IBHS Notes Strategic Partnerships at Conference

The Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) formalized three strategic partnerships with organizations whose reach extends throughout the U.S. and beyond at its annual conference this last week in Orlando.

IBHS will work with the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) on projects that leverage each group’s award-winning communication and public education programs, together with their expertise in disaster-resistant construction techniques, to bring home safety messages to people around the country.

IBHS also signed an agreement with the International Code Council (ICC) to work together on the research, development, adoption and enforcement of building codes on the state and national levels that address disaster-resistant residential and commercial construction.

One of the first such efforts will be the analysis of construction performance findings in Florida following the four hurricanes that struck the state during August and September this year. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Florida Department of Community Affairs will also participate in this process. The aim will be to determine the state’s code effectiveness in high wind events.

Finally, IBHS is partnering with the Young Americas Business Trust (YABT) to help implement effective business continuity risk mitigation measures against natural disasters. YABT is a non-profit corporation affiliated with the Organization of American States, which links more than 100,000 young entrepreneurs in the Americas, principally Latin America and the Caribbean. The YABT will translate the IBHS Open for Business toolkit and other resources, eventually putting this material in target populations in the United States, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean.

IBHS is a national nonprofit initiative of the insurance industry to reduce deaths, injuries, property damage, economic losses and human suffering caused by natural disasters.