NEW SOFTWARE REVOLUTIONIZES ALTERNATIVE RISK FINANCE MODELING 

Brentwood, TN, February 5, 2001 – Alternative risk finance modeling can be a complicated and error-prone task for risk management professionals. Specific Software Solutions is pleased to announce the first commercially available software product to assist professionals with this modeling. The software, named NPVision, allows users to evaluate and compare loss financing alternatives on a net present value (NPV) basis.

 “When I worked at a large brokerage firm many years ago, we utilized a mainframe computer model to perform what we called ‘quote comparisons’,” said Tim Coomer, A.R.M., president and founder of Specific Software Solutions. “Many brokerage firms and other companies still use legacy systems and spreadsheets to assist with modeling. Our market research indicated there was a need for PC software which could do these tasks, simplify and enhance the comparison process, and provide companies of all sizes with the advantages of externally developed software from a company with proven technical support.” 

Users of NPVision can: 

• evaluate and compare guaranteed cost, incurred loss retro, paid loss retro, investment credit retro, and large deductible plans on a net present value (NPV) basis
• easily change assumption data and view the resulting effect on the NPV cost
• quickly generate professional reports, customizable with company information and preferences
• increase the accuracy of their cost allocation and risk management decisions

 “It is a wonderful coincidence that we are releasing NPVision at a time when the market is hardening,” said Coomer. “Besides making our users’ jobs easier, we believe this product can also give them a competitive edge.”

NPVision Question and Answers 

Q. What is alternative risk financing?

A. Alternative risk financing is the discipline of efficiently managing risk through the best possible use of capital and limited involvement with traditional insurance plans. Alternative risk financing methodologies, or programs, include self-insurance, retro programs, large deductible programs, and captive insurance companies. Each of these programs has its own particular advantages and disadvantages and its own distinctive impact on cash flow.

Q: Who would benefit from using NPVision?

 A: Any insurance or risk management professional who wants to quantify the net present value financial cost of various loss financing alternatives.

 Q: How does NPVision make a user’s job of alternative risk finance comparisons easier?

 A: NPVision’s analytical framework and step by step interface allow the user to input  complex program parameters and present the resulting cash flow. The cash flows of multiple programs can then be compared on a single screen or report on a net present value basis.

 Q: How long has NPVision been available?

 A: The general availability of NPVision was announced to our existing users on January 16^th. The product was beta tested during the third and fourth quarters of 2000 by a select number of users representing top brokers, insurance carriers and small companies.

 Q: How did you decide what features and functionality to include in the product?

 A: The early phases of product development were influenced by the input of representatives from a top brokerage firm. As the project neared completion, we retained the services of one of the nation’s leading experts in this discipline to assist us with implementing the finer points of the methodologies.

 Q: Users of many software products become frustrated with obtaining tech support when they have a technical problem or a usage question. How is NPVision supported?

 A: All of our products are offered on an annual subscription basis which includes timely web-based updates to supporting data tables and schedules, fixes and enhancements to the software itself, and unlimited technical support by e-mail, our web site and toll-free phone. We plan to support NPVision in the tradition that we’ve established with our other products. Our products are very popular with our subscribers, as verified by their comments at http://www.specificsoftware.com/testimonials.htm.

 Q: What are the system requirements for NPVision?

 A: NPVision requires a PC with a minimum of: a Pentium processor, 64MB of RAM (random access memory), Windows 95 or above or Windows NT, 30 MB of hard drive space, and another 15 MB or more recommended, depending on the number and size of data files the user creates.

More About the Company