JERSEY CITY, N.J., Oct. 28, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Verisk Analytics, Inc. (Nasdaq:VRSK), a leading source of information about risk, today announced that the company is among the founders of the Institute for Business & Home Safety's (IBHS) new multi-peril Research Center, which recently opened in Chester County, South Carolina.
The IBHS Research Center, located about 50 minutes south of the Charlotte airport, is the only facility of its kind. Capable of recreating several types of windstorms, hailstorms, hurricanes, and wildfires in a controlled environment, the IBHS lab can accommodate full-scale one- and two-story residential and commercial structures in its cavernous test chamber. The lab includes an array of 105 nearly 6 ft. electric fans that can create realistic, gusty winds up to 140 mph.
"The IBHS Research Center is an excellent investment," said Verisk Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Scott Stephenson. "The research produced by IBHS will address hazards like wind, fire, and hail damage to homeowners and help reduce those costs, which helps reduce insurance premiums."
The IBHS Research Center will advance building science by enabling researchers to more fully and accurately evaluate various residential and commercial construction materials and systems. The mission of the applied research and training facility is to identify, evaluate, and promote effective methods of property loss reduction and prevention. The scientific research of IBHS will enable significant improvements in residential and commercial structure design, construction, and maintenance.
"We are very proud to be standing alongside the leaders of the global property insurance industry in this initiative," said Julie Rochman, IBHS President and CEO. "The vision and real leadership demonstrated by the founders of the IBHS Research Center are incredible. With this lab, they are stepping up and out to publicly demonstrate the extraordinary value they place on protecting families and their homes, business owners and their operations, and entire communities from Mother Nature's fury."
Testing conducted at the IBHS facility will help to establish clear, scientifically sound benchmarks for disaster-resistant design and construction of buildings, as well as helping to refine current product and system testing standards. The applied research will demonstrate the value, effectiveness, and affordability of better-built structures, as well as enhancing property risk modeling by strengthening the critical relationship between theoretical and actual building performance. Aggressive promotion of findings through release of high-definition video from IBHS tests will also help create consumer demand for reliable, affordable retrofit options for existing homes and businesses.
"The mission of the IBHS Research Center mirrors our commitment to helping reduce and prevent losses," added Stephenson. "Mitigation creates safer communities by reducing loss of life and property damage. It also helps minimize post-disaster disruptions, enhances recovery, and lessens the financial impact on home and business owners, communities, and society as a whole."
About IBHS
IBHS is an independent, nonprofit scientific and educational organization supported by the property insurance industry. The organization works to reduce the social and economic effects of natural disasters and other risks to residential and commercial property by conducting research and advocating improved construction, maintenance, and preparation practices.
About Verisk Analytics
Verisk Analytics (Nasdaq:VRSK) is a leading provider of information about risk to professionals in insurance, healthcare, mortgage, government, and risk management. Using advanced technologies to collect and analyze billions of records, Verisk Analytics draws on vast industry expertise and unique proprietary data sets to provide predictive analytics and decision-support solutions in fraud prevention, actuarial science, insurance coverages, fire protection, catastrophe and weather risk, data management, and many other fields. In the United States and around the world, Verisk Analytics helps customers protect people, property, and financial assets. For more information, visit www.verisk.com.
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