Delivering value from our railway assets
Leading the delivery of assets that underpin a high performing, safe, and affordable railway.
Chris Knowles, Director of System Safety and Health, RSSB
The railway is one of the most complicated systems of interdependent assets. Assets need to work together effectively to provide service - to provide value. The asset base across the UK is large and diverse. This makes the challenge for rail leaders significant. There are some key elements to include in your approach to delivering assets that underpin a high-performing, safe, and affordable railway.
If an asset fails to perform properly, it impacts services. The extent of the impact depends on the part the asset plays in the overall system. Even the same type of asset deployed in a different context will have a different impact—a set of points failing at a major station throat compared with a little-used siding, for example. The value provided by the asset depends on its use. And for a railway, that value comes from providing high-performing, safe railway services at an affordable cost. It’s not just about the assets. It’s about what they do. Asset management decisions need to recognise this context.
Asset managers are routinely faced with operational, tactical, and strategic decisions. These need to ensure the right assets are in place and that they perform. Assets must be considered as part of the overall system, not in isolation. Effective decision making must be based on understanding the asset base and the associated risks. Decisions on changes to maintenance, refurbishment options, asset renewal, life extension, or early retirement all require knowledge of risk, costs, and the assets themselves. Understanding how assets relate to each other and neighbouring assets unconnected to the railway bring added complexity. This includes those potentially under the control of others.
We know resources are always finite. This isn’t true only in times of fiscal constraint. High-performing organisations establish risk-based approaches to ensuring that asset systems consistently deliver value. They take a whole-life view, addressing the criticality of assets, the ways in which they are specified, created, monitored and maintained, and ultimately decommissioned. While a focus on asset integrity will ensure an asset continues to perform safely, this wider asset management focus extends to whether the asset is still the right one now and in the longer term.
However, asset managers aren’t on their own with these strategic decisions. Company leadership plays a central role in achieving this whole-life and whole-system approach. Establishing a clear asset management strategy, as part of an overall asset management systems approach, gives visibility and clarity of objectives. It sets out the decision-making framework and the timescales to deliver the objectives. It provides a critical link between the overall strategy of the organisation and the asset management activities on which it critically depends.
Providing sustainable high railway performance needs good planning of the scope of asset interventions and also prioritised planning. That prioritised planning needs to take into account the risks and the best use of resources to maximise the overall benefit. Whole-life approaches will typically seek the best overall return. In reality, the achievable ‘best’ option will likely depend on available resources at the point of the decision.
Modelling is often needed to ensure that the optimal balance of spend and benefit is achieved. This includes matters such as maintenance enhancements, renewal timing, and decommissioning. This ensures all assets are considered together.
Asset data has always been a key enabler to realising benefit. Recognising the value of asset data with targeted investment in its quality supports decision making and modelling requirements.
Embedding mature asset management practice includes robust asset information. It leads to conscious decisions about the timing and scope of interventions, having considered the assets as an interconnected system. And that, in turn, gives a good basis for cost effective delivery, improved railway performance, and enhanced safety.
The current period of rail transformation brings additional challenges. There are opportunities from the transformation, and we need to move to take them. But the asset base must continue to perform as we do so. A strategic asset management approach will help. So will the use of structured asset management systems. Leaders should be prepared to adjust their strategies in response to evolving circumstances. This includes always keeping the bigger picture in mind.
In an environment with cost challenges and industry transformation, a comprehensive perspective is essential. This maintains efficiency and helps achieve long-term success. A focus on the bigger picture helps leaders to ensure that their organisations thrive. It helps them even in challenging times. This approach saves money, but it also drives value and innovation. So, don’t just think about individual assets. Focus on the interdependencies, the asset system as a whole, and the criticality of assets in generating value.
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