Flood Waters Recede But Power Outages Remain Widespread in Northeast United States

North Carolina, USA (PRWEB) September 13, 2011

blue dog NETWORK, one of the fastest growing IT cloud solutions providers in the world, reported the fast deployment initiatives during the recent natural disasters across the United States rescued new customers with a life line for immediate back-up, data security and communication connectivity. All current and new customers experienced 100% uptime and no loss of data communications connectivity.

It has been several dramatic weeks for natural disasters, flooding, fires, power outages, and web meltdowns, said Dana Vizneau, CEO of blue dog NETWORK. We are pleased to report our fast deployment initiative supported new customers data in record time. Our information technology solutions are powerful.

Hidden Dangers to Businesses

Flooding can affect power supply lines, especially in large areas where cables are underground and unseen. Loss of power is one of the top issues companies address every day.

But the real hidden danger of power outage is data loss and business downtime. Unfortunately, businesses that do not have a back-up, recovery or business continuance plan can face catastrophic damage to their priceless information and connectivity for all employees, partners and customers. Downtime can cost relationships and revenue.

Look below the surface

Natural disasters definitely raise awareness of the necessity of information technology preparedness necessary before any systems failure occurs. blue dog NETWORK provides the highest level of enterprise-wide uninterrupted power, backup, recovery and business continuance support. Add the value of agnostic operating systems support for every business size and connectivity for all mobile devices, including desktops, email, web communication and collaboration. Cost-effectively protect precious information and communications connectivity that will secure every business stays up and running.

Keep information technology secure with redundant back-up data centers. For optimal protection, blue dog NETWORK customers can opt to span data across multiple servers and data centers

Flood Waters Recede But Power Outages Remain Widespread in Northeast United States

Flood Specialists, Inc. Offers Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Assistance

Chicago, IL (PRWEB) January 28, 2012

Flood Specialists, Inc., a Chicago water damage restoration company, today announces it is helping companies large and small with emergency preparedness and continuity plans. Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity are two key components of business survival. These two components work hand-in-hand but are separate and distinct disciplines.

Disaster recovery consists of protocols and procedures that an organization follows to minimize the damage and get the facility back up and available for employees and customers. Most people consider a disaster as being weather related events like tornados, hurricanes and floods or terrorist attacks. Unfortunately, a broken water pipe, cyber-attacks, electrical malfunctions, and hazardous material spills are all disasters that require a recover plan. Engaging a qualified disaster recovery or restoration contractor before the disaster occurs, more likely assures help at a moments notice without struggling to find and qualify a contractor in the middle of the night.

Business continuity extends the concept of disaster recovery to reflect the processes and procedures that organizations put in place to ensure that critical business functions continue, despite an event that disrupts normal business operations. This can be as simple as identifying alternate resources when employees are unable to work, or as complex as recovering servers and mainframes with network backups in the event of a system failure. Why is business continuity so important in today’s business world? Because it means your company stays up and running, no matter what happens, and with today’s businesses relying heavily on the Internet and other technologies, constant connectivity is vital.

Research has shown that 76% of companies experience at least one business disruption in any five-year period, and 27% have to declare at least one disaster, meaning critical systems were disabled long enough that recovery procedures had to be executed. It is not a matter of if a disaster will strike; it is a matter of when and how you will be able to deal with it.

It is important for business owners and staff to identify potential risks, figure out the costs of downtime, and choose the most effective contractor and work together to implement disaster recovery services. A direct cost could be the amount of business lost if a disaster happened. If the company realizes a certain amount of business every day, the organization can know exactly how much downtime will actually cost. Indirect costs are also very important because a company’s reputation or relationships could cause customer concerns and lead them to make temporary or even permanent vendor changes.

Awareness of these factors highlight how companies that have effective plans can quickly recover from a disaster, which can be a competitive advantage and an opportunity to take revenue and market share from companies that cannot. In addition, a key to a comprehensive plan is ensuring that critical staff can work remotely in the event of a disaster. This includes telephone and broadband Internet to facilitate communications between employees and management and the ability to be in contact with customers and prospects without interruption.

By pre-selecting our qualified Disaster Mitigation/Disaster Restoration Contractors, you know in advance who to call, what our skills are, and what our reputation is – so that middle of the night disasters do not end up being a complete nightmare!

About Flood Specialists, Inc.:

Flood Specialists, Inc. is one of the largest providers of fire & water damage restoration services in Chicago, IL and surrounding communities. They are IICRC certified and members of the Restoration Industry Association. Visit http://floodspecialists.com for more information on water damage, or follow us on Twitter.

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Flood Specialists, Inc. Offers Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Assistance

Free IBHS Resources Available to Help Effectively Minimize Flood Damage

Tampa, Fla. (PRWEB) March 14, 2012

In recognition of National Flood Safety Awareness Week (March 12 16) the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) is providing free guidance to help property owners lower their risk of flood damage.

Average flood losses cost $ 48,000 for homeowners and $ 85,000 for commercial property owners, according to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). It is important to note that different types of flooding may occur at particular building sites. In inland areas, away from a river bed or behind a levee, the greatest risk at this time of year typically is rising water due to snow melt or heavy rains associated with thunderstorms. Later in the year, additional risk comes from hurricanes, which can bring flooding to areas along the coast and much farther inland, as demonstrated last year by Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee.

Every year, severe flooding happens in both expected and unexpected places, notes Julie Rochman, IBHS president and CEO. Taking steps to prepare a property now, before disaster strikes, can effectively reduce damage and speed a familys or business operations recovery.

The first step toward increasing flood safety for any property owner is evaluating their respective flood risk. To that end, knowing the base flood elevation (BFE) of your property is essential; BFE is the level water will reach during a base flood. A base flood, often referred to as a 100-year event has a one percent annual chance of occurring in any given year.

Property owners should fully understand the flood exposure at their location. This can be done by comparing the finished floor elevation with the most up-to-date flood map for that particular area. Community Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) are available through the FEMA Map Service Center website, FEMA Map Service Center. Tips and step-by-step instruction are available at the IBHS website.

Property owners also should check building department records or the property survey for the elevation of the structures lowest floor or enclosed area in the building including any space below ground level on all sides (e.g., a basement). If this information cannot be found, a licensed surveyor could be hired to make that determination.

IBHS recommends that homeowners take the following steps now, before a flood, to reduce interior water damage:

Free IBHS Resources Available to Help Effectively Minimize Flood Damage

IBHS Offers Effective Tips to Minimize Flood Damage from Hurricane Sandy

Tampa, Fla. (PRWEB) October 28, 2012

As Hurricane Sandy threatens the East Coast, the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) is offering expert tips on ways to help reduce flood-related damage.

Unfortunately, forecasters predict Hurricane Sandy will create substantial storm surge along the East Coast with large amounts of rain that could cause additional flooding, said Brenda OConnor, IBHS senior vice president of public affairs. While you cannot move your home out of the storms path, you can and should take steps now to reduce potential damage by moving a few important items around and up inside your home, and taking a few other precautions.

IBHS recommends the following to reduce flood-related damage:

IBHS Offers Effective Tips to Minimize Flood Damage from Hurricane Sandy