Cyril Ruiz-Moise (left) demonstrates a bottle from the assembly line with co-workers as if holding a relay torch. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Cyril Ruiz-Moise spent a lot of time on a boat when he was a child. He developed a love of the sea and boating.

"It wasn't really a hobby but more a way of life in my family," he says.

Now, at age 40, he is still close to the sea. He works in Zhanjiang, Guangdong province, and every morning he looks out to the sea from his window.

Boating is not as big in China as it is in many other places, but the government is promoting it, he says, and he is a pioneer.

"I wonder what kind of boats people will put in the new leisure harbor near my home," he says. "One day, I could put mine there to reconnect with my passion."

Another passion he displays in abundance is for work.

Ruiz-Moise is the general manager of SGD Asia Pacific, a maker of pharmacy and cosmetics bottles. It's the Chinese subsidiary of a French company whose clients include L'Oreal, Estee Lauder and the like.

The operation in Zhanjiang, which opened in 1998, has around 1,000 employees and a daily capacity to produce 1.2 million bottles and process 100,000 bottles for decoration.

Ruiz-Moise's office is near the plant. The clanking of glass bottles produces deafening noise, so workers must wear earplugs.

Work safety and environmental protection are two areas that are constantly on his mind, he says. The Chinese government has taken a strong position, and SGD Asia Pacific wants to go one step further - taking extra measures beyond regulation.

"Every year, we are investing a lot into implementing devices to control, treat and limit rejections, such as wastewater ... there are treatment stations around the plant, and we need to monitor all kinds of influences, such as smoke and noise."

SGD's investment in the plant has been constant and increasing: It modernized equipment and facilities in 2000; started a decoration line in 2006; added two production lines in 2007; built a clean room in 2008; and upgraded the facilities for infusion-Type 2 bottles in 2010. It decided this year to inject 60 million yuan ($9.4 million) into the facility.

"A 60 million yuan investment is equivalent to five normal years. We're confident of our market and confident of delivering it from Zhanjiang. Here, the government has proven to us that this is a good environment for investment."

SGD's confidence in China in general and in Zhanjiang in particular is also reflected in its foray into research and development.

"We serve the most demanding clients in the world," Ruiz-Moise says. "The standards we deliver here are exactly the same as those we ship from Europe or America."

Ruiz-Moise grew up in Lyon but considers Zhanjiang home after living in China for nearly 10 years.

He has the uncanny ability to be both a workaholic and a bon vivant. Other than boating, he is an epicurean and raves about local seafood. One of his preferred delicacies is the BBQ oysters with minced garlic.

This may not seem unusual for a Frenchman. He says he's often asked if his nationality means he's romantic.

"I don't know if it's true. In France, we don't really talk about us being like that. So, at first it was surprising to hear it all the time," he says.

As he's also of Spanish descent, and Spain is viewed as a "passionate" country, he jokes he could be called a "passionate romantic".

But how does a "passionate romantic" cope with life in a place not exactly teeming with expats?

"I am not married," he explains. "Dates are not too hard to find, but a wife is real hard."

He hopes to wed but isn't in a rush.

"Any girl who can cope with a very busy, traveling foreigner is welcome to contact me," he jokes.

His brand of humor and dealing with people also seeps into his work style.

Since his lieutenants were often tardy, he established a rule in which latecomers to meetings are fined 100 yuan. When he saw this hurt morale, he turned it into a charity pool, making involuntary donors feel better.

This creates what he calls "a virtuous cycle".

Ruiz-Moise is a witness to Zhanjiang's rise as a cosmopolitan city.

He has noticed more foreigners arriving at the airport because of large-scale construction projects. He'd love to show the newcomers around and let them know the charms of this tropical paradise, he says.

As for himself, he has not given up on his dream of traveling around the world on a boat - "maybe later".