FM Global to Commemorate 175 Years of Innovation and Collaboration in 2010
FM Global, one of the world's largest business property insurers, announced plans for a year-long commemoration of its 175th
anniversary in 2010 that will highlight the company's past and future
as an insurance leader in engineering innovation and knowledge sharing.
The
commemoration will include the launch of several new initiatives,
including the unveiling of a new state-of-the-art natural hazards
laboratory; the introduction of major developments in fire protection
science and engineering; and a program to use social media as a means
to connect FM Global's heritage with its future, and to stimulate risk
management conversations online.
These forward-thinking efforts reflect the innovative legacy of the company's founder, Zachariah Allen, one of the first professional risk managers in the United States.
In 1835, at the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, Allen pioneered the
creation of the first mutual property insurance company for factories
by bringing together like-minded manufacturers who were committed to
loss prevention. The company was built for the sole benefit of its
policyholders.
When
it was founded, FM Global was the first insurance company to take an
engineering-based approach to help clients protect property and insure
against loss. Today, the company remains the only major insurance
company in the world to offer this unique approach of underwriting
through loss prevention engineering. More than one of every three
FORTUNE 1000 companies turns to FM Global's expertise to help protect
their physical assets in nearly 200 countries. FM Global has grown to
become a US$4.6 billion company and ranks 17th for longevity among the FORTUNE 1000.
"Few
companies today can say they have endured for nearly two centuries and
still have a sustainable business model that continues to add value,"
said Shivan S. Subramaniam, chairman
and CEO. "For 175 years, we have believed the majority of all property
loss is preventable, not inevitable. Through a unique
engineering-driven approach to underwriting, in close partnership with
our client-owners, FM Global continues to help companies protect their
business operations and shareholder value and back them with stability,
capacity and financial strength."
In 2010, as part of the company's anniversary, FM Global will:
- Unveil
a new 72,000-square-foot natural hazards
laboratory, one of the world's largest research facilities for
replicating and understanding risks such as earthquakes, hurricanes and
hailstorms. The facility is designed to help companies—and the
communities where they are located—minimize the impact of major natural
disasters. The one-of-a-kind facility is part of FM Global's 1,600 acre
(648 ha), US$125 million Research Campus in West Glocester, R.I., USA, where the company also studies such risks as warehouse-size fires as well as dust and gas explosions.
- Release
the findings of two unprecedented research studies—one that examines
the environmental impact of fires and a second that looks at physical
risk management and its relationship to shareholder value.
- Lead
a global collaboration of the best and brightest in academia and
industry by engaging experts in fire science in the development of FM
Global's latest fire protection computer models via an open source software approach.
- Create an opportunity for the insurance and risk management community to connect with, and learn from, the company's founder, Zachariah Allen, through a social media program that leverages Facebook and Twitter.
Managed by FM Global, the program will share useful daily loss
prevention advice that is thought-provoking and easy to implement, and
will provide a forum for friends and followers to share ideas and
engage in discussions.
"FM
Global's 175th anniversary is a momentous milestone in the history of
our company," added Subramaniam. "The coming year promises to be an
exciting and meaningful one for FM Global, our clients and employees."