Jersey City, N.J. —
ISO’s goal with the acquisition is for AER to complement ISO’s AIR Worldwide Corp. (AIR) subsidiary, which offers analytical tools and software systems to help clients estimate and manage the risks associated with natural and man-made catastrophes, weather and climate. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The deal is an acknowledgement by ISO of the emergent problems associated with climate change and its impact on economic growth and stability, say experts. AER scientists contributed to reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Control (IPCC) that helped IPCC share the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore.
“With the addition of AER to the growing ISO enterprise, we continue to add resources and expertise to allow our customers to deepen their understanding of how emerging issues, such as the earth’s atmosphere and global climate change, impact risk and risk-management strategies,” says Frank Coyne, ISO’s chairman, president and CEO.
AER, which already provides sensing, simulating, modeling and predicting weather-related solutions for the atmosphere, ocean and space, counts as its existing customers federal agencies, including the Department of Defense, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The company also works with Fortune 500 defense contractors, research institutions and commercial entities in the financial and energy industries.
AER has leveraged proprietary partnerships and technologies developed over three decades to create and refine advanced computer models, analysis tools and databases that provide enhanced understanding of and predictions about the atmosphere, ocean and climate.
The newly acquired company’s scientists will continue serving on university and government colleagues on numerous committees, such as those of the National Research Council, as peer reviewers of research proposals, and journal publications, and on graduate student thesis committees. AER scientists also actively participate in such professional organizations as the American Meteorological Society and the American Geophysical Union; and routinely publish the results of their work in scientific research journals.
“The acquisition of AER further supports our objective to expand ISO’s reach in the energy, financial, and government markets and enhances our ability to measure and assess the impact of climate change on insured risks,” says Coyne. “AER’s scientific expertise, coupled with AIR’s advanced risk modeling solutions, offers a unique opportunity to produce new products for environmental modeling and prediction.”
AER will continue to operate from its corporate headquarters in Lexington, Mass., which will enable the company to continue working with Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and other research institutions in the greater Boston area.
Source: ISO
