Asset Management Strategy

Vision – Asset Management

MACE provides leadership in asset management, and will achieve this by using leading practices.  The MACE Asset Management and Maintenance Engineering approach is to (1) establish the right balance of preventive, predictive and reactive maintenance; (2) implement improved maintenance and operational procedures; and (3) improve work planning and scheduling to:

• Meet service delivery performance requirements;
• Control fixed and unfixed assets ageing, i.e. infrastructure, rolling stock and systems; and
• Optimise whole of life costs within a Value for Money (VfM) framework.

The strategy for whole of life asset management comprises the following aspects:

1. Ensuring the initial design and any modifications of assets optimises business requirements;
2. Establishing clear objectives and targets through the planning process;
3. Ensuring regular monitoring and review of performance and practices, particularly the safety and reliability of the managed assets and their subsystems;
4. Assigning responsibility for performance of assets; and
5. Providing appropriate resources, education and training for employees and contractors to enable them to conduct their activities in a safe environment.

Intent

The Asset Management Strategy provides an overview for all asset management process stakeholders.

The tactical components; the Management Operating System are supported by Enabling Work Streams that contain details of how the strategic intent will be achieved, and will serve as the definitive reference document for all process owners and managers.

Approach

A Management Operating System exists at all levels of the organisation to integrate and sustain business processes and provide the framework to link strategies to business processes and the business processes to each other.  The figure below illustrates how the various components of the Asset Management Strategy work together.  Each of the elements shown is a key component.

Management Operating System

Legend BM Budget Management HR History Recording JA Job Analysis LCM Life Cycle Management MA Maintenance Analysis MM Materials Management PC Performance Control PM Project Management RM Routine Maintenance WE Work Execution WI Work Identification WP Work Planning WS Work Scheduling

In the absence of any one of them, the entire strategy would fail.

Each of these elements are to be developed in detail for successful management of critical business systems.

The Asset Management Strategy is a purposefully designed and dynamically critical component of every business.

The "outer circle" is the Management Operating System that holds the strategy together and integrates its components and elements.  The "elements" are the components required for the strategy to operate and drive value for money.  The "inner circle" are the support and leadership components for the critical areas of the business.  All of the components form the basis for the Strategy.

Guiding Principles

The Culture of Excellence is one of the guiding principles used to continuously improve performance in all areas of asset management.  MACE recognises that asset management is about business performance (not just maintenance) and encompasses identifying, assessing, eliminating or controlling, and minimising the risks to assets.  In addition, it aims to prevent any negative consequences to people, the environment and the business.

MACE will be a responsible and caring employer and a good corporate citizen.  Community expectations and cultural values are important factors MACE recognises in its approach to asset management.  MACE embraces a proactive stance that entails informed decision-making about the most suitable policies for asset management and maintenance, including:

• An increased emphasis on preventive maintenance activities where appropriate, with consequent reductions in the level of reactive activity that results from reliance on a run to failure maintenance methodology;
• Predictive maintenance activities that preventive maintenance cannot address;
• Failure finding tests where failures are normally hidden;
• Run to failure where circumstances permit; and
• Rapid response to system changes, such as engineering configuration or procedural changes.

MACE asserts that asset management and maintenance engineering have a broader role than previously recognised, and its employees and stakeholders need to learn its impact on service delivery.

MACE will follow these guiding principles in asset management:

• Consider and manage all safety risks;
• Protect the environment;
• Respect and develop its human capital;
• Respect laws, regulations and rules applicable to the business and its operations;
• Acknowledge, respect and accommodate local cultural norms wherever practical and consistent with other principles;
• Remain open to new ideas and encourage employees and stakeholders to openly provide beneficial input to business processes, strategies and standards; and
• Embrace a standards-based approach to achieving success, i.e. all work is done according to a recognised and accepted industry standard.

Deployment

The Asset Management Strategy is deployed through maintenance standards which are guided by the enabling work streams and continuously improved through active participation.  This is one of many integrated strategies that, when combined, will enable your business to achieve its goals.  Successful implementation of this strategy will ensure an efficient transition from maintainer to asset manager.

The Asset Management Strategy supports external and internal business drivers and is governed through an Asset Management Process Governance Model that is built on a continuous improvement model to ensure the strategic mandate is executed efficiently and effectively to drive business results.

Governance

Management governance is necessary to ensure that the business moves through transition to obtain and maintain its vision.  The basic governance model (above) involves five main steps that are the responsibility of various process owners, process managers and functional managers.  This basic continuous improvement model is used throughout for all key business processes.

Asset Management Strategy responsibilities (refer to Figure 8, Asset Management Deployment) are split between the corporate process owner and process managers (above the bar) and the functional departments of infrastructure, rolling stock and business systems (below the bar).

Figure 8: Asset Management Deployment

Activities fall into four categories:

• Plan – strategic and tactical

• Do

• Measure

• Improve.

Department level asset management plans are developed to bring performance and practices in line with corporate standards. A corporate support plan is also developed to support departments where a common approach is anticipated, required or most cost-effective.

The department implementation plans include long range (strategic) and short range (tactical) plans to ensure standards are met, ie technical maintenance plans and annual maintenance plans. These plans are guided by and provide inputs to the Strategic Operations Plan and the Business Plan including process, budgets and departmental tactical plans.

Asset management improvement activities are executed as part of tactical plans, aiming to improve day-to-day asset management operations in line with standards. If activities cannot be completed according to the department tactical plan, corrective action is required to provide feedback to the department improvement plan. That feedback must trigger strategic or tactical plan modifications and budget amendments as required.

Reporting activities occur at department and business levels. Each department reports progress against its own plan. A quarterly compilation of department results, experience, and how problems were resolved or are currently being managed will be produced.

Analysis of department reports may reveal common areas where corporate support is required and/or may prove to be most effective at achieving a solution. At the corporate level, corrective actions include adjustments for plan variances that are needed and potential modifications to the corporate support plan. The aim is to provide the required support to ensure success.

A series of department audits will be performed to verify compliance with corporate standards.
This audit is one of two independent audits that will be performed annually by the department asset manager and one peer. The audit includes a review of improvements in progress, compliance to standards, and inputs to the following year’s annual budget. The department asset manager will participate in selected audits with the focus on the corporation’s highest value departments. The audit protocol is part of the MACE AMS. Quarterly reports and audit results will be summarised in an annual report, and key findings used to improve and evolve the corporate strategy and its outputs.

The Asset Management Governance Model receives inputs from, and provides outputs to, the corporate Strategic Operations Plan and Business Plan. The Governance Model, the Strategic Operations Plan and the Business Plan influence the budget process. To successfully develop, the annual department reviews must be carried out prior to finalising the annual department budget so key audit findings can be addressed with proper funding.

A second annual audit is performed in conjunction with the annual safety review. The department asset manager and safety manager will be involved.

3.3.2 ROLES

Governance of the AMS requires proactive leadership. Detailed role descriptions are found in each department’s asset management plan under the Management and Leadership sub-heading.

Figure 9: Functional Organisation Chart

The purpose of each key leadership role is as follows:

Director Assets, Operations & Systems

The role of the Director Assets, Operations & Systems is to champion the department’s performance to the Board, the executive committee and management. This also includes improvement of the asset management process performance of MACE operations.

Asset management has significant impact on safety, environmental and business results. The Director Assets, Operations & Systems will lead the ongoing development of the AMS and ensures its complete execution.

Asset Manager (Functional)

The Functional Asset Manager supports the Director Assets, Operations & Systems through a full-time focus on the AMS and its execution.

The Functional Asset Manager will recommend changes to the corporate AMS as appropriate and will ensure its execution on a day-to-day basis through regular interaction at department levels.

The Functional Asset Manager checks that the systematic approach to deploying and sustaining the AMS is executed to ensure corporate-wide compliance with the strategy.

Department Asset Manager

The Department Asset Manager’s role is to execute the AMS as it applies to the department.

The Department Asset Manager is the leader of the Department Implementation Planning and Execution Team, and is a member of the Functional Asset Management Excellence Team.

Department Asset Management Excellence Team Members

The role of the Department Asset Management Excellence Team is to enhance and execute the AMS under the leadership of the Department Asset Manager. Members of this team are the department influencers, leaders and process champions in their areas of the operational organisation.

3.4 RESULTS

The AMS benefits will be seen in safety performance improvements, reduction in environmental incidents, cost savings, lower maintenance and operating costs per unit of output, and reduced business risk in general.

3.5 IMPROVEMENT

The AMS and its components are dynamic, and may be revised and improved on a continuous basis. The strategy will be delivered and governed in such a way as to encourage input and suggestions for improvements, expected to arise as a result of the various activities and supporting work streams.
The audit tool will be used to determine what does and does not work in the strategy and its components. It will reveal where departments may need to improve.

The Asset Management electronic Body of Knowledge (AMeBoK) is a repository for information sharing throughout MACE and its core global partners. New ideas, methods and technologies will be shared via this medium. MACE, through the peer review mechanism, will ensure that only the best ideas are used to improve the AMS.

The Urban Rail Skills Centre is an educational and training forum specifically designed to disseminate new and valuable knowledge and skills. MACE will also use this resource as necessary.
Benchmarking is used to keep MACE abreast of new developments in asset management. Rather than repeat mistakes others have made, MACE will look to world leaders in asset management for guidance.

MACE assists businesses to achieve best appropriate practice in