PB chairman receives a nod from Marco Polo.

Thomas J. O'Neill, chairman and chief executive officer of Parsons Brinckerhoff, is the 2005 recipient of the Marco Polo Award.

Given annually by China's State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs, the China Association for International Exchange of Personnel and the U.S.-China Foundation for International Exchanges, the award is considered the highest honor given by the Chinese government to a foreign business leader. The award recognizes those who play a significant role in China's economic development and who demonstrate a commitment to improving Chinese society by sponsoring volunteer experts for humanitarian assignments. The award was presented by Yangjin Chen, deputy director general of the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs, at an April 14th banquet in Beijing attended by Chinese government leaders and representatives of the international business community.

The award was given in recognition of PB's longstanding business ties to China, which date to the late 1890s, when the firm's founder, William Barclay Parsons, surveyed the route for a 1,600-kilometer (1,000-mile) railway between Hankow (Wuhan) and Canton (Guangzhou), a route that is still in use today. PB established an office in Hong Kong in 1978 and today has a staff of more than 900 in offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Taipei, Macau and Hong Kong.

The firm has worked on some of China's premier building projects, including the Oriental Plaza in Beijing and the Shenzhen World Trade Center. Current projects include the second phase of the new Shenzhen Metro transit system, transportation planning for the Beijing Olympics and program/ construction management for the new Zhengzhou to Xian high-speed rail project for the Chinese Ministry of Railways.

"It is indeed an honor to accept the Marco Polo Award on behalf of the 9,000 employees of Parsons Brinckerhoff," Mr. O'Neill stated. "We are extremely proud of our company's contributions to China's impressive economic growth and development."

According to Mr. O'Neill, it is PB's policy to develop the skills of local engineers in the countries where it works.

"As one of the most active international engineering consultants in the Asia-Pacific region, we are proud to be regarded as a local company wherever we work," he noted. "Approximately 80% of our people here consist of local engineers and support personnel. By training these professionals in the latest international engineering practices and technologies, we are able to undertake projects that satisfy both international codes and standards, yet meet all local government regulations efficiently."

Mr. O'Neill was named president and CEO of PB in 1996 and was elected chairman of the board in 2004. Under his leadership, PB has built upon its strong reputation in transportation planning and design, while also diversifying and strengthening its position in other markets such as power, buildings, and environmental.

Previous recipients of the Marco Polo Award include former U.S. President George H.W. Bush and the chief executive officers of such leading American companies as Johnson & Johnson, Ford Motor Company and Kodak.