Modelling flexible asset management in industrial maintenance companies and networks

The tightening competition and increasing dynamism have created an emerging need for flexible asset management. This means that the changes of market demand should be responded to with adjustments in the amount of assets tied to the balance sheets of companies. On the other hand, industrial maintenance has recently experienced drastic changes, which have led to an increase in the number of maintenance networks (consisting of customer companies that buy maintenance services, as well as various supplier companies) and inter-organizational partnerships. However, the research on maintenance networks has not followed the changes in the industry. Instead, there is a growing need for new ways of collaboration between partnering companies to enhance the competitiveness of the whole maintenance network. In addition, it is more and more common for companies to pursue lean operations in their businesses. This thesis shows how flexible asset management can increase the profitability of maintenance companies and networks under dynamic operating conditions, and how the additional value can then be shared between the network partners. Firstly, I have conducted a systematic literature review to identify what kind of requirements for asset management models are set by the increasing dynamism. Then I have responded to these requirements by constructing an analytical model for flexible asset management, linking asset management to the profitability and financial state of a company. The thesis uses the model to show how flexible asset management can increase profitability in maintenance companies and networks, and how the created value can be shared in the networks to reach a win-win situation. The research indicates that the existing models for asset management are heterogeneous by nature due to the various definitions of ‘asset management’. I conclude that there is a need for practical asset management models which address assets comprehensively with an inter-organizational, strategic view. The comprehensive perspective, taking all kinds of asset types into account, is needed to integrate the research on asset management with the strategic management of companies and networks. I will show that maintenance companies can improve their profitability by increasing the flexibility of their assets. In maintenance networks, reorganizing the ownership of the assets among the different network partners can create additional value. Finally, I will introduce flexible asset management contracts for maintenance networks. These contracts address the value sharing related to reorganizing the ownership of assets according to the principles of win-win situations.

On the Efficiency of the Benchmarks Used in the Asset Management

In this work we studied the efficiency of the benchmarks used in the asset management industry. In chapter 2 we analyzed the efficiency of the benchmark used for the government bond markets. We found that for the Emerging Market Bonds an equally weighted index for the country weights is probably the more suited because guarantees maximum diversification of country risk but for the Eurozone government bond market we found a GDP weighted index is better because the most important matter is to avoid a higher weight for highly indebted countries. In chapter 3 we analyzed the efficiency of a Derivatives Index to invest in the European corporate bond market instead of a Cash Index. We can state that the two indexes are similar in terms of returns, but that the Derivatives Index is less risky because it has a lower volatility, has values of skewness and kurtosis closer to those of a normal distribution and is a more liquid instrument, as the autocorrelation is not significant. In chapter 4 it is analyzed the impact of fallen angels on the corporate bond portfolios. Our analysis investigated the impact of the month-end rebalancing of the ML Emu Non Financial Corporate Index for the exit of downgraded bond (the event). We can conclude a flexible approach to the month-end rebalancing is better in order to avoid a loss of valued due to the benchmark construction rules. In chapter 5 we did a comparison between the equally weighted and capitalization weighted method for the European equity market. The benefit which results from reweighting the portfolio into equal weights can be attributed to the fact that EW portfolios implicitly follow a contrarian investment strategy, because they mechanically rebalance away from stocks that increase in price.

A representação de conteúdos documentais no contexto dos novos sistemas de gestão de arquivos audiovisuais digitais: o caso do “Digital Asset Management”

Dissertação apresentada para cumprimento dos requisitos necessários à obtenção do grau de Mestre em Ciências da Informação e da Documentação na variante Arquivística

Degree Dissertation Report Asset Management

L'objectiu d'aquest treball no és oferir els mateixos serveis que els productes comercials, sinó utilitzar el coneixement bàsic en aquest sector per crear una aplicació simple

Maintenance Asset Management Project -- Phase II, July 31, 2013

Expanded abstract: Iowa Department of Transportation (IA DOT) is finalizing research to streamline field inventory/inspection of culverts by Maintenance and Construction staff while maximizing the use of tablet technologies. The project began in 2011 to develop some new best practices for field staff to assist in the inventory, inspection and maintenance of assets along the roadway. The team has spent the past year working through the complexities of identifying the most appropriate tablet hardware for field data collection. A small scale deployment of tablets occurred in spring of 2013 to collect several safety related assets (culverts, signs, guardrail, and incidents). Data can be collected in disconnected or connected modes and there is an associated desktop environment where data can be viewed and queried after being synced into the master database. The development of a deployment plan and related workflow processes are underway; which will eventually feed information into IA DOTs larger asset management system and make the information available for decision making. The team is also working with the IA DOT Design Office on Computer Aided Drafting (CAD) data processing and the IA DOT Construction office with a new digital As-Built plan process to leverage the complete data life-cycle so information can be developed once and leveraged by the Maintenance staff farther along in the process.

