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3 Tech. L. & Ins. 1 (1998)

handle is hein.journals/tnlylwad3 and id is 1 raw text is: Technology, Law and Insurance, 1998 3, 1-2 Guest Editorial Industrial Insurance Ltd, formerly Industrial Mu- tual, was founded in Finland more than one hundred years ago. In contrast to the monopolistic insurance associations of that time, it was set up by contemporary industrialists who were in favour of a company specializing in industrial risks and promoting loss prevention. From the very begin- ning, besides providing insurance cover, the mis- sion of the company has been to investigate and control losses in industry. Thus special attention has been paid to the development of loss preven- tion services, and to the motivation of companies to prevent losses themselves by providing pre- mium incentives in return for good safety per- formance. The insurance and loss prevention programs of Industrial Insurance Ltd have grown from local and national insurance risks to the present global risk management programs, espe- cially in the key areas of Finnish industry, i.e. forest industry, metal industries, power generation and process industries. The experience gained from losses and their prevention is used in day-to-day contacts with clients in order to prevent future failures and accidents. Furthermore, reviews of failures and the latest information about prevention are com- municated in joint symposia with clients and also in newsletters or datasheets. The International Symposium on Machinery Failure and Safety was arranged by and held at Industrial Insurance Ltd, Helsinki, on 3 September 1997. The objective of the symposium was to bring together technical, legal and insurance experts to report and discuss recent developments in ma- chinery-related losses and their prevention. This interprofessional and interdisciplinary communi- cation between engineers, lawyers and insurers is of the utmost importance when dealing with today's complex failure cases involving machinery. As the objectives of the symposium were parallel to the original objectives of the International Society for Technology, Law and Insurance (ISTLI), partnership with ISTLI was most appropriate to activate the international network of experts work- ing in the technical, legal and insurance matters of machinery failures. The symposium delegates represented interna- tionally on one hand the scientific and research 1359-9372 © 1998 E & FN Spon community, and on the other hand organizations dealing with practical risk management, such as safety authorities, insurance companies, manufac- turers, materials testing companies and law offices. Besides being a state of the art review in machinery failure, the Symposium and the papers presented constitute a training and communication experi- ence. The discussions resembled the interprofes- sional discussions needed in real cases of machinery failure with serious human and eco- nomic consequences, and where communication must cross the borders to find the facts and solve the problems. The area of machinery failure and safety is professionally very demanding, and risk manage- ment must cope with increasing complexity, glo- balization and the ever-increasing pace of changes in technology, organization and economic condi- tions. New machine safety regulations in the European Union, strict product liability and envir- onmental regulations are examples of the chal- lenges that today's machine manufacturers meet, while at the same time improving quality, making profits, and staying competitive in the international market place. Due to the development of technol- ogy, with the increasing complexity of risks, com- bined with the globalization of the insurance business, the professionals in insurance and risk management face ever-increasing demands in competence and skill, whether they work in under- writing, in loss analysis or in loss prevention. A number of failure case studies were presented reflecting the current challenges facing the insur- ance industry, engineering investigators and law professionals. The material of the symposium focuses especially on power generation, boilers, turbines, and experiences from the pulp and paper industry. In these areas the costs of losses and the potential of catastrophic failures are high. There are some other important areas not covered in detail at the Symposium where knowledge, regula- tions and international networks have been devel- oped due to the high demand from both the business sector and the general public, e.g. com- puters and machines at consumer disposal. It is good to learn from past failures, but it is even better to predict and prevent possible future fail- ures. It was encouraging to find that so many

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