Working smarter in asset management for water utilities

With rising costs, ageing infrastructure and limited resources, small and medium-sized water utilities must find smarter, more efficient ways to manage assets without compromising service delivery. 

The Australian Water Association (AWA) Asset Management Specialist Network brings together water professionals active in the field to facilitate the sharing of best-practice knowledge, connecting members to encourage discussion and build community.  

One of the key themes of the Asset Management Specialist Network over the next 12 months will be considering how small and medium-size utilities can work smarter, not harder, with the help of practical and affordable tools, approaches and solutions.  

Asset Management Specialist Network Co-Chair and AECOM Principal Engineer Amy Spark said ‘working smarter not harder’ in the asset management space means many things, but ultimately comes down to encouraging efficiency.  

“At my company, we use a four-pillar approach to asset management (people, process, data and technology). Process includes reviewing what's actually done, identifying overlaps, and bringing it back to the decision-making processes that drive the articulation and achievement of value,” Spark said.  

“Working smarter is about generating efficiency and maximising value, not taking shortcuts. It's about focusing the organisation’s desired outcome and making sure what you're doing helps get you there.” 

Sydney Water System Planning and Land Acquisition Project Manager Devi Rangarajan, who is also an Asset Management Specialist Network Co-Chair, said working smarter is about getting clear on priorities, which is why risk-based frameworks are helpful.  

“I agree with Amy in that the goal is to enhance efficiency, reduce costs and improve performance. Prioritising critical assets using a risk-based framework helps,” she said. 

“While technology is great, we have to ask: is it delivering an immediate return on investment? Decisions must be strategic, and data driven.” 

And for the third Co-Chair, Stantec Principal Asset Management Engineer Brad Thompson, working smarter is actually about keeping things as simple as possible.  

“Sometimes we think ‘smart’ means complex systems, but simplicity can be smart, too. I recently visited a client who tracks pump station work using a printed sheet on the wall and a logbook. It meets all their needs,” he said.  

“You don’t always need the biggest and best tech solution. Smart can mean simple.” 

Rising challenges 

Small and medium-sized utilities face a myriad of challenges, but Thompson said there are some hurdles that are sector wide, just more difficult to manage as a smaller organisation. 

“The most obvious challenge is aging infrastructure. Particularly with water utilities, a lot of buried assets have been in the ground for a long time,” he said. 

“The second major issue is limited resources, both in terms of budget and staffing. And finally, the availability and quality of data needed to make informed decisions is often lacking.” 

Rangarajan said keeping up with regulatory compliance is also a big challenge. 

“It's resource-intensive and complex to keep up with evolving regulations. And given we already have limited budgets and a shortage of experienced staff, this becomes a major challenge,” she said.   

“I’d also add cyber security to the list of asset management challenges. With increasing digitisation, protecting infrastructure from cyber threats is becoming critical.” 

And Spark agrees: “the more we lean on technology, the more vulnerable we could become if it’s not adequately managed”. 

“I’d also flag the challenge of communicating the value of water services. The general public doesn't fully understand what goes into providing clean water and wastewater treatment. Especially in small communities or regional areas, the infrastructure and technology requirements can be very complex and costly relative to the number of people served,” she said. 

"So, water literacy is also a significant challenge.” 

Smarter in practice 

Despite these challenges, there are practical tools and solutions for small and medium-sized water utilities to lean into, ones that have been proven to work well.  

“Cloud-based solutions are a good example. Pay-as-you-go services remove the need to buy servers or licenses,” Thompson said.  

“It’s like moving away from the scenario where everyone in the street owns their own lawn mower. It’s more efficient and cost-effective to share one.” 
 
Thompson said smart asset management is also about staying focused. 

“Asset management is broad, with 30+ process areas. Trying to improve everything at once doesn’t work,” he said.  

“Set a clear goal and strategy for one area, get it working, then move on.” 

Simple yet powerful, documenting process clearly is a basic practice that has a lot of benefits. Spark said internal knowledge sharing is just as vital as gaining insights from external organisations and sectors. 

"Documenting what people do daily, weekly or monthly, and keeping it in a central place, can help make and keep things efficient. Knowledge often sits in people’s heads. When they leave or retire, that knowledge can go, too. Embedding the knowledge formally and sharing it is crucial,” she said.  

"And communication is key. Asset management plans may end up on a shelf. We need to actively align plans to decision-making and day-to-day operations to enable the full value of assets in delivering services to be realised.” 

Rangarajan said networking sessions, like the Asset Management Specialist Network, are great for sharing lessons learned and best practices. 

“Joint training programs, even free ones, can educate the next generation. Benchmarking is also important, comparing costs and asset performance across utilities helps. If we all have good data, we can share insights and improve together,” she said.  

Interested in learning more about the AWA Asset Management Specialist Network? Take a look at the network’s key focuses during the next 12 months.