Producers Lloyds To Offer USDA-Insured Crop Insurance Policies over the Internet; Emrys Solutions Provides Core Software Technology

Business Wire, Nov 9, 2000

Business Editors, High-Tech Writers

AMARILLO, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 9, 2000

Producers Lloyds Insurance Company, one of the country's leading crop insurance companies, today announced an E-Commerce technology solution, which offers farmers immediate, secure access to their crop insurance policy information over the Internet.

Producers Lloyds was recently approved by the Risk Management Agency of the United States Department of Agriculture to offer crop insurance services reinsured by the federal government over the Internet beginning with the 2001 crop year. In addition to increased access to program information, policyholders will have the ability to electronically complete, sign, and submit forms required by their crop insurance policies.

Emrys Solutions, Inc. of Richardson, Texas provides the core technology platform embedded in Producers Lloyds' applications, which makes the applications available over the Internet with high-level security. Emrys' technology includes tools and methodologies that enable the extension of business applications over the Internet to a multitude of computing devices (i.e. desktop computer, laptop or handheld device).

The technology overcomes many common problems associated with mobile computing, such as bandwidth constraints, device display size and color limitations, stateless connections, and browser/micro-browser limitations. The Emrys solution provides a competitive advantage because applications do not have to be re-developed. They can simply be re-deployed and extended using Emrys Visions(TM) Application Manager and deploying the client-side View Manager.

The Producers Lloyds' system is the most customer-oriented solution available in the industry because policyholders have the ability to update and service their policy information and have real-time access to their policy information. Farmers can do everything from simply viewing policy information, to updating, changing and printing coverage information.

In addition, policyholders are not required to use a web browser to pull information off a Web Server. With the Producers Lloyds solution, they connect to an "Emrys-enabled" application server and experience a real time on-line policy administration session over the Internet. All company employees, field staff, agents, and all policyholders access just one enterprise application, and one enterprise information database.

This access to account information was made possible by advanced security features, inherent to Emrys' patent-pending technology, that protect unauthorized access to crop insurance policy data. The security system was tested for vulnerability and penetration by Perot Systems Corporation of Dallas, Texas.

Company staff connect to the service over a direct private T1 line using Producers Lloyds local area network (LAN) or by direct modem dial-up, through a private dial-up using a toll free "800" number or through the Internet itself.

"We are using Emrys technology to create a secure, fast and focused view directly into the insurance company's own information systems," stated Larry Latham, CIO of Producers Lloyds. "We are not using Web browsers attached to Web servers over the Internet, which is a slow, insecure and unfocused "push" technology. We offer our customers a remote access client View Manager attached to a real application server software program to give remote users --including the company's own home office staff -- an in the office experience from their remote locations."

"The Internet network is used as a very cost effective wide area network (WAN) to allow remote access, with appropriate security rights and appropriate functionality based on user log-in profiles, to the policy data residing at the insurance company's application and database services located in Amarillo, Texas," Latham added.

"Our technology," said Bruce Switzer, CEO of Emrys Solutions, "has given Producers Lloyds a competitive advantage by allowing them to deliver a complete application experience to various devices over the Internet without these applications having to be re-developed. Emrys Visions' Application Manager and client-side View Manager let them easily re-deploy and extend these applications, thus increasing Return on Investment and Time to Benefit."

About Producers Lloyds

Producers Lloyds Insurance Company is a regional insurance carrier operating in Texas and the southwestern United States. It specializes in the underwriting of insurance on growing crops. The principals of the company have been in the crop insurance business for more than fifty years. It has over four hundred agents that market and service products for the company using Internet connectivity directly into the company's policy management systems.

Producers Lloyds is located at 2025 South Hughes in Amarillo, Texas 79109. Visit the website at www.producerslloyds.com ; eMail is larry@producerslloyds.com.

About Emrys Solutions, Inc.

Emrys Solutions, Inc. develops and markets technology that extends business applications, including popular ERP applications and custom legacy applications, to wireless and other devices without being constrained by bandwidth.