Business News: FM Global Research Lab, Friss and Munich Re, MedRisk and Raintree

FM Global Expands Research Lab

FM Global, an international commercial property insurer, had opened a electrical hazards and gas detection laboratory on its research campus in West Glocester, Rhode Island.

The carrier said in a press release that the facility is designed to test industrial grade electrical and gas detection equipment to certify that products are explosion-proof, flameproof and suitable for use in hazardous locations under extreme conditions. Fireballs, explosions and combustible and toxic gas leaks and short circuits are now daily occurrences inside the lab, FM Global said.

The facility has two fortified concrete explosion bunkers with two-foot thick walls and military-style blast doors. The lab can replicate some of the most corrosive and damaging environments on the planet, the carrier said.

“As industries and operations evolve, so can their electrical hazards,” stated Brion Callori, senior vice president, engineering and research. “For those companies who operate in hazardous environments, explosions caused by electrical equipment can put a company out of business. There is no margin for error. This laboratory will help FM Global and its clients be well positioned to address such hazards.”

Callori said the lab will help expedite the certification of FM Approved electrical equipment. The Electrical Hazards and Gas Detection Laboratory will be operated by FM Approvals, an internationally recognized testing organization.

Construction of the testing lab took two years and cost $16 million, FM Global said. The research lab first opened in 1967, the company said. It is located about a half-hour’s drive from the company’s U.S. headquarters in Johnston, Rhode Island.

About the photo: Photo, courtesy of FM Global, taken from the expanded research laboratory.

Friss and Munich Re Expand Partnership

Friss, which provides fraud-detection and risk-mitigation software to insurers, said it has expanded a partnership with Munich Re after a successful pilot project in Latin America, Spain and Portugal.

Friss said its system uses artificial intelligence predictive models, network analysis and text mining to study 600 risk and fraud indicators that can be used for claims investigations and underwriting. Munich Re’s Global Consulting Unit will now offer the product globally as part of its consulting services, which if offers in addition to traditional reinsurance, the company said.

“The combination of our strategy expertise and global player know-how with AI-powered fraud and risk solutions provided by Friss, will help our clients make effective big picture decisions,” stated Joachim Mathe, head of Munich Re’s Global Consulting division.

Friss was founded in Utrecht, Netherlands in 2006. It now employs 175 people at its home office and in Chicago, Illinois; Santiago, Chile; Paris, France and Cologne, Germany, according to the company’s website.

MedRisk Teams with Raintree Systems

MedRisk, a physical rehabilitation services provider based in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, will integrate with Raintree’s practice management and electronic medical record software, which was designed specifically for physical therapy, Medrisk said in a press release.

Network providers who use Raintree’s software will see no change in their current workflow; but will benefit from the interface, MedRisk said. The company said it plans to automate delivery of claim and clinical documentation, simplify authorization workflows and expedite claim adjudication.

MedRisk said a survey of American Physical Therapy Association members found that the time physical therapists spend on administrative tasks delays medically necessary services, which impacts patient’s clinical outcomes.

RainTree Systems was launched in 1985 in Garden Grove, California by Richard Welty, an early developer of medical office software, according to the company’s website. It is now headquartered in Temecula, California.

MedRisk bills itself as the largest managed care organization dedicated to the physical rehabilitation of injured workers.