초록
"The world is flat" as the popular author Thomas L. Friedman declares in his best belling book about the progress of business globalization in the $21^{st}$ century [3]. Construction projects and related businesses have been global since the 1800's, but it has never seen such rapid transformation in both scope and depth as in the past decade. Construction projects today often bring together international design talents, construction management firms, local and international labor forces, and global suppliers. On a visit to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates on the Persian Gulf, a person will experience the complexity of globalization of modern construction projects- with Arab owners, European engineering and design companies, American construction management teams, Korean general contractors, Jordanian subcontractors, and labor forces from Thailand, Indonesia, Turkey, and Sri Lanka. A count of material suppliers reveals over 60 countries involved, covering all continents. Indeed construction projects are getting more and more complex and competitive, as is the project execution. The trend toward globalization poses both challenges and opportunities to construction and engineering companies competing on a global scale. While global competition may be a threat to many companies, there are, however, many opportunities for synergistic collaborations that can create win-win scenarios for construction business, research, and education. This paper presents some of the opportunities between the U.S. and Asia in business integration, research collaboration on technologies, and educational development, which may mutually benefit countries on either side of the Pacific.