Insurer lauded for technological innovation
PROVIDENCE – Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island has been honored by the Computerworld Smithsonian Program as “one of the leading innovators in the technological revolution.” A case study of the project known as “Blue Ribbon 2000” has become part of the Permanent Research Collection on Internet Technology at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. The Computerworld Smithsonian Program identifies and honors organizations and individuals that use information technology to produce positive social and economic change. Sybase, Inc., of Concord, Mass., nominated Blue Cross.
The project, “Blue Ribbon 2000,” is an innovative customer service application. The system uses new technologies in a unique way to interpret information between Blue Cross’ main frame based claims processing system and personal computer applications used by customer service representatives.
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The case study is available for review on www.cwsmithsonian.org and is available to scholars, researchers and the general public.
Bacou USA unveils system for firefighters
SMITHFIELD – Bacou USA, Inc. has announced that its Biosystems division has introduced the new Touch ‘N’ Track Accountability System at the Fire Rescue International Conference in Dallas, Texas.
The Touch ‘N Track instrument provides a small, compact, real time accountability system that allows the incident commander to know instantly who is on a fire scene. In addition to portability, the new system provides increased simplicity. By merely touching an ID tag to the Touch ‘N’ Track instrument, a time-stamp record is created for all personnel movement. Once the fire is out, a chronological record of the incident can be electronically transferred to a personal computer for rapid and precise post-incident reporting.
Besides creating a time-stamped record of all personnel movement at the fire scene, the Touch ‘N’ Track instrument reduces the potential for human error by automatically reminding the accountability officer at the scene of the fire to perform a Personnel Accountability Report, at scheduled intervals.
Established in 1981 and acquired by Bacou USA in 1997, Biosystems is a leading manufacturer of instrumentation for worker safety, including gas detectors, test equipment for self-contained breathing apparatus and personnel accountability systems.
BandwidthCenter expands to six new cities
WORCESTER, Mass. – BandwidthCenter, Inc. has successfully raised $800,000 in its first round of funding.
”This first round of funding will permit us to complete installation of the support systems and company-owned network equipment in our first facility in Worcester,” said Pamela Mercanti, the company’s co-founder and vice president of strategic planning. “The wheels are in motion to provide similar services for an additional six cities.”
BandwidthCenter provides co-location and other data center services to corporations, universities and government agencies that need high-speed access to the Internet.
According to market research firm Forrester Research, the need for Web hosting and co-location services is exploding as the Internet continues to grow. A recent Forrester report predicts that revenues in this sector in the U.S. will grow at a rate of 69 percent annually to $4.4 billion by 2003.
In addition to providing clients with a state-of-the-art data center environment, BandwidthCenter also provides access to redundant high-speed Internet networks.
“If a back-hoe accidentally severs a major fiber-network, our customers will be automatically and instantaneously switched to another high-speed network provider,” said Mercanti. “This insures that the performance of their mission-critical Internet systems will neither degrade nor fail altogether.”
High tech advisors getting costly, questionable
NEW YORK, N.Y. – This year alone, U.S. firms will pay $20 billion to consultants for design and construction of e-commerce Web sites, even though few of the big-name e-commerce integrators can actually deliver the type of across-the-board expertise needed to get an e-tailer up and running, according to Cynthia Hollen, president and co-founder of Knowledge Strategies Group, a New York-based consultant.
“These findings may be surprising, especially to the people cutting the huge checks,” said Hollen. “But why should anyone be shocked to learn that e-commerce consultants are just as likely as anyone else to be making it up as they go along?”
Promethean rebuts charges in LOA lawsuit
PROVIDENCE – The company sued by Log On America is referring to charges against it as “reckless speculation.” Promethean Asset Management said that it “has never directly or indirectly, either itself or through any affiliates, engaged in any purchases, sales, short sales or other hedging activity with respect to shares of Log On America stock.”
LOA filed suit in U.S. District Court, New York last week, against Promethean and five other defendants.
LOA has accused the group of “short selling” to drive down the company’s stock price.
(Compiled from news reports and releases, print and electronic.)