Asset Management Program Enhancement Plan: Baseline Assessment Phases I and II, 2015

This project resulted in the development of a framework for making asset management decisions on low-volume bridges. The research focused on low-volume bridges located in the agricultural counties of Iowa because recent research has shown that these counties have the greatest percentage of structurally deficient bridges in the nation. Many of the same counties also have the highest crop yields in the state, creating a situation where detours caused by deficient bridges on farm-to-market roads increase the cost to transport the crops. Thus, the research proposed the use of social return on investment (SROI), a tool used by international institutions such as the World Bank, as an asset management metric to gauge to the socioeconomic impact of structurally deficient bridges on the state in an effort to provide quantified justification to fund improvements on low-volume assets such as these rural bridges. The study found that combining SROI with current asset management metrics like average daily traffic (ADT) made it possible to prioritize the bridges in such a way that the limited resources available are allocated in a manner that promotes a more equitable distribution and that directly benefits the user, in this case Iowa farmers. The result is a system that more closely aligns itself with the spirit of MAP-21, in that infrastructure investments are used to facilitate economic growth for Iowa’s agricultural economy.

Final Report (SPR Project 90-00-RB10-012) on the Maintenance Asset Management Project Phase I, 2012

This project resulted in the development of a proof of concept for a features inventory process to be used by field staff. The resulting concept is adaptable for different asset classes (e.g. culverts, guardrail) and able to leverage existing DOT resources such as the videolog and LRS and our current technology platforms including Oracle and our GIS web infrastructure. The concept examined the feasibility of newly available technologies, such as mobile devices, while balancing ease of use in the field. Implementation and deployment costs were also important considerations in evaluating the success of the project. These project funds allowed the pilot to address the needs of two DOT districts. A report of findings was prepared, including recommendations for or against full deployment of the pilot solution.

Final Report (SPR Project 90-00-RB10-012) on the Maintenance Asset Management Project Phase II, 2013

This project resulted in the development of a proof of concept for a features inventory process to be used by field staff. The resulting concept is adaptable for different asset classes (e.g. culverts, guardrail) and able to leverage existing DOT resources such as the videolog and LRS and our current technology platforms including Oracle and our GIS web infrastructure. The concept examined the feasibility of newly available technologies, such as mobile devices, while balancing ease of use in the field. Implementation and deployment costs were also important considerations in evaluating the success of the project. These project funds allowed the pilot to address the needs of two DOT districts. A report of findings was prepared, including recommendations for a full deployment of a field data collection.

Iowa Pavement Asset Management Decision-Making Framework & Pavement Treatment Selection Tool for Local Agencies, TR-651, 2015

Most local agencies in Iowa currently make their pavement treatment decisions based on their limited experience due primarily to lack of a systematic decision-making framework and a decision-aid tool. The lack of objective condition assessment data of agency pavements also contributes to this problem. This study developed a systematic pavement treatment selection framework for local agencies to assist them in selecting the most appropriate treatment and to help justify their maintenance and rehabilitation decisions. The framework is based on an extensive literature review of the various pavement treatment techniques in terms of their technical applicability and limitations, meaningful practices of neighboring states, and the results of a survey of local agencies. The treatment selection framework involves three different steps: pavement condition assessment, selection of technically feasible treatments using decision trees, and selection of the most appropriate treatment considering the return-on-investment (ROI) and other non-economic factors. An Excel-based spreadsheet tool that automates the treatment selection framework was also developed, along with a standalone user guide for the tool. The Pavement Treatment Selection Tool (PTST) for Local Agencies allows users to enter the severity and extent levels of existing distresses and then, recommends a set of technically feasible treatments. The tool also evaluates the ROI of each feasible treatment and, if necessary, it can also evaluate the non-economic value of each treatment option to help determine the most appropriate treatment for the pavement. It is expected that the framework and tool will help local agencies improve their pavement asset management practices significantly and make better economic and defensible decisions on pavement treatment selection.

