A special area dedicated to promoting economic and trade cooperation between China and other member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is currently under construction in east China.

It's part of Beijing's efforts to advance the Belt Road Initiative (BRI). 

When the construction is complete, officials hope it can boost trade, logistics and investment. And many Chinese companies are looking forward to moving in.

Shaohaihui imports wood from Russia and Kyrgyzstan, and adds value by turning it into "intelligent furniture," before exporting it back to SCO countries. Its co-founder says the platform will make their operations more manageable.

"The demonstration area is a business card of China. It allows the world to learn about China's good enterprises. As an enterprise we will grasp this opportunity to provide good services," said Li Pi, co-founder of Shaohaihui. 

A key component of the demonstration area is this multi-modal transportation center. This center is well connected to other countries and regions involved in the BRI, with 10 domestic and eight international freight train services.

The center is established by taking advantage of the opening of a railway line between China and Central Asian countries.

Currently, there is at least one freight train to Kazakhstan setting out from here every day.

It's hoped the center can become a massive logistics hub, connecting railways to other means of transportation like highways, airways and seaways. 

"We hope the multi-modal transportation can connect the countries in the east, like Japan and South Korea with the SCO countries in the west, allowing us to build a logistics center in these countries so that we can improve our services," said Hao Xinguo, ETCDZ's  office director.

The zone's authority is working closely with SCO countries to ensure the business environment is fair and efficient. 

"We are already working with Pakistan to build a center for economic and trade cooperation. It has been supported by the Prime Minister of Pakistan, and the business sector and local governments are very cooperative too," said Hao.