5 REASONS TO CONSIDER AN IAMS
- Customer Support
- Nov 24, 2015
- 3 min read
Following the rapid expansion of civil engineering infrastructures during the 20th century, most countries worldwide face nowadays the problem of ageing civil engineering infrastructures. This is the case in the developed countries where investment focus is increasingly shifting from extending the infrastructure to the inspection, maintenance and rehabilitation (IM&R) of the existing assets.
The lifecycle cost of civil engineering assets incorporates: (i) their design and construction costs, (ii) the costs incurred by the general public due to an imperfect performance of the asset (delay and traffic interruptions, etc.), (iii) their Inspection Maintenance and Rehabilitation (IM&R) costs during their projected lifecycle, (iv) the risk of failure which is expressed in monetary units and calculated as the product of the failure probability by the costs generated by such a failure, and (v) eventually the costs necessary for their decommissioning.
Hence, an accurate evaluation of the optimal IM&R costs for civil engineering assets is essential for a correct estimation of the entire lifecycle costs of these assets. As such, the accurate evaluation of IM&R cost is vital not only for the management optimization of existing assets, but also for a rational choice of the type and characteristics of new assets.
Considering the huge amount of money usually involved in the lifecycle management of civil engineering infrastructure, optimizing the IM&R decisions becomes a primary concern. Choosing optimal decisions requires minimizing the total lifecycle cost. However, the objectives of minimizing the above mentioned costs are usually conflicting. For example minimizing IM&R costs will result in an increase of general public costs and risk of failure.
Optimal management of civil engineering infrastructure is a complex enterprise which involves: data collection by inspecting the assets, data saving in reliable and secure database, analysis of the condition state of the assets, prescription of preventive and/or corrective maintenance actions, recording in the database of the implemented maintenance programs.
Hence, the use of Infrastructure Asset management software (IAMS) which also stands as a decision support system is considered nowadays as an essential requirement for an acceptable management practice. Listed below are 5 main reasons on why any governmental agency or asset owner/manager should be using an IAMS
Good Business Practice. Asset management results in better decisions. Aligning management of infrastructure with strategic policies and direction will support the long-term success of the utility’s mission, goals and objectives.
More Meaningful Financial Reporting. Several financial institutions and practices call for the reporting of the cost of asset ownership, a cost element not currently present in the audited financial statements of many utilities. An asset management approach can aide a utility in complying with such requirements.
Improved Reliability. More structured day-to-day attention to system assets and their condition means that unexpected failures are less likely, thus minimizing emergency repairs, costly lawsuits and customer relations problems. Assessing the risk implications of asset failure helps focus resources on critical priorities and reduces overall risk to the utility.
Long Term System Integrity. The concept of “sustainable infrastructure” is gaining increased visibility, probably due to the problems in many cities where sufficient reinvestment in infrastructure has not been made. By relating costs to asset condition and conducting long term planning for each asset, policy makers get the facts they need to help sustain the infrastructure.
Cost Savings. There is evidence that asset management systems that maintain infrastructure in a sound and reliable condition and are based on minimizing life cycle costs, can significantly reduce operating and maintenance cost, as well as long-term capital expenses. A life cycle approach means that the utility always gets the most assets for its money.
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