Infrastructure Asset Management: uses and benefits

Infrastructure Asset Management is the process aimed at managing and maintaining existing infrastructure assets. Find out the advantages

Infrastructures need to be preserved and maintained over time so that they can continue to perform their functions properly. In this article, we will cover the topic of Infrastructure Asset Management, a subfield of Facility Management that introduces monitoring and maintenance tools and strategies specific to infrastructure assets.

The management of these assets requires the use of specialised systems that are able to support the parties involved in the organisation of the various activities. To avoid falling behind other professionals in the sector, you can also immediately rely on the potential of a facility management software, an innovative tool that integrates different functions and helps you plan, monitor and manage every activity related to infrastructure assets maintenance with the utmost efficiency.

What are Infrastructure Assets

Infrastructure assets refer to the set of systems, networks and resources that guarantee essential public services, including the below:

transport;
telecommunications;
the production and distribution of energy;
the protection of the environment and the territory;
waste disposal;
health and safety protection;
risk and emergency management.

In other words, infrastructure assets include all those physical components that contribute to the creation of larger and more complex systems, such as bridges, tunnels, roads, railways, aqueducts, sewers, power grids, disposal plants, drainage systems, communication networks, and so on.

If we take for example a road, this is made up of several elements that once combined provide users with a smooth and safe driving experience. These elements include flooring, safety barriers, signage, lighting, cameras, etc.

As with the components and equipment of a building, infrastructure assets are also subject to the effects of time. Therefore, they need to be constantly monitored and maintained in order to maintain their functional characteristics. This is exactly where the role of Infrastructure Asset Management comes into play. Let’s find out together what this important process represents!

Infrastructure Asset Management: operators engaged in the maintenance of a bridge

What is Infrastructure Asset Management

Infrastructure Asset Management is a process that aims to improve the maintenance strategies of public infrastructures, ensuring maximum performance for each individual resource in terms of efficiency, durability, safety, functionality and sustainability.

Rather than a simple maintenance process, Infrastructure Asset Management is an integrated and multidisciplinary set of activities aimed at maintaining and expanding public infrastructures on the territory with the aim of providing users with increasingly adequate services.

Which software to use in Infrastructure Asset Management strategies

In order to correctly adopt Infrastructure Asset Management strategies, it is essential to use advanced software systems. These are able to centralize all information relating to the asset, making it accessible to anyone who needs it.

These software are essential because they help infrastructure managers to perform the following tasks:

identifying the exact position of the assets through specific geolocation systems;
creating inventories and know the characteristics and attributes of each individual resource (such as the type of material, performance, cost, date of installation, manufacturer, etc.);
scheduling periodic inspections and evaluations necessary to determine the condition of the assets;
planning proactive measures, based on data monitoring and analysis that resolve issues before they occur and reduce the risk of unexpected disruptions;
managing work orders and keeping track of all repairs and improvements, indicating for each of them the date of execution, the type of intervention, the cost, etc;
leverage the integration with Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies to perform real-time visual inspections, monitor assets remotely, improve predictive maintenance, optimize decision-making, and so on.

If you also work as Facility Manager in the infrastructure sector, do not miss the opportunity to use the right type of tool. In fact, I recommend that you immediately try the trial version of a Facility Management Software to plan and manage in a much easier way any activity related to the maintenance of resources, and keep under control the different strategies of Infrastructure Asset Management.

Infrastructure Asset Management System: main functions

What are the advantages of Infrastructure Asset Management?

Infrastructure Asset Management allows professionals to plan and manage every aspect of an infrastructure asset life cycle in a more systematic, rational and proactive way. This would also minimize the negative impacts resulting from poor resource management.

A properly executed Infrastructure Asset Management process allows to do what follows:

improve asset management and maintenance procedures;
increase the estimated useful life of infrastructures;
constantly monitor resources through the collection of data onsite;
reduce the frequency with which problems and unforeseen events occur;
avoid sudden and prolonged services interruptions;
contain the time and costs necessary for maintenance operations;
monitor the results achieved for all routine and extraordinary maintenance operations.