Developers and contractors entering new markets that are looking to mitigate their projects’ risk now have available an interactive tool that not only allows them to access real-time updates pertaining to the risk climate of municipalities across the U.S., but also to create a job-specific risk profile that takes into account such factors as local statutes and the potential for catastrophic exposure.
Aon Risk Solutions, through its Construction Services Group, has gone live with its Construction Risk Portal, a web-enhanced tool that helps clients navigate risk when working across multiple geographies simultaneously.
Aon Risk Solutions is a division of London-based Aon plc, a publicly traded global provider of risk management, insurance and reinsurance brokerage, and human resources solutions and outsourcing services. It has clients in 120 countries.
The portal is a single website with two applications:
• Construction Risk Map is a searchable reference library. It provides a macroeconomic vantage of the construction risk climate across the country, and outlines specific issues—such as litigation, legislation, and insurance requirements—that contribute to overall construction’s risk rating;
• Construction Risk Register is an interactive module through which users can create project- and location-specific risk profiles based on data about the project. The profile would have three components: State-specific statutes and case law based on construction-specific issues as tracked in the Construction Risk Map; a map that plots a project’s location based on information input and through a partnership with Aon Benfield’s Impact Forecasting capabilities and analysis of catastrophic exposure; and a risk “matrix” that plots the potential severity of jurisdictional issues and catastrophic exposures on a construction project.
Aon Risk Solutions developed this interactive platform with assistance from Johnson & Bell, a real estate and construction litigation firm, and one of several information partners with which Aon has on retainer.
“The Construction Risk Portal will allow our clients and colleagues to have access 24-hours a day, seven days a week to statutory developments, case law, risk trends and regulatory updates,” says Matt Walsh, Executive Vice President and Chief Broking Officer of Aon Risk Solutions’ Construction Services Group.
Aon now includes access to this portal as one of the services it offers to clients, says Walsh. The plan is to add other applications in 2015, which Walsh says could revolve around safety drivers, contractual issues, and information about risks in other countries, such as Canada.
Related Stories
| Jan 4, 2011
Product of the Week: Zinc cladding helps border crossing blend in with surroundings
Zinc panels provide natural-looking, durable cladding for an administrative building and toll canopies at the newly expanded Queenstown Plaza U.S.-Canada border crossing at the Niagara Gorge. Toronto’s Moriyama & Teshima Architects chose the zinc alloy panels for their ability to blend with the structures’ scenic surroundings, as well as for their low maintenance and sustainable qualities. The structures incorporate 14,000 sf of Rheinzink’s branded Angled Standing Seam and Reveal Panels in graphite gray.
| Jan 4, 2011
6 green building trends to watch in 2011
According to a report by New York-based JWT Intelligence, there are six key green building trends to watch in 2011, including: 3D printing, biomimicry, and more transparent and accurate green claims.
| Jan 4, 2011
LEED standards under fire in NYC
This year, for the first time, owners of 25,000 commercial properties in New York must report their buildings’ energy use to the city. However, LEED doesn’t measure energy use and costs, something a growing number of engineers, architects, and landlords insist must be done. Their concerns and a general blossoming of environmental awareness have spawned a host of rating systems that could test LEED’s dominance.
| Jan 4, 2011
LEED 2012: 10 changes you should know about
The USGBC is beginning its review and planning for the next version of LEED—LEED 2012. The draft version of LEED 2012 is currently in the first of at least two public comment periods, and it’s important to take a look at proposed changes to see the direction USGBC is taking, the plans they have for LEED, and—most importantly—how they affect you.
| Jan 4, 2011
California buildings: now even more efficient
New buildings in California must now be more sustainable under the state’s Green Building Standards Code, which took effect with the new year. CALGreen, the first statewide green building code in the country, requires new buildings to be more energy efficient, use less water, and emit fewer pollutants, among many other requirements. And they have the potential to affect LEED ratings.
| Jan 4, 2011
New Years resolutions for architects, urban planners, and real estate developers
Roger K. Lewis, an architect and a professor emeritus of architecture at the University of Maryland, writes in the Washington Post about New Years resolutions he proposes for anyone involved in influencing buildings and cities. Among his proposals: recycle and reuse aging or obsolete buildings instead of demolishing them; amend or eliminate out-of-date, obstructive, and overly complex zoning ordinances; and make all city and suburban streets safe for cyclists and pedestrians.
| Jan 4, 2011
An official bargain, White House loses $79 million in property value
One of the most famous office buildings in the world—and the official the residence of the President of the United States—is now worth only $251.6 million. At the top of the housing boom, the 132-room complex was valued at $331.5 million (still sounds like a bargain), according to Zillow, the online real estate marketplace. That reflects a decline in property value of about 24%.
| Jan 4, 2011
Luxury hotel planned for Palace of Versailles
Want to spend the night at the Palace of Versailles? The Hotel du Grand Controle, a 1680s mansion built on palace grounds for the king's treasurer and vacant since the French Revolution, will soon be turned into a luxury hotel. Versailles is partnering with Belgian hotel company Ivy International to restore the dilapidated estate into a 23-room luxury hotel. Guests can live like a king or queen for a while—and keep their heads.
| Jan 4, 2011
Grubb & Ellis predicts commercial real estate recovery
Grubb & Ellis Company, a leading real estate services and investment firm, released its 2011 Real Estate Forecast, which foresees the start of a slow recovery in the leasing market for all property types in the coming year.
| Jan 4, 2011
Furniture Sustainability Standard - Approved by ANSI and Released for Distribution
BIFMA International recently announced formal American National Standards Institute (ANSI) approval and release of the ANSI/BIFMA e3-2010 Furniture Sustainability Standard. The e3 standard represents a structured methodology to evaluate the "sustainable" attributes of furniture products and constitutes the technical criteria of the level product certification program.