Alfa Insurance Enhances Backup Strategy to Model Importance of Disaster Preparedness
IVANS One-Stop Solution Provides Reassurance and Reduces Operational Costs
Stamford, Conn. (Vocus) April 28, 2009
IVANS, Inc.], a leading provider of corporate connectivity solutions and services, announced that Alfa Insurance® has engaged IVANS to upgrade its backup connectivity with broadband for 280 service centers in Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi. Alfa is a strong proponent of disaster preparedness, providing valuable educational and emergency information for its customers through the Alfa Insurance Severe Storm Center. With its customers, service centers and agents located in storm-prone areas, Alfa naturally wanted to ensure that its own operations were fully-protected for business continuity, particularly in times when the company's customers and agents would need Alfa's services the most.
A long-time IVANS customer for agency-company interface and private network connectivity solutions, Alfa Insurance has been enjoying steady growth over the years. The company determined that it needed to upgrade its backup network connectivity for added continuity, speed and scalability to support future applications. Alfa selected IVANS because of its unique ability to deliver a single source solution for network project management, customer support and consolidated billing. Additionally, IVANS strong relationships with telecommunications service providers across the United States ensure Alfa has the broadest network coverage available.
Eddy Mills, vice president of technical services, at Alfa Insurance, said, "IVANS broadband aggregation solution streamlines the project implementation and billing process, and eliminates the frustration associated with managing multiple vendor support processes. As a result, IVANS has helped reduce our operational costs, and our internal resources are able to focus on other projects. Most importantly, by providing us with backup connectivity that is high-speed and reliable, we will be able to process claims and respond to customers quickly, even in the event of disaster. IVANS is a valuable partner in helping Alfa achieve its strategic objectives."
IVANS offers a variety of network solutions to support the insurance industry, including broadband virtual private networks, managed Internet services, dedicated circuits and wireless. Carriers are using these solutions to provide backup connectivity, connect with remote claims offices and teleworkers, support catastrophe services, and deliver secure applications over the Internet. For more information on IVANS networking solutions, please visit www. ivans. com.
About Alfa Insurance
As an outgrowth of the Alabama Farmers Federation, Alfa Insurance Companies began in 1946 to provide quality fire insurance to federation members, who were primarily farmers. Alfa and its affiliates provide insurance and other financial services in 12 states including its core operations in Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia with additional products marketed in Texas, Missouri, Indiana, Ohio, Virginia, Arkansas, Kentucky and North Carolina. The Alfa Home Office is in Montgomery, Ala. Alfa Mutual Insurance Company is one of eight Alfa property and casualty companies servicing over 1 million policies. There are nearly 400 service centers with more than 2,500 people dedicated to serving customer needs. For information, visit www. alfains. com.
About IVANS
IVANS Inc. provides the property/casualty insurance and healthcare industries with fully managed network, electronic data interchange (EDI) and agency-company interface solutions to help solve complex business issues. Headquartered in Stamford, Conn. and a CMS approved vendor, IVANS serves over 700 insurance and healthcare organizations, more than 30,000 independent agents and 135,000 healthcare providers. With over 25 years of experience successfully managing networks, the company also offers its clients relentless customer service, security solutions, reliable and accessible technical helpdesk support and expert enablement. IVANS, which was formed by 21 insurance companies, also has offices in Tampa, Fla. and Cincinnati, Ohio. For information, visit www. ivans. com.
Contact
Cecile M. Locurto
IVANS, Inc.
203-698-7218
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