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BUSINESS NEWS TYLIN MOVES UP TO NUMBER 31 IN ENGINEERING NEWS-RECORD’S 2022 TOP 500 DESIGN FIRMS TYLin, a globally recognized, full-service infrastructure consulting firm, announces that TYLin advanced to No. 31 in Engineering News-Record’s (ENR) 2022 listings of the Top 500 Design Firms, moving up four spots from 2021. The annual list is based on companies’ 2021 design services revenue.
TYLin continues to expand its global design expertise through its sector model, serving Buildings, Transportation, and Water clients worldwide. The firm ranked in these additional ENR categories: ■ ■ No. 8 Top 20 Design Firms (Transportation) – up three spots ■ ■ No. 12 Top 50 Designers in International Markets – up two spots
■ ■ No. 20 Top 100 Pure Designers – up two spots Founded in 1954, TYLin is a globally recognized, full-service infrastructure consulting firm committed to providing innovative, cost-effective, constructible designs for the global infrastructure market. With 3,200 employees working in 65 offices throughout the Americas, Asia, and Europe, the firm provides support on projects of varying size and complexity.
the adequacy of their insurance programs and status of any outstanding claims or liabilities. Under-insured risks can significantly change the terms of a deal or cancel it altogether. 8. High-risk projects/disciplines draw scrutiny. In pursuing new opportunities as they emerge from the pandemic, some design firms might consider widening their practice to encompass different projects or to expand their capabilities to include higher risk disciplines. It’s worth noting that, from an underwriting perspective, insurers continue to scrutinize what they consider higher risk projects, such as condominiums and schools, and high- risk disciplines, especially geotechnical engineering, structural engineering, and architecture. Of insurers surveyed, 77 percent plan to target rate increases to firms with high-risk projects or disciplines. 9. Underwriters sharpen focus on regional loss trends. As they continue to examine heightened exposures from an underwriting perspective, more insurers are turning their attention to states and jurisdictions either historically considered higher risk or with generally adverse loss experience. This year, 38 percent of insurers surveyed plan to apply rate increases to states in this category, such as California, Florida, New Jersey, and Texas. 10. Not the time to relax risk management. While the prospects of emerging from the throes of the pandemic are exciting news for all industries, now is not the time for design firms to relax any of their risk management measures. With the potential for worker shortages, inflation, supply chain issues, and escalating professional liability premium and claim costs, AEC firms are well- advised to maintain sound risk management. That includes practicing good contractual hygiene, ensuring timely incident and claim reporting, and carefully reviewing their cybersecurity measures, as well as those of their subs, and the adequacy of their related insurance protection. For a copy of the Ames & Gough Survey, PLI Market 2022: A/E Firms Face Headwinds Due to Adverse Economic Factors , email info@amesgough.com. Jared Maxwell, vice president and partner, Ames & Gough, and Cady Sinks, assistant vice president, Ames & Gough. Jared Maxwell can be reached at jmaxwell@amesgough.com ; Cady Sinks can be reached at csinks@amesgough.com.
JARED MAXWELL & CADY SINKS , from page 9
increased risks of design and technical errors, shortages of workers leading to project delays, and loss of institutional knowledge at design firms to keep projects on track and to anticipate and address potential issues. 4. Fears over growing cyber threats. The explosion of ransomware claims during the pandemic has resulted in large underwriting losses, which in turn are fueling cyber- insurance premium rate increases of 15 percent to 50 percent. Besides higher premium costs, design firms might see coverage restrictions, further scrutiny by underwriters of their cybersecurity practices, and exclusions or sublimits for losses arising from various types of cyber incidents. Firms failing to demonstrate appropriate cybersecurity protocols or that have experienced cyber incidents in the past may find coverage more difficult to obtain. 5. More insurers question “rate adequacy.” A growing number of insurers now wonder about the sustainability of competitive rates in the aftermath of a decade of relative rate stability amid rising claims. Thus, it may not be surprising that this year, 81 percent of insurers are seeking rate increases and 31 percent plan to apply higher rates across their entire business. 6. Addressing capacity crunch may take extra effort. Even as more clients require AEC firms to carry higher limits of professional liability coverage, insurers surveyed generally have a stable amount of capacity to meet those requests. Nonetheless, design firms and their insurance advisors may need to be creative in obtaining higher insurance limits. For instance, to save costs, they might opt for project-specific excess or negotiate with clients to validate requests for higher limits. In some cases, increased requirements may be outsized for the overall exposure. Further, when elevated limit requests are cascaded to subconsultants, they may be both impractical and unaffordable. 7. Heightened M&A activity calls for greater diligence. With AEC firms involved in some 400 mergers and acquisitions last year, insurers are carefully monitoring the impact of deals on the risk profile of the acquiring firm and the combined entity. In the meantime, AEC firms making acquisitions need to apply due diligence to all aspects of target firms – from their disciplines and client mix to
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THE ZWEIG LETTER MAY 30, 2022, ISSUE 1443
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