the modern tech- overseas, will exhibit their products, “Transportation is the major cost consideration for a an industry-specifi c plan in 2010. world”, and nology, and as a technologies and services at the expo. stone processing company,” he explained. Seeing its rich resources and market expressed his result, Anshun’s In addition to the second National The labor-intensive nature of the region’s stone pro- potential, businesses from outside Gui- hope that the stone industry Stone Carving and Design Competi- cessing sector means that it has long played a crucial zhou began to invest in Anshun’s stone event would has grown in scale tion, a national congress for stone role in terms of o ering employment to local people. industry. Local fi rms including Chenc- promote the in the past year. quarries and mines and a series of Chenchun now employs about 600 people, more than hun, Zhongzhang and Boji have since development According to the business promotional fairs will be 80 percent of whom are locals. displayed strong growth momentum. of Guizhou’s Anshun Com- held during the expo. Chen Dajun, 35, who is head of the production divi- stone industry. mittee of Indus- sion at Chenchun, is a local resident. Global exposure Local entre- try and Infor- contact the writers through yangjun@ “I have worked at Chenchun since it was founded. To help launch the industry on a preneurs mation, the chinadaily.com.cn My monthly salary of more than 8,000 yuan is perfectly global scale, Anshun hosted the fi rst satisfactory, as are the food and lodgings provided by Guizhou International Stone Exposi- the company,” Chen said, adding that he is able to visit tion from Oct 29 to 31 last year. Eyes of Wisdom: The stone that was featured his family at weekends because his home is nearby. The fi rst National Stone Carving and at last year’s stone expo is a gold-award winner Local companies also attach great importance to the Design Competition was held concur- at an exhibition in Anshun in 2007. Industry workplace health and safety of their employees. insiders estimate its value at 270 million yuan According to Tang, Chenchun has invested about 30 ($40.7 million). PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY million yuan in dust removal and the treatment of water used for dust removal. “Our marble mining operation is also well planned. We ensure that the land is left in a usable condition after we have completed our mining operations. It can then Exposition showcases region’s natural treasures be used for real estate development or as farmland after it has been fi lled in,” Wu said. Stone processing companies are also using the latest By ZHUAN TI to visit the Singe Stone Expo Garden in Anshun Eco- Exhibits in the fossil museum include fossils of technology to upgrade their production and expand [email protected] nomic and Technological Development Zone, which is ancient fi sh, dinosaurs and other ancient organisms. their sales network. the largest exhibition venue in China for precious and Perhaps the most eye-catching item on display is the For instance, Tianyun Fashion, another major local The annual Guizhou International Stone Exposition unusual stones. “New China Dragon”, a 17-meter-long dinosaur fossil player, is using big data to improve its product design held in Anshun is both a stage for businesspeople and The garden was established in 2004, with a total discovered in Guanling county. It was so named because and expand its sales network. investors and a gala that will draw fans of precious and investment of 3 billion yuan ($451 million). With a fl oor it resembles the legendary Chinese animal. Local companies are hopeful that the upcoming stone unusual stones and rocks including fossils, gems, min- space of nearly 40,000 square meters, the facility has A number of locally produced precious stones are dis- expo will provide them with valuable new business eral crystals and other ornamental stones. 28 exhibition halls that house about 40,000 collections. played in the 10 exhibitions halls, with those produced opportunities. Enthusiasts planning to visit this year’s expo, which The facility consists of a museum for paleontological in Machang township, , featuring a great “We will cooperate with Wulishi Co Ltd, a leading will take place from Aug 26 to 29, are recommended fossils and 10 exhibition halls. variety of colors and patterns. stone processing company from Fujian, to arrange a joint show at the expo,” said Tang of Chenchun. To facilitate trade for local companies, Anshun has established the Southwest Stone Products Trading Center. The comprehensive facility for trade, exhibition and culture will cover more than 360 hectares. According to Yang Peishu, project manager of the center, the project will be the largest stone products trading facility in the world upon completion. With an investment of about 1 billion yuan, the proj- ect’s fi rst phase is expected to become operational in 2017. Yang said the fi rst phase can accommodate about 200 companies. Zhou Jikun, Party chief of Anshun, said the center will give a strong boost to the local stone industry by bring- New China Dragon: It is unearthed in Flying Red Flag: The upper portion of Flying Chang’e: The stone discoverd in Robe of the God of Longevity: The stone ing in more investment and technology to tap into and Guanling county and is said to be the fossil the stone is reminisent of the color of the Machang township is so named as its has several colors, resembling a robe that develop the abundant local resources. of an ancient marine reptile that lived national fl ag. This is a “national red” stone grains resemble a fairy from Chinese is worn by the god according to legends. around 220 million years ago. that is native to Machang township. legend. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY contact the writers through [email protected]