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Every time a valve fails to operate properly, a fire hydrant dribbles out water instead of flowing at capacity, or a water main or service line ruptures after leaking for months, the real cost of neglecting these assets is brought to light but rarely considered. The amount of water lost by these defective components, the increased difficulty of the repair process, and the negative effect on customers are usually hidden in the overall cost of managing the system. Such expenses result from neglecting assets and can be avoided. The time, research, equipment, and materials used to restore service lost as a result of neglect could be more efficiently used as part of a programmed effort to maintain the system. Indeed, any amount of time spent reactively because of the neglect of critical infrastructure is time taken away from a proactive approach to asset management. Most water utilities will replace failed components that werent properly operated and maintained without considering how their neglect has cost their organizations. Such an approach is the most expensive way to maintain a utility. Some utilities have a reactive culture. They havent pursued nor actively engaged in any type of asset management plan. Other utilities are reactive as a result of failing to plan for the growth of their customer base and the resulting water demand. In either case, such utilities find themselves stuck reacting when assets fail rather than determining a methodical asset management approach. REAP THE VALUE OF AN ASSESSMENT EFFORT One of the most important areas of neglect in which many utilities innocently engage is not knowing the physical location of all their assets. Theres no conceivable way a utility can know or even determine an assets condition if its location is unknown. Best in class utilities have processes in place to identify their assets, maintain a current database of these components, confirm the collected data against each assets physical location, and correlate this information with an asset management plan to determine when and how to repair or replace these assets. Knowing the components condition provides critical information to effectively plan for its replacement at the end of its useful life. Maintaining the asset gives it a much better chance of reaching its anticipated life span, as system components that arent properly maintained take longer to operate, cost more to repair or replace, and often eliminate the possibility of using a rehabilitation option. One approach of an effective assessment process is to identify consistent criteria that evaluate like components against each other. Another approach is to prioritize all assets and use each components importance as part of the assessment effort. A combination of these two approaches can be used, depending on the comfort level or expertise of those performing the desired activity. Determining each components value through a consistent asset assessment effort provides the following benefits: Knowledge of the assets capability and operability Awareness of the assets maintenance needs Understanding of the assets potential response in an emergency situation A better approach to identifying when to replace the asset THE IMPORTANCE OF MANAGING ASSETS When performed appropriately, asset management involves the utility capturing all the expenses associated with any assets operation, maintenance, rehab, repair, and replacement. A utility that uses a run to failure or fix it when it breaks mindset misses critical opportunities to appropriately maintain its systems infrastructure. This kind of reactive behavior on the part of utility personnel is ineffective and prevents them from conveying to their customers that theyre knowledgeable, experienced, and good at what they do. Such an approach could potentially affect the utilitys ability to gain public support for desired improvements. Consider some of the many problems associated with neglecting critical system components: When a valve fails to operate properly or is inoperable because of neglect, it potentially reduces the amount of water available to customers, increases the cost of energy required to move water through the system, increases the number of affected customers when isolating portions of the system, and creates potential water quality problems. When a fire hydrant is inoperable because of neglect or lack of maintenance, it reduces fire protection capabilities, increases the possibility of water quality issues, hinders the utilitys ability to respond to customer concerns, makes it difficult to dewater mains, and negatively alters plans to replace defective components. When a meter isnt properly maintained or replaced, it reduces the amount of revenue received by the Consider Not-So-Hidden Costs of Not Managing Assets BY KENNETH MORGAN An asset provides service for a typical number of years based on materials used, proper construction and installation procedures, and appropriate operation and maintenance practices. But an assets life expectancy is often reduced as a result of neglect. Industry Insights ANALYSIS AND EXPERTISE 2019 American Water Works Association www.awwa.org/opflow January 2019 Opflow 9 utility, negatively affects the customers confidence in the utility, and creates uncertainty in asset reliability. When a pump isnt properly maintained or operated, it increases the cost to operate it, experiences a decrease in its efficiency and production, becomes unreliable and sporadically operable, causes challenges in trying to determine when to replace it, and negatively affects all the other assets associated with it. When a main or service is allowed to leak over an extended period of time before its repaired or replaced, it exposes the system to potential contamination or other water quality issues, results in revenue losses, compromises the systems ability to maintain adequate pressure, and reduces the confidence customers have in the utilitys ability to maintain assets. FINDING SOLUTIONS To combat the negative effects of not properly maintaining assets, the best solution is to change a reactive culture to a proactive one. A proactive approach should be developed and implemented to reflect positive changes in the following ways: Utility staff should be continuously trained in the latest appropriate technology to perform assigned tasks. Crews and work teams should be consistently monitored to evaluate their compliance with industrystandard methods. Customer concerns, water quality, and system issues should be captured, responded to, closed out, and consistently documented. Utility assets should be prioritized in a manner that reflects their condition, productivity, and reasonable time for replacement. System components should be operated based on industry-standard procedures. Maintenance activities should be scheduled, performed, documented, reviewed, and used as part of a proactive asset management effort. These and related activities will offer a utility the greatest opportunity to reduce and even eliminate operational inefficiencies and avoid the not-so-hidden costs of not managing assets

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