RMS Acquires Hurricane Impact Data Service
Risk Management Solutions [RMS] has acquired HWind Scientific LLC [HWS], the leading real-time hurricane-impact data service. The acquisition marks the commitment by RMS to continue advancing the industry’s understanding and management of hurricane risk.
“HWind Scientific’s real-time hurricane monitoring and the scientific rigor of HWind data is unmatched in the insurance industry,” said Dr. Mohsen Rahnama, head of model development at RMS.
“RMS has been licensing H*Wind for use in its hurricane models and event response services since the service first became commercially available in 2014.
“Now our union with HWind Scientific opens up an incredible opportunity for RMS to further advance our clients’ hurricane risk management, as well as develop future models and data that continue to strengthen the insurance industry’s management of hurricane risk.”
RMS will offer HWS products, including the leading H*Wind data, as part of its hurricane model suite, further enhancing the company’s ability to rapidly deliver scientifically robust real-time wind-field and post-landfall impact analysis for North Atlantic hurricanes to its clients.
Dr. Mark Powell, inventor of the HWind methodology and founder of HWind Scientific, has joined RMS as vice president, model development. He is joined by his team, who will continue to support the H*Wind products and services, as well as lead the integration of the HWS products into the RMS modeling suite.
Dr Powell said, “My team and I are excited to incorporate our real-time and retrospective observation-based hurricane analyses with the RMS product offerings. HWind Scientific has become an industry standard for validating hurricane risk models, developing satellite extreme-wind remote sensing functions, and providing the forcing for storm surge and wave model forecasts, making the company a natural fit with RMS.
“With our combined strengths we look forward to introducing new products that have been in development over that past 18 months, including a revised high-definition wind analysis and footprint archive.”
“Mark is recognized by the industry as an innovative scientific leader; and he and his team are a center of excellence for hurricane science. Bringing their expertise in-house to RMS further strengthens our scientific research capabilities and creates opportunities for us to develop new hurricane solutions for our clients around the world,” said Rahnama.
