CHAO & Associates

Ask Jimmy Chao what is most important to him as a civil engineer and as a business owner and he will utter one word: reputation.

Early in his career, faced with a client who was willing to accept one of his projects as satisfactory, Jimmy set up an around the clock schedule in order to rework the project from scratch. The effort cost Jimmy $30,000, but helped cement his reputation for excellence early on in his career. Shocked by Jimmy’s dedication, that client has become a loyal customer over the past 20 years.

Born, raised and educated in Taiwan, Jimmy Chao came to the University of South Carolina to do his advanced degree in engineering. While working for a large, local engineering company, Jimmy remembers clearly the day he decided to head out on his own.

I was walking with my briefcase in hand down this long hallway at the firm and saw the rest of my career flash before my eyes. I had entered into engineering with a mission to make a difference, says Chao, but you don’t get to influence company strategy when you work for a large firm. I did the honorable thing and simply resigned.

The plunge into the world of owning your own business was just that — a plunge. Jimmy learned that being a talented engineer and simply hanging the open for business sign outside your door does not make for instant success. I thought people would be knocking down the door to use my services. But to my surprise, the phone did not ring for three months, remembers Chao.

Eventually the phone did ring, and since that time, the firm has been engaged in projects here in Columbia, SC from the beautification of Main Street, to fixing the harmonic resonance problem at Williams Brice stadium, to the high profile James Clyburn overpass. The firm has also undertaken large-scale projects across the state. Chao attributes his longevity to steadfastly reinforcing a company philosophy at every monthly staff meeting for the past twenty years: a passion to be a premier engineering company.

We strive to put our thoughts and talents together at the company to come up with a quality job, on time, every time. Engineers need to think outside the box in order to come up with not just a solution, but THE  solution for their customers. We are here to solve our customers’ problems, not to become their problem, says Chao.

As the chief engineer, Jimmy personally oversees every project at Chao and challenges his group of young talented engineers to defend their design decisions.

Says Chao: I’m a very easy going guy, but when it comes time for the project, our engineers had best be prepared.

Above photo: Jane and Jimmy Chao

©Photo by Molly Harrell