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Eris History and Commitment to the Market

Who is ERIS?

ERIS is owned by Glacier Media, a publisher of newspapers and trade magazines specific to the energy markets based out of Vancouver, Canada. ERIS falls under the “Business Information” sector of Glacier and has been in business since 1999 providing Canadian environmental professionals with government records and historical products used to complete ESAs in Canada. In 2013, ERIS launched coverage in the US and has grown exponentially since.

How large is ERIS as a company?

ERIS and our parent, Glacier Media, are 100% committed to our growth and expansion into the US market. We have a full suite of products and a fantastic customer base that grows every day and we have doubled the amount of staff each year since expanding into the US.

Does ERIS still provide database reports to HIG?

ERIS has partnerships with multiple data and information providers globally. Our main focus is delivering the highest quality product to our customers. Sometimes this is accomplished with organic ERIS products and other times we leverage our network, including HIG among other valued partners.

Do you have historical products … aerials, topos, etc.?

In 2015, ERIS acquired TRS Research Group which owns aerial photography, city directory information, and also employs a network of researchers throughout the US. Furthermore, ERIS provides historical topos and fire insurance maps as well. ERIS has deep and growing collections and can provide every product necessary to complete a Phase I ESA.

Eris vs. The Competition

What makes you different? Why would I change and how can I trust you?

ERIS is committed to providing the highest level of customer service and report quality in the industry. Our turn-around-times are unmatched and our people want to earn your business on every deal. We focus on serving environmental professionals and are committed to that business line. Since providing data in the US, we have doubled our revenue each year and work with every top 5 customer in the US market that provides Phase I ESAs.

Do you target lenders?

ERIS will provide data reports to lending institutions that have internal risk management teams with EPs on staff. ERIS does NOT provide any reports with opinions or recommendations.

Product-Related Items

Are your Fire Insurance Maps stitched together?

ERIS has just begun the process to create a seamless collection of FIMs.

What brands of Sanborn Maps vs. FIMs? Are there others besides Sanborns?

There were a handful of companies that created Fire Insurance Maps; however, Sanborn was the largest company, so many people just refer to all FIMs as “Sanborns”…similar to how someone might refer to a tissue as “Kleenex”. Some other companies are the Phoenix Fire Map Company (London and NYC), Hexamer (Philadelphia), Bascome (St. Louis), and Rascher (Detroit, Minneapolis, and Kansas City). In the 1920s Sanborn had acquired 95% of all other companies providing this service and merged their collections into theirs.

Can you supply US Fire Insurance Maps with the site/property boundaries?

Once our geo-referencing project is completed, all maps will be stitched together in a seamless map and the property boundaries will automatically be drawn as long as the client draws them when ordering.

Questions About Ordering or Custom Requests

How do I figure out how much a custom report is going to cost? Is there a formula?

The best thing to do is to reach out to your Regional Account Manager.

How do I figure out how many sets of aerials will cover a large site?

Generally speaking, an aerial photo at 1"= 500 ft. will cover 1 mile ‘up and down’ and about 3/4 mile ‘across’ if you are looking at an 11 x 8 print out.

How do I figure out how many sets of topos will cover a large site?

Conservatively, use the above method. But, generally a sheet of a topo covers a larger area than an aerial photo.

Are you able to create a customized user account for my company?

Yes, we can. Please reach out to your Regional Account Manager.

Can I run a preliminary report and place it on hold?

We are in the process of looking at options to create this on our order form.

Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) FAQ

What is an Environmental Site Assessment (ESA)?

An Environmental Site Assessment is the report that provides details about the environmental condition of a property to determine the presence, location, and concentration of toxins, contaminants, physical risk factors, or other potential issues with a property or site. The Environmental Site Assessment is essentially the end result of gathering environmental risk information.

What is a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment?

The objective of a Phase I ESA is to establish whether there is evidence of potential or actual sources of environmental contamination on the site. A Phase I Environmental Site Assessment brings together all available important details regarding a property including both current and past (historical) information about the land, water, nearby structures, ownership, and usage history.

How is it Different from a Phase II Environmental Site Assessment?

While the Phase I Environmental Site Assessment is essentially the bringing together of existing information from a variety of databases and searches, the Phase II Environmental Site Assessment involves “onsite” and laboratory research such as taking photographs or testing soil samples. The Phase II Environmental Site Assessment is generally the second step in assessing a property’s safety or risk profile, once the Phase I Environmental Site Assessment has been completed or the property has essentially “passed” the Phase I Environmental Site Assessment.

Why or when is an Environmental Site Assessment conducted?

Environmental Site Assessments are typically conducted during the due diligence phase of property purchasing, the financing of a property purchase, or divestiture of properties. They are also often conducted when planning for development or physical change, or by property owners who have reason to suspect an issue of toxicity or risk and would like to understand the site’s environmental status.

What is Historical Property Information?

Historical property information refers to a set of different types of information about a site or property that is from the past or that includes records over time. This includes aerial maps, fire insurance maps, environmental liens, chain of title reports, city directory information, and physical setting reports.

What is ERIS XPLORER?

ERIS Xplorer is a powerful, interactive tool for overlaying and analyzing data and historical images. This platform allows the user to visualize and analyze all of the environmental risk information about a study area – all in one place, with built-in tools for analysis and customization. ERIS Xplorer can be ordered as an add-on product to any Database Report, Physical Setting Report or Historical Product, including Aerial Historicals, Topographic Maps, and Fire Insurance Maps.