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Q&A: Tim Bebout, Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection & Insurance Co.

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Q&A: Tim Bebout, Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection & Insurance Co.

Tim Bebout is vice president-strategic products at Munich Reinsurance Co.'s Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection & Insurance Co. unit. Mr. Bebout, an 11-year U.S. Navy veteran, recently spoke with Business Insurance Senior Editor Mark A. Hofmann about the special qualities military veterans bring to the insurance industry.

Q: What was the genesis of HSB's emphasis on hiring former military personnel as inspectors? How many former military personnel have been hired as inspectors by HSB?

A: HSB highly values military experience when hiring technical staff. More than 60% of HSB's inspection workforce has military service. Many are veterans of the U.S. Navy, which operates boilers, turbines, compressors, pumps and many other types of equipment to power its ships around the world, which is similar to the equipment HSB inspects and insures.

In addition, a subsidiary of HSB, HSB Global Standards, also employs many veterans, with most inspectors having military experience.

Q: What unique qualities do former military personnel bring to the job? Why are they particularly well-suited to conducting inspections?

A: Our mission in the Navy was constant readiness. Machinery and equipment must be running at optimum efficiency, 100% of the time, with no down time. Your level of expertise is tested every day. We were constantly training, tearing apart and rebuilding equipment in extreme conditions — up to 110- to 120-degree heat in the machinery and engine rooms while operating in the Indian Ocean. Boilers, pressure vessels, steam and gas turbines, diesel generators, pumps, compressors — everything that keeps the lights on and the ship moving. We made our own water with desalination, processed waste water, made our own power. There are 5,400 people aboard an aircraft carrier; it's a small city in itself, with the same types of equipment our customers operate.

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Q: How did that help you as an insurance inspector?

A: In the military, you're training to observe all conditions at all times, to be aware of your surroundings. HSB inspects 250,000 locations a year, and we are always going into new environments. Our customers get used to their environments, and they may not notice an exposure or a problem that is gradually getting worse. We must be aware of what is happening right now with the equipment and the possible consequences. The military really prepares you for that.

Also, a big part of Navy training is focused on quality control. Aboard a ship, you don't have the luxury of mistakes or failure. When you operate or work on a piece of equipment, you must get it right every time. This raises the level of expertise. We understand that when we are doing an inspection, or investigating an equipment loss. In an equipment breakdown claim, we are looking at a calamity, a disaster for that customer. In the Navy, you train daily to prevent that from happening, so you are quick to recognize the signs of a problem that could lead up to that failure.

Q: So you have a different mindset because of your military background?

A: You start with the right attitude. Whether you call it a level of integrity or maturity, you are serious about your work; you don't take anything for granted, especially safety when it comes to equipment. And you understand that just like in the Navy, where equipment downtime is not an option, it's not acceptable for our customers to have their business shut down or slowed because of an equipment breakdown.

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That is the heart of our work at HSB — to do everything possible to keep our customers from having a loss, or to get them back up and running if a breakdown does occur. The inspector is right there out front. We don't wait for a loss and then react. We work hard to prevent it in the first place.

Q: Are there particular categories of former military personnel that HSB seeks?

A: Obviously, it would be personnel who work with boilers, machinery, power plant equipment at any level. In the Navy, in a very short time, you gain more experience with equipment damage and repairs, with successes and failures, than many other people will see in their entire careers.

That background also carries over into other parts of the business. You develop very strong communication skills in the military. As an inspector or any other role in insurance, you need to be able to talk to a CEO as easily as someone working in the boiler room. The military prepares you for that. In the Navy, I had many different supervisory and management roles, as well as recruiting. Who knew it would prepare me to be an inspector and now a marketing executive with an insurance company? I couldn't have had any better training.

Q: How else does your training apply?

A: Veterans are good at transferring their knowledge and working closely with a customer. You can gain a level of trust and respect from customers. They quickly see that you are looking out for their best interests, that you come from a place of experience, and they will readily welcome the advice and follow our recommendations.

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Q: Do you have any examples?

A: In the Navy, aboard a repair ship, they might fly us to other ships with tool boxes tied to our belts. When there was no place for a helicopter to land, on a submarine for instance, they would drop us on deck with a cable and we would fix the problem. We learned to take the job seriously and to be careful.

When I was an inspector with HSB, I had the same attitude. I remember meeting a client at 5 a.m. for an inspection at a milk plant. I didn't see anybody, but noticed steam coming from one of the boilers. There was a man down inside the boiler, while a second boiler was running. Only one valve was protecting him from that dangerous steam. I convinced him to get out of there fast. I told him about an incident aboard ship, in which a sailor working a boiler with two valves protecting him made the same mistake — and it was fatal. Someone else didn't know he was in there and opened the valves. He was scalded to death. The customer got the point and we spent some time talking about safety procedures, a formal plan to help prevent accidents.

Q: Are there any other aspects of HSB's program of hiring former military personnel that you would like to mention?

A: One thing is that many of our customers are veterans. They appreciate the background and abilities of our inspectors and our people. They value our training and experience when it comes to their business. They know that we understand how important their equipment is to them and, most importantly, that we understand how their equipment operates and what can go wrong.

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The military is a different experience than going to college. The education and training in the military are accredited and tough. The dropout rate is high. But in addition, there are responsibilities and the expectations are high. At 19 or 20, I was in charge of the personnel and engine rooms running a billion-dollar aircraft carrier. Mistakes have big consequences, and you learn quickly to understand the implications of your actions.

That sums up how HSB feels about inspections and what HSB instills in every inspector. Some customers may see an inspection as an annoyance, as paperwork or red tape. But we see inspection requirements as the minimum required for safe operation and reliability. It's important to perform the maintenance and be mindful of how you operate equipment, not only to meet the law's requirements, but because we know of the potential loss or danger that the owner may not be thinking about until it's too late.