The environmentally friendly marketing campaign "Ecomagination", launched by Olympic sponsor General Electric (GE) in 2005, appears to have paid off.
From the water-recycling system at the National Stadium to the solar-powered lights at Fengtai softball field, GE has integrated environmental concerns into all of its new Olympic projects.
The Olympic partner has fitted the 37 competition venues of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games with its latest energy-saving technologies as part of its bid to improve its brand recognition in China and elsewhere.
"We see the Olympic partnership as an essential means to communicate with the local market and one step further to explore the huge infrastructure market here in China," said James Campbell, president and CEO of GE Consumer and Industrial.
"The Beijing Olympic Games has provided a great platform for us, as our Ecomagination strategy perfectly matches Beijing's promise of holding a 'greener Olympics'," he said.
James Fisher, who reports to Campbell and oversees C&I's business operation in the Greater China Region, said the company's investment is sure to pay off.
"Among all 350 projects, the work at the National Stadium (Bird's Nest) and the Water Cube (National Aquatics Center) are probably the most famous ones and will definitely win us tremendous brand recognition," he said.
"GE has reached around $600 million revenue from the Olympic projects."
"We would like to inherit the green concept and expand it to other big projects, like the 2010 Shanghai World Expo and the Guangzhou Asian Games."
GE, a diversified technology, media and financial services company, has been involved in Olympics through NBC TV network, which has broadcast the Olympics over 40 years for US television.
The company expanded the relationship to become the Games' top global sponsor since January 2005 and continues through the London 2012 Olympic Games.
