Home Safety Group Has 3 New Partners

NU Online News Service, Nov. 8, 12:59 p.m.EDT?The Institute for Business & Home Safety, anonprofit insurance industry group focused on reducing naturaldisaster death, injury and property loss, said it has formalizedthree strategic partnerships to enhance its public relations andsafety efforts.[@@]

IBHS, which held its annual conference last week in Orlando,Fla., said it will work with the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes(FLASH) on projects that leverage each group's communication andpublic education programs and expertise in disaster-resistantconstruction techniques.

IBHS said it also signed an agreement with the InternationalCode Council to work on research, development, adoption andenforcement of disaster-resistant building codes at the state andnational levels.

One of its first joint efforts, IBHS said, will be the analysisof construction performance findings in Florida following the fourhurricanes that struck the state during August and September thisyear. The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the FloridaDepartment of Community Affairs also will participate in thisprocess. The aim will be to determine the state's codeeffectiveness in high wind events.

IBHS also is partnering with the Young Americas Business Trustto help implement effective business continuity risk mitigationmeasures against natural disasters.

YABT is a nonprofit corporation affiliated with the Organizationof American States, which links over 100,000 young entrepreneurs inthe Americas, principally Latin America and the Caribbean. The YABTwill translate the IBHS Open for Business toolkit andother resources, eventually putting this material in targetpopulations in the United States, Canada, Latin America and theCaribbean.