Asset integrity management for sustainable industrial operations: measuring the performance

Abstract

The management of the integrity of engineering assets such as production plants, facilities and equipment can be a challenging task due to their interrelationships with financial, information, human and intangible assets. In order to ensure effective utilisation and to improve the management of such assets, one has to make balanced and effective decisions based on performance assessments. The main challenge for asset integrity management (AIM) is related to various aspects of its human dimension as apparent on organisational settings and associated cognitive dispensations. In this article, AIM is cascaded down to design, operational and technical integrity management. Furthermore, the performance of physical assets (PA) is discussed in terms of financial, societal and environmental dimensions that deliver sustainability value to the assets' owner. The management of such a sustainable value is vital in managing the overall asset integrity in order to minimise rising stakeholder pressure and achieve balanced performance. The paper provides a review of AIM and a foundation for engineers and managers to analyse the general problem of managing PA' integrity to increase the sustainable value of an asset intensive business in a more holistic way. © 2012 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.