Good break in early '80s with Engineering Equipment, Inc. (my first employer) intensively developed and enhanced my fundamentals in project management―I was given the charge of project coordination and marketing works for the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) Project in the Philippines where I did quite well. It was the biggest project in the country during the time and the experience gave me good exposure to large scale industrial project management environs. I took the moment and generated for EEI record breaking performance and revenues back then.
In the early 90's right after the first Gulf war, I went abroad to Middle East and joined ABV Rock Group KB, the main contractor for the Saudi Strategic Storage Program (SSSP) Project in Riyadh, KSA, being Welding Foreman for Steelworks Division. A Defense Ministry project, it was the biggest in the world at the time (with approximately US$ 5 billion budget each for 5 sites; Riyadh, Jeddah, Buraydah, Medina and Abha) designed for an underground massive fuel storage system complex comprised of an underground main cavern clusters (20 units of 20m x 30m x355m fuel storage tanks) and ancillary tunnel systems within approximately 100 sq. km. restricted military area.
From being a Welding Foreman for steel lining works of the main tank clusters, I was promoted to General Foreman after 5 months of employment up to being the Project Controller (Steelworks) for Site 1 in the second year of my tenure. I worked directly under the Chief Planner then, Mr. Ola Nilsson and Project Manager, Mr. Matts Karlson.
The accelerated promotions came owing to my local experience in the Philippines that served me well along with exceptional ability to focus and develop solutions for almost every sort of problem we have encountered at Riyadh job site.
Strong analytical mind is the core of my competence, complemented by high aptitude for computer works (Primavera, MS Project, Excel, MS Word, etc.) which was greatly enhanced by the Riyadh experience.
I then worked for Sumcheong Myanmar Pte Ltd (a subsidiary of a Singapore company engaged in pile foundation works) in Yangon (1996) as Project Controller and completed within my tenure, a couple of offshore piling work projects (Thilawa Port Berths 10 & 11 for Myanmar government, and the Ahlone Wharves 1 & 2 projects for Asia World Port Management Co. Ltd) and a couple as well of major bored pile foundation work project (YKK Golden Hills Residential Twin Towers Bldg and the TOTAL Gas Building Project) in Yangon, Myanmar.
I returned to Philippines in 2000 when currency crisis hit Southeast Asia in 1997, biting in heavily in Myanmar in 1999. Consequently, I was designated by the Singapore head office to be Country Manager in the Philippines for Sumcheong Construction Pte Ltd in 2001 with focus on Airports and infrastructure projects.
Big projects turned out to be so elusive in the country, it has always been my keen desire to chance upon the same old break and work challenges I had abroad, which seems very foreseeable now in the wake of current technology advances and breakthroughs particularly with the global communications through internet access.