• Journal of the Korea Institute of Building Construction
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.112-121
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• 2013

Korean overseas construction has been on the rise, and exceeded the 2011 goal of $50 billion by securing $59.1 billion in orders. However, these orders were heavily concentrated in the Middle East (50%) and plant construction contracts (75%). This study suggests that, to maintain growth in foreign markets, Korea construction companies should enter into the high value-added investment development business and aggressively seek ways to diversify their regions of activity and construction types. To secure the entry of Korean construction companies into lucrative markets and better understand the competitive factors facing Korean construction concerns, a survey of the literature and focus group discussions targeting relevant experts were carried out. From those efforts, a list of 44 competitive factors crucial to entering and competing in the international investment development business was developed. Survey responses were analyzed by applying IPA. The results revealed that while Korean concerns compete well in engineering/technical capabilities, maintaining a cooperative relationship with contractors, and warranty/after sales service capabilities, their ability to obtain business information on the target country, to form private/public cooperative systems, and to build international human networks require immediate improvement.

• Korean Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.135-147
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• 2009

The world has witnessed the dramatic expansion of international construction markets during the last decades, particularly around the developing economies and energy resource-rich countries. However, despite the booming markets, the risks of emerging regions have also increased under the rapidly changing environments confronting the global contractors. Most of all, success in overseas business mainly depends on selecting the right market to enter. Accordingly, the right market selection requires global firms to carefully carry out the scientific market entry decision by evaluating country risks, market prospects, firm's capability, level of competition, and among others. This study aims at developing a market entry model by the use of real option analysis (ROA) and scenario planning, which addresses the corporate strategic flexibility against the uncertainties encompassing the overseas construction markets. Based on the suggested approach, global contractors are expected to make a better decision rather than a typically static approach in pursuing, postponing, or abandoning a prospective market to their capacity with a concurrent consideration of uncertainties as well as its option value.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute Of Construction Engineering and Management
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• 2008.11a
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• pp.115-118
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• 2008

The promotion of overseas projects by construction enterprises has appeared as a way to overcome the current business difficulties of the Korean construction industry, which largely caused by the slow growth of the domestic market and the intensified competition among construction companies. The government has also shown considerable interests in the strategic approach of promoting construction projects by private companies in natural resource-rich countries, which helps the internationalization of Korean companies and the acouisition of natural resources. In this regard, this research examines the status of the construction market in the Democratic Republic of the Congo(DRC) whose potential economic growth is considered as significant, while exploring the appropriate Investment strategies of Korean construction enterprise. Since little appears to be known about the construction market and economic conditions of the DRC, after a documented review of the development trajectory of the country, a field investigation was preformed in June 2008 for obtaining information on the subjects. This research finds that the road construction is the area to fulfill the several important criteria of implementing construction projects in developing regions, including the safety/reliability for gaining investment profits, the possibility of implementing construction projects on the gradual basis, the possibility of using the facilities after the project completion, and the linkage between payment and the construction stages. In regard to the current economic situation of the DRC and the policies of the DRC government, a package deal approach, which contains the exchange of the infrastructure construction by the Korean companies and the provision of natural resources by the DRC government, is the most feasible method for Korean companies to promote their businesses in the DRC's construction market.