History

About BNet

The Business Network of Emergency Resources, Inc. (BNet) is the result of a Federal, State and Private-Sector study conducted between 1997 and 1998 known as the Joint Loss Reduction Partnership (JLRP). The study's intent was to determine the critical needs of businesses following a major disaster. The results of the study yielded interesting results. Rapid access to the workplace and better communications between the government and the private sector were the overwhelming top issues to businesses and thus recommended that programs be put in place to mitigate these cooperation voids.

As a result, a group of private sector participants and public sector advisors to the JLRP formed BNet, a non-profit organization, to follow through on those recommendations. BNet's first objective was to develop a credentialing program for businesses to be able to access their workplace quickly following an emergency event that resulted in travel or access restrictions. The program had to have the cooperation and recognition of local law enforcement officers to succeed. As a result is the highly successful program now known as the Corporate Emergency Access System (CEAS) was born.

Initially piloted and adopted in Buffalo, NY, CEAS is now the official business credentialing program recognized by government authorities in New York City, NY, Baltimore, MD, Boston, MA, Cambridge, MA, Erie County, NY, Nassau County, NY, Philadelphia, PA, Stamford, CT and Suffolk County, NY.

The ultimate goal of CEAS is to boost economic resiliency by reducing the direct and indirect costs of disasters to an impacted region and its businesses. By fostering coordination between business and government during emergencies, BNET believes a significant reduction in major economic losses and a faster economic recovery for business and industry can be achieved.

Keeping Organizations and Businesses Operational

Corporate productivity and profits are dependent upon the safety and soundness of a company's operations. A key objective of BNet's programs is to help organizations resume critical business functions as soon as possible after a business disruption occurs. When organizations and businesses are shut down or slowed down as a result of a disaster, employees, other businesses and the community-at-large feel the domino effect of the economic impact.