NEW YORK — XL Insurance announced the continued expansion of its North American Construction team with eight new appointments.

They include: Gregory McKiernan to senior vice president, Construction Primary Casualty in New York; Edward Totten to vice president, Construction Excess Casualty in XL's Exton, PA and New York office; Joseph Vierling to vice president, Construction Property in New York; Blane Farrell to executive underwriter, Primary Casualty in Chicago; Markus Bachmann to senior underwriter, Construction Property in New York; Scott Merchant to Construction Risk engineer manager in Chicago; Patrick Waldron to Construction Claims manager in Chicago; and Keith Cummings to Construction actuary in New York.

"With these appointments and the recent addition of David Hewett and Bill Mills to launch XL Insurance's surety operation, I'm proud to say that we've built a top-notch team of Construction risk management talent," said Gary Kaplan, executive vice president, North America Construction. "Contractors have our undivided attention and more direct access to our growing portfolio of Construction coverage and services."