A visit to the Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area gives one the same impression one would get from a walk down the streets of any Chinese metropolis, such as Beijing or Shanghai.

Yet, beneath the modern face of this development zone in the northern port city of Tianjin is "a small-town feeling", said an export business manager named Vinson, who has been living in TEDA since 2007.

"It's a modern area with a touch of small town - very comfortable and hospitable," he said. "More important is that the park has everything I need, from healthcare, schools, and food to entertainment."

The Korean export manager said his wife and kid like the environment of TEDA, which he describes as convenient, green and quiet.

Vinson is among the increasing number of expatriates who are settling down in TEDA as the development zone continues to rapidly modernize.

Now, TEDA has set up a complete education system that extends from preprimary education to post-graduate programs in college.

The healthcare system in TEDA includes public and private hospitals, medical care targeted toward foreigners, and community clinics that provide a new experience of medical treatment to the local residents.

Thriving urban center

With the completion of the Modern Service District, TEDA will accommodate and enhance its development of a modern service sector and a mature urban environment.

The district, including a 1 million square meters office space and a 310,000 square meters commercial area, is packed with supporting facilities, such as a shopping center, a food court, healthcare, education, entertainment, hotels, exhibition halls and high-end residences.

Through a partnership with Savills, the leading international property services provider, the Modern Service District will be developed into a world-class business district with international advanced service procedures and a rigorous management system.

Further, TEDA Fashion Plaza, which emphasizes a leisurely lifestyle, is under construction and will be put into use by 2014.

The fashion plaza is expected to integrate with Fashion Street, TEDA Football Stadium, AEON Music City, and the Binhai International Convention and Exhibition Center to form the largest commercial park in Tianjin.

The project comprises five major buildings, including a small theater, a children's park, an entertainment city and a boutique store. Its pedestrian street also provides an opportunity for residents to spend quality time with family.

Modern service hub

In addition to creating a great living environment for residents and employees, TEDA's leadership strives to develop high-end modern services for sectors, such as finance, insurance, R&D, design, logistics, as well as cultural and creative businesses.

"We will be more focused on attracting companies in the automotive services industry, including automobile finance, sales and research and development," said Wang Rao, who heads the automotive industry division of the TEDA Investment Promotion Bureau.

In March 2012, eight financial leasing companies from Europe, the United States and Hong Kong signed contracts with TEDA involving total registered capital worth $140 million, and the total value of leasing contracts reached 7 billion yuan.

In the first half of 2012, 11 foreign financial leasing organizations set up offices in TEDA.

In addition, AEON financial services, a small-loan subsidy of Japanese retail giant AEON Group, became the first foreign mortgage service provider for companies in this region.

In order to further transform from a manufacturing center into a hub of modern services, TEDA has attracted 150 modern information services companies to promote cloud computing industry, IT business, e-commerce, information securities, animation and online games.

The value of China's cloud computing application market is expected to top 60.68 billion yuan ($9.76 billion) by the end of 2012 - up from 9.22 billion yuan in 2009.

This represents a compound annual growth rate of 87.4 percent, according to CCID Consulting Co, a market research firm in China.

And TEDA and its tenants are already showing progress in this field.

"Cloud computing requires very special services for power supply, bandwidth and safety," said Zou Fang, deputy director of the TEDA Investment Promotion Bureau. "TEDA has created the Binhai Cloud Computing Park for this purpose, with all the particular power, safety and redundancy systems required."

The zone's sophisticated internet infrastructure and cloud computing base with 500,000 servers are among the reasons why companies like Sohu and many other major portal websites have settled in the zone.

"I went there 10 years ago, but now TEDA has changed a lot, giving it a cutting-edge look," said Zhang Chaoyang, chief executive officer of Sohu, one of China's biggest Internet portals. "The fresh air, nice environment and modern facilities make me feel like I'm walking down the street in some foreign developed countries."

TEDA is also ahead in terms of constructing high-tech infrastructure, such as broadband data networks and information data centers, with the goal of becoming the most digitized development zone.

"In recent years, the fast growth of industries within the zone has provided a sound environment for soft service outsourcing companies," said Qi Haitao, an analyst in the service outsourcing industry.

"And a stable policy environment is also very conducive to the development of service outsourcing enterprises."

lvchang@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 01/16/2013 page15)