Coherent Spark for Life and Annuity Illustrations

Hey everyone, Tsun here with Coherent, discussing a common use case for Coherent Spark: life and annuity illustrations. Let's explore how Coherent Spark can streamline the process of deploying product logic to your systems, particularly your illustration system.

Traditional Process

Typically, pricing actuaries complete the pricing of a product and provide a spreadsheet to IT partners or third-party vendors. This spreadsheet contains:

• Policy information

• Product features and charges

• Cash flow projections

The goal is to manually code this information into various systems, including the illustration system.

Using Coherent Spark

With Coherent Spark, the process is simplified:

1. Identify inputs and outputs directly in Excel using the name manager feature.

2. Tag inputs with xinput_ (e.g., xinput_age, xinput_sex, xinput_risk_class).

3. Tag outputs similarly, ensuring the entire illustration table is an output to the API.

Coherent Spark handles all product logic, formulas, and tables, converting them into optimized C++ code. This code is then hosted and made accessible via API, allowing you to call the illustration logic from any system.

Implementation Process

1. Upload the Excel model to Coherent Spark by dragging and dropping it into the platform.

2. Spark processes the spreadsheet, converting all logic and formulas into performance C++ code.

3. Publish the code, making it accessible via an API endpoint.

This process, which traditionally takes 3-6 months, is completed in seconds, saving approximately four and a half developer months.

API Testing and Usage

Once published, the API tester tab provides an endpoint for accessing the illustration logic. You can input parameters and receive outputs, including the illustration table. For example, running a calculation for a 50-year-old female or male can be done by submitting the request, which generates a new illustration table.

For technical implementation, the process involves a JSON request and response REST API. This API can be integrated into your illustration system, potentially converting logic into a PDF or other formats.

Next Steps

In part two, we'll explore how clients can generate their own illustration PDFs directly within Spark, providing not just logic and calculations but a fully functioning illustration PDF.

Thanks for your time!