Network

INDUSTRY INSIGHT B ack in 2006 a group of re- searchers reported to the US Advisory Committee on Water Information about a then- just-emerging trend in asset management that they called "whole systems design". In their position paper they explained the benefits of ap - proaching asset management for water util- ity networks from a whole-system, including sustainability gains, risk reductions, and cost savings. In 2012 when the Rail Safety and Stand - ards Board (RSSB) wrote about what was needed to spark innovative asset manage- ment in the UK rail sector, it too argued in favour of a whole of system approach. Today's railway evolved as a collection of subsystems, departments, companies and assets, each pursuing its own priorities, they explained. In order to achieve the transformation tomorrow's railway requires, they continued, the industry must adopt a whole-system approach to their invest- ments, maintenance, and asset manage- ment. Taking a whole-system approach Pete Massey, founder and director of Upcurve Limited, discusses the benefits of taking a whole-system approach. NETWORK / 38 / FEBRUARY 2019 Now in 2018 the whole-systems approach to asset management is beyond an emerg- ing trend or a recommended strategy in asset management. It has today emerged as the foundational principle for best practice asset management for energy, water and transport networks. When French electricity transmission system operator (TSO) RTE, for example, sets its maintenance and renewal strate - gies for one, five, and 10-year windows, it applies a whole-systems approach to ensure they understand and prepare for all the impacts of their asset management choices. Leading firms including Alstom, Nexans, GRTgaz, and French railway network opera - tor SNCF have all moved towards adopting this whole-system approach. The benefits of a whole-systems ap- proach to asset management are multiple. First and foremost, the holistic view of a whole-systems approach offers decision makers a chance to understand how any choice they make affects all parts of their business. In effect, this destroys artificial boundaries between business units, divi - sions, and departments, and breaks the silos that impede efforts to effectively man- age corporate assets. Second, a whole-systems approach allows asset managers to build models of their systems that reflect the real world instead of relying on simpler, cleaner, theo - retical models that somewhat mirror, but don't match, the world outside. Asset man- agers understand that their asset systems are connected with other systems, including budgets and human resources, regulatory and even climatic systems. The opportunity to model all of the important systems and subsystems and make choices based on this reality is one most asset managers embrace. Third, only the whole-systems approach gives asset managers and top-level deci - sion makers the confidence they need when presenting their asset management strate- gies to stakeholders and regulators. When all sub-systems, constraints, and policies have been modelled, simulated, compared and contrasted, the optimal decision is not only clear but also reliable, auditable, and justifiable, too.

• Cover