New insurance policy administration and claims systems wereamong the technology products debuted by vendors at this year'sACORD LOMA Insurance Systems Forum last month in Las Vegas.

Enhanced efficiencies in quoting and issuance, billing,processing, reporting and other key insurance functions wereclaimed by several vendors announcing their latest products at theconference.

o CGI Group Inc. announced CGI Edge, the next generation of thecompany's property-casualty insurance software, using a Web-basedservice-oriented architecture, based on Microsoft's .Netframework.

According to Andover, Mass.-based CGI, CGI Edge supports thecomplete insurance policy lifecycle, “providing insurance companieswith a competitive advantage in pursuing new growth inprofitability.”

At the same time, it “provides agents with an easy-to-use,Web-based interface that allows agents to perform all policytransactions,” CGI noted. These include “quote, new business,endorsements, payments, and creating a first notice of loss.”

The product, set to go live Sept. 30, allows agents to dostraight-through processing for all lines, according to GordonGaar, vice president of marketing and strategy for insurance atCGI.

The average price for a license covering the entire productoffering is $1 million, noted Mr. Gaar. Further details areavailable at www.cgi.com.

o Guidewire Software Inc. announced the release of GuidewireClaimCenter 5.0, the latest version of its p-c claims system.

“ClaimCenter enables carriers to improve their claims-adjustingprocesses, reduce claims costs and enhance customer service,” saidSan Mateo, Calif.-based Guidewire. The latest release features“more than 25 major enhancements,” including improved claimslifecycle efficiency, with “better claim intake screens and bettermanagement of damage and repair assessments.”

Also offered in ClaimCenter 5.0 are a new user interface forbetter usability, service provider management functionality, fraudscoring capability, subrogation lifecycle functionality and newgraphical configuration tools, the company said.

Other upgrades include enhanced first notice of loss,international capabilities for multicurrency transactions, andenhanced catastrophe management, said Guidewire.

The cost range is “$750,000 to $5-to-$10 million” per license,which may be spread over the first five years, a companyspokesperson said. Details are available at www.guidewire.com.

o Moore Stephens Business Solutions LLC announced itsbIntelligent Insurance Analytic Framework (IAF) for carriers,brokers and managing general agents.

The new product provides a holistic picture of companyperformance and business by “harmonizing disparate data fromthroughout the organization to deliver key performance indicatorsrelated to premium production, policy performance, pricing andexposure trending, claim activity and reserve forecasts, andoperational efficiency,” according to New York-based MooreStephens.

“Every metric within the framework can be analyzed across anumber of key dimensions, allowing executives and managers tounderstand variations in their business according to region,producer or product, to name just a few variables,” said SethRachlin, CEO of Moore Stephens. “By adding context and meaning toinsurance data, it is made more accurate, available andactionable.”

The product is capable of integrating with core insuranceadministration platforms and existing data warehouse, data mart andreporting infrastructures, the company noted. A perpetual licensemay range in price from $100,000 up to $250,000, according to Mr.Rachlin.

o Skywire Software announced the launch of Ingage, “a Web-basedsoftware application that streamlines data capture by allowinginsurers to create and configure questions and rules through anintelligent front-end data capture.”

Ingage integrates with Skywire's Insbridge rules, rating andunderwriting system, enabling insurers to reduce time associatedwith maintaining rates, accelerate time-to-market, and improverating accuracy, quality and compliance, said Frisco, Texas-basedSkywire.

Built to support all lines of business, Ingage provides anonline data capture front end for the decision-making involved ininsurance applications, the company explained. The interfaceenables producers, customer service representatives, underwritersor applicants to gather information. Ingage then automaticallyaccepts or knocks out the application based on responses toquestions.

The company added that Ingage tracks insurance applications foraccuracy and completeness, noting that it “providesstraight-through processing for common risk types [and] eliminatesredundant entry for agents and underwriters.”

Ingage costs between $75,000 and $400,000 to implement, acompany spokesperson said. Further information is available atwww.skywiresoftware.com.

o SunGard debuted its new policy administration solution, iWORKSPOLICY, a configurable system for the p-c industry.

According to Wayne, Pa.-based SunGard, the new product offersflexibility, speed-to-market and total control over the system“without coding,” along with “the lowest possible total cost ofownership.”

It supports service-oriented architecture and can be used withboth personal and commercial lines.

The product provides predefined business solution models thatcan be adapted to the insurer's specific business requirements, thecompany said, while also addressing issues associated withregulatory compliance, cost reduction, Web enablement, M&Aconsolidation and integration, and business process flexibility andadaptability.

The product allows insurers to configure their processes anddeploy solutions for business processing needs without the use ofcode generators or lengthy information technology developmentcycles, according to SunGard. Using this technology, p-c insurerscan eliminate or minimize custom coding to deliver systems withexternalized, maintainable rules.

Licensing fees range from “$500,000 to $2-to-$3 million,” acompany spokesperson stated. Further details are available atHYPERLINK“http://www.sungard.com/iWORKS”www.sungard.com/iWORKS.