Environmental Data Resources Inc. Expands its Environmental Information Solutions with Acquisition of iTAG-PARCEL LLC
MILFORD, Conn., April 13: Environmental Data Resources Inc. (EDR), the nation's leading provider of environmental information, announced today it has acquired the assets of iTAG-PARCEL LLC from Jacques Whitford, an international environmental and engineering firm. iTAG-PARCEL is best known for developing PARCEL, a complete Web-based management platform for writing, reviewing, assembling, and delivering Phase I environmental site assessments (ESAs), property condition assessments (PCAs) and other due diligence reports for commercial real estate transactions.
"This acquisition demonstrates EDR's continued commitment to invest in our industry-leading information solutions," said Robert D. Barber, CEO of EDR. "We are constantly looking for advanced technology to augment EDR's existing tools and the range of options we offer, with PARCEL we can offer our clients even better report quality, reduced report-writing time and consistent information.
"As part of the digitization of the property due diligence industry, a growing number of environmental professionals who get their information from EDR are delivering that information by using PARCEL," Barber continued. "EDR and PARCEL work with the same clientele of professionals who prepare reports for lenders, property owners, developers and others. This acquisition enables our customers to obtain their environmental data and platform usage from one source, which will help them to perform their work more effectively."
As part of the acquisition, the entrepreneurial team that founded iTAG- PARCEL will join EDR to lead its newly formed Solutions Group. Guy Tassinari, formerly President and CEO of iTAG-PARCEL, will serve as Vice President of the EDR Solutions Group, and Jack Huntress, formerly Vice President of Sales and Product Development for iTAG-PARCEL, will serve as Vice President of Business Development for the EDR Solutions Group. All of iTAG-PARCEL's other employees will also join the EDR Solutions Group. The EDR Solutions Group will continue to support PARCEL and will introduce future workflow applications and solutions for EDR's customers in the property due diligence industry.
"EDR is a natural home for PARCEL because EDR works directly with environmental consultants," said Robert Youden, CEO of Jacques Whitford. "We believe the combination of EDR and PARCEL will drive even more acceleration in the adoption of this innovative technology. We are looking forward to continuing to work with Guy and Jack and their team, as Jacques Whitford will continue to use the PARCEL platform in our capacity as EDR clients."
The PARCEL platform comprises 12 flexible Web-based reporting modules that enable users to design their own customized templates for environmental and engineering reports. The platform integrates smoothly with environmental data provided by EDR and provides a full complement of usability, workflow, integration and management features. Additionally, PARCEL is the only commercially available due diligence software platform optimized for eventual compliance with the new electronic commerce standards of the Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization ("MISMO"), with all modules meeting MISMO guidelines for data transmission.
"We are very excited to take the technology and service we have been providing with PARCEL and apply it to the outstanding work already performed by EDR," Tassinari said. "PARCEL usage has grown significantly, and as part of EDR it's bound to provide strategic advantages to many more environmental professionals and their clients."
Adding PARCEL's reporting modules to EDR's information solutions will provide EDR's clients with easier access to the advantages of the PARCEL platform, including efficiency gains, more consistency in their reports, better integration with end-user systems, smoother collaboration within project teams, faster report delivery, and more effective workflow management.
"My organization uses EDR for environmental information and PARCEL for a reporting solution. It is great to hear that EDR will invest in this capability so that we can obtain these services from one source," said Alan Agadoni, senior vice president of ATC Associates Inc., a leading environmental consulting and engineering firm. "This acquisition seems to be a natural development of the existing integration between EDR and PARCEL, and we anticipate many benefits to result."
The acquisition is effective immediately. Customers who currently use the PARCEL platform will be able to seamlessly continue using both PARCEL and EDR services with increased customer support, consolidated billing, and reduction in overall cost due to the removal of integration fees.
About EDR
Environmental Data Resources Inc. (EDR) is the leading national provider of environmental information services in the United States. As the innovator of the most comprehensive and accurate database of environmental and historical land use information, the company provides reports, subscription services and other solutions to help its customers assess and manage environmental risk. EDR customers include commercial and residential real estate professionals, environmental consultants, lenders, corporations, attorneys and government agencies. Established in 1991, EDR is headquartered in Milford, Connecticut with regional offices located throughout the United States. EDR is wholly owned by DMG Information Inc., the business information division of Daily Mail and General Trust, plc (DMGT). For more information, visit www.edrnet.com.
Source: Environmental Data Resources Inc.
CONTACT: Jay Gains Environmental Data Resources, +1-800-352-0050 ext.
147, Joe McGurk of CJP Communications, +1-203-378-1152 ext. 121, Environmental Data Resources Inc.
Web site: www.edrnet.com/
