BOSTON, July 15, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide today released Version 2.0 of its catastrophe modeling software platform, Touchstone ® . The new version includes the ability to account for both catastrophe and noncatastrophe risk (for example, fire, lightning, explosion, vandalism) in a single platform, providing a more comprehensive view of risk. Touchstone 2.0 also features a new "underwriting mode" to streamline the account underwriting process and new functionality that enables companies to adjust model output to reflect their own view of risk. AIR is a member of the Verisk Insurance Solutions group at Verisk Analytics (Nasdaq: VRSK ).
"We're happy to see that AIR is successfully executing on its vision for Touchstone," said Robert Baldrey, chief catastrophe officer at TransRe. "Touchstone was available when we needed it, and the migration was very smooth thanks to AIR's excellent support team. Accelerated run times and the new geospatial module let us visualize exposures and create custom reports more efficiently. Overall, Touchstone's flexibility and speed are already helping us refine our exposure analysis on behalf of our global customers."
AIR has integrated data resources from across the Verisk enterprise into its modeling platform - such as ISO advisory prospective loss costs and ISO's Property Size-of-Loss Database (PSOLD TM ), which includes more than one million severity curves that show expected loss for various policy limits. ISO noncatastrophe information for both insurance and reinsurance pricing analysis is also available in Touchstone and can easily be combined with modeled catastrophe losses for a more comprehensive risk management solution.
"Adding noncatastrophe analytics to Touchstone enables companies to analyze the noncatastrophe risk to property exposures using the same exposure data they use in their catastrophe modeling," said George Davis, FCAS, MAAA, senior vice president at AIR Worldwide. "With Touchstone, users get a more complete view of risk in one streamlined workflow, making analysis of individual direct and facultative accounts and treaty reinsurance portfolios much easier and more efficient."
Touchstone 2.0 also features a new underwriting mode. The centerpiece of the underwriting mode is a dashboard customized for the account underwriter to quickly assess the risk associated with individual policies. This includes evaluating the quality of the account's exposure data and whether or not the locations violate a company's underwriting guidelines as well as the catastrophe risk profile of the policy. A new clash analysis reveals whether a location within the policy being considered is collocated with other risks already assumed.
AIR is also introducing the ability to adjust ground-up losses by event, region, line of business, or coverage in Version 2.0 of Touchstone to better reflect a company's loss experience, underwriting guidelines, and its own internal research or for purposes of sensitivity testing. In every case, the AIR view of risk will always be preserved alongside the modified view.
"With the release of Touchstone 2.0, AIR continues to demonstrate our ability to deliver and expand on our promise to provide the market the next-generation catastrophe modeling platform," said Bill Churney, COO at AIR Worldwide. "Companies are already experiencing the many benefits of Touchstone. The feedback we've received - not just on existing functionality but on our long-term strategy for Touchstone - has been tremendous."
The new and updated models included in the Version 2.0 release of Touchstone and/or Version 16.0 of CATRADER ® represent the culmination of major research and development efforts at AIR. They include major updates to all components of the U.S. severe thunderstorm model; comprehensive updates to the Canada earthquake model, including the addition of tsunami risk; a new crop hail model for the United States; enhancements to the multiple-peril crop insurance model for China to include additional perils and support for the forestry line of business; and inland flood hazard maps for China and Thailand, which will facilitate efficient accumulations management and underwriting decisions. AIR will also be releasing the industry's first detailed, fully probabilistic inland flood model for the United States later this year.
About AIR Worldwide
AIR Worldwide (AIR) is the scientific leader and most respected provider of risk modeling software and consulting services. AIR founded the catastrophe modeling industry in 1987 and today models the risk from natural catastrophes and terrorism in more than 90 countries. More than 400 insurance, reinsurance, financial, corporate, and government clients rely on AIR software and services for catastrophe risk management, insurance-linked securities, detailed site-specific wind and seismic engineering analyses, and agricultural risk management. AIR is a member of the Verisk Insurance Solutions group at Verisk Analytics (Nasdaq: VRSK ) and is headquartered in Boston with additional offices in North America, Europe, and Asia. For more information, please visit www.air-worldwide.com .
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For more information, contact:
Kevin Long
AIR Worldwide
617-267-6645
klong@air-worldwide.com
HUG#1824490