Remote Condition Monitoring and Asset Management in Offshore Power Systems

Condition monitoring systems for physical assets are constantly becoming more and more common in the industrial sector. At the same time an increasing portion of asset monitoring systems are being remotely supported. As global competitors are actively developing solutions for condition monitoring and condition-based maintenance, which it enables, Wärtsilä too feels the pressure to provide customers with more sophisticated condition-based maintenance solutions. The main aim of this thesis study is to consider Wärtsilä remote condition monitoring solutions and how they relate to similar solutions from other suppliers and end customers’ needs, in the context of offshore assets. A theoretical study is also included in the thesis, where the concepts of condition monitoring, condition-based maintenance, maintenance management and physical asset management are introduced.

Developing asset management in district heating and cooling business in a large energy company

The purpose of this Master´s Thesis is to develop asset management and its practices in case company. District heating and cooling systems operated by case company around Finland, Sweden, Poland and the Baltics form an enormous-sized asset base where some parts are starting to reach their end of life-cycles. Large-sized asset renewal actions are under discussion and maintenance spending is increasing. Financially justified decisions in changing business environment are needed. Asset management is one of the most important concepts for production organization which operates with capital-intensive production assets. Organizations profitability is highly dependent on assets´ performance. Such assets, like district heating and cooling systems, should be utilized as efficiently as possible within their life-cycles but also maintained and renewed optimally. In this qualitative thesis, empirical interview study was conducted to describe the current situation on how the assets are managed in the case company and to examine the readiness to implement a new, risk-based solution. Asset management revealed to be a very well-known concept. From proposed risk-based asset management point of view, several key observations were made. It was seen as a suitable solution, but further development will be needed. Based on the need and findings, several key processes and frameworks were created and also tested with a case study. Assets` condition monitoring should be improved, which would have a positive impact on event probability assessment. Risk acceptance is also a thing to be discussed further. When the evaluation becomes fluent in single investment cases, portfolio-level expansion should be considered and started. As a result, thesis proposes a solution how risk-based asset management could be performed practically in a capital-intensive case company in order to optimize the maintenance spending in a long run. Created practical framework is made universal: similar principles can be applied into multiple cases in case company but also in other energy companies. Risk-based asset management`s benefits could be utilized best in portfolio-level optimization where the capital would be invested to the most important objects from total risk point of view. Eventually, such approach would allow case company to optimize capital spending in a situation where funds are not adequate to cover all the mandatory needs and prioritization between the investment alternatives will truly be needed.

Financial working capital - management and measurement

Unexpected changes in cash flow have started to occur more frequently after the financial crisis. The capital structures of companies have also changed, and financial flexibility as well as flexible asset management have therefore become more important. This thesis aims at presenting financial working capital management, a part of flexible asset management, as a possibility to gain financial flexibility and survive the changes. This thesis operates in the interface of corporate finance, strategic management and management accounting, and it has two main objectives: to examine financial working capital management and to develop measures of financial working capital. The research in this thesis has been conducted using archival research and design science. Qualitative comparative analysis and model building are used to formulate tools and strategies for financial working capital management. The tools are tested with simulations, case studies and statistical analysis. The empirical data is collected from companies listed in the Helsinki Stock Exchange. The results of this thesis indicate that there are several possible financial working capital management strategies. FOCAL matrix is created in the thesis to assist in the selection of a strategy. The results also imply that profitability can be improved by reducing financial working capital, which creates a need to change the financial working capital management strategy. Financial flow cycle, and its modification, is developed in this thesis to measure financial working capital. Financial working capital as a concept is presented in this thesis with an orientation towards the management view. New dimensions have also been produced to financial management and working capital management, while providing a holistic approach to financial flexibility. Financial working capital management strategies are presented to managers and practical tools are provided for decision-making.

Accounting information systems as institutional carriers: a case study of regulatory compliance in UK asset management houses

Previously, governments have responded to the impacts of economic failures and consequently have developed more regulations to protect employees, customers, shareholders and the economic wellbeing of the state. Our research addresses how Accounting Information Systems (AIS) may act as carriers for institutionalised practices associated with maintaining regulatory compliance within the context of UK Asset Management Houses. The AIS was found to be a strong conduit for institutionalized compliance related practices, utilising symbolic systems, relational systems, routines and artefacts to carry approaches relating to regulative, normative and cultural-cognitive strands of institutionalism. Thus, AIS are integral to the development and dissipation of best practice for the management of regulatory compