Companion Data Services, LLC Appraised at CMMI Maturity Level 3

COLUMBIA, S.C., May 2, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Companion Data Services, LLC (CDS), which operates one of the largest and most secure health care data centers in the world from its Columbia, S.C., headquarters, has achieved a Maturity Level 3 rating of the Carnegie Mellon University Software Engineering Institute's Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI).

CMMI is a collection of best practices that help organizations improve their processes by providing a comprehensive set of guidelines for developing products and services. The Software Engineering Institute is a U.S. Department of Defense-funded research and development center operated by Carnegie Mellon University.

Originally commissioned by the DoD to help it qualify software vendors' capabilities, CMMI is used by organizations worldwide. CMMI maturity-level ratings often are a requirement for government contracts.

The Level 3 rating is an independent endorsement of CDS' ability to provide high-quality software solutions through robust software engineering processes. It underscores CDS' commitment to delivery excellence, process maturity and service quality, ensuring timely and best-in-class technology solutions for its clients.

"I am extremely proud of our entire organization for achieving the Level 3 CMMI rating," said Lola Jordan, CDS' chief operating officer. "It demonstrates to our government health program and our commercial clients that we are committed to continuously improving our processes in order to maximize efficiency and consistently deliver superior and innovative service."

CDS provides health information technology services to government and private entities. Its data center complex is rated in the top 2 percent of IBM data centers in the world, based on transaction volume and technology. In 2011, the data center complex processed 969 million health care insurance claims and 17 billion transactions.

In the final report for the Level 3 assessment, the appraisal team said of CDS' CMMI implementation, "CDS has implemented quality management in a highly effective manner, fostering a healthy non-adversarial attitude which aids real process improvement." The team added, "CDS has implemented an exceptionally strong document handling methodology based on ISO concepts. This has been critical to the successful development of process and project documentation."

About Companion Data Services, LLC
Headquartered in Columbia, S.C., CDS offers data center hosting in a technically progressive environment. Developing relationships and encouraging collaboration ensure achievement of its customers' program objectives. CDS and its parent company operate a large, secure health care insurance data center complex, providing services for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, TRICARE, the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program and Medicare Advantage health plans, as well as other private health plans. CDS has offices in Columbia, S.C., Dallas and Baltimore. For more information, visit www.CompanionDataServices.com.

About the Software Engineering Institute
The SEI is a U.S. Department of Defense federally funded research and development center operated by Carnegie Mellon University. The SEI helps organizations make measured improvements in their software engineering capabilities by providing technical leadership to advance the practice of software engineering. For more information, visit www.sei.cmu.edu.

SOURCE Companion Data Services, LLC