HDInsights Edition 7 2022

Risk Engineering: Building beyond compliance to long-term resilience

Risk engineering helps clients make the most of their insurance programs. HDI Risk Consulting (HRC) supports clients success in revenue growth, reputation and market share by sharing industry specific loss experiences and practical loss prevention advice. A recent Risk Engineering and Resilience Lunch and Learn Session showcased HDI’s strengths in this area.

Peter Ratering Assistant Property Underwriter HDI Global SE, Australia

Philipp Glanz Risk Engineering Manager APAC HDI Global SE, Australia

Stephanie MacIntyre Property Underwriter HDI Global SE, Australia

Anna Khomeini Market Manager HDI Global SE, Australia

What is risk engineering? Risk engineering is a strategy that aims to manage risks and reduce potential damage to businesses. As companies usually have very different risk profiles, the risk engineers conduct site specific risk assessments to fully understand the risk profile and discuss risk mitigation strategies. During these visits, in addition to identifying risks and insights into prevention, risk engineers also gain valuable data that supports underwriters when recommending the right insurance policies for clients. Recent developments including climate change, inflation, an increasingly volatile geopolitical situation, new technologies as well as cyber threats add additional complexity to the topic. A comprehensive risk management strategy can help clients save time and money. Industry shows 'genuine interest' “During our risk surveys, we understand that clients want to have feedback from a non-government and non-regulatory organization like us,” said Philipp Glanz, HDI Global’s Risk Engineering Manager for the Asia Pacific region and the Middle East, during a recent HDI Lunch and Learn Session on Risk Engineering and Resilience. “We see that there is a genuine interest in practical risk management advise including best practice risk engineering and loss prevention support.” In this regard it is essential to look at the difference between safety and compliance. “ We need to talk about the long-term resilience rather than just the current compliance ,” Mr Glanz explained.

As an example, he named the Australian Sprinkler Standard, which has had different versions over the years. “The current version, the 2017 version, is an internationally accepted standard and it's a really high quality whilst the 1999 version had some significant deficiencies compared to internationally accepted standards,” he said. “The problem at the time was that building codes in Australia still referred to the old standard, even though the new standard was published and readily available.” This created issues for many clients who thought it would be enough to be compliant today without thinking if that still meant they would be compliant in the future or of the assets real resilience over time. A price too high The fire that devastated Grenfell Tower in June 2017 was one of the worst modern disasters in the UK according to the BBC. 72 people died in the 23-storey tower block in North Kensington, West London, on the night of the fire. In one of the reports to the public inquiry, an expert said that evidence "strongly supports" the theory that the polyethylene material in the cladding was the primary cause of the fire's spread.

HDInsight Edition 7 - page 13