The windy, rainy weather canceled the plane fly-by with a banner in tow Friday morning, but it couldn’t dampen the enthusiasm in the Mutual of Enumclaw parking lot as employees sent hundreds of green and white balloons skyward in celebration of the local insurance giant’s launch of its commercial lines computer system.

“We’ve waited a long time for today,” Chief Executive Officer Eric Nelson said to the crowd as he admired them for their perseverance and thanked them for the steadfast resolve. “Congratulations to every body.”

“It’s an internal operating system that will help us be more efficient over time,” explained Bob Horn, Mutual vice president of marketing. “A ton of effort and time went into it.”

It was three years to be exact, Horn said, that not only involved the team working on the project, but other departments and employees who covered for those making the changes.

“It’s an exciting day,” Horn said. “We’ve had teams of people sequestered for three years.”

Horn said changing the system over has been a lengthy process. He said the claims department changed a couple years ago. The commercial lines made the move Friday and the farm and personal lines will change over in the near future.

“We wanted to celebrate,” Horn said. “It’s a very important milestone.”

In addition to the balloon launch, the celebration included lunch.