How are Chinese construction enterprises meeting the challenge of change

China's special economy, the socialist market economy, makes its transition fundamentally different. !8 years of reform has totally changed ownership structure and operation mechanism of chinese construction enterprises. Its features both the transition process and the results needed to be understood, sepecially by Western world. This paper provides this understanding, starting with why there is a need to understand the reform of chinese construction enterprises. It then discusses how the ownership of the chinese construction enterprises have changed. A comparison is also made with central and eastern european countries (CEECs) to show what fundamentally different approaches have been taken in reforming the new ownership structure, and what is special in terms of the changing process Some features of three main ownership in the chinese construction enterprises are discussed in more detail. Finally it analyses what special approaches have been adopted in reforming state owned construction enterprises.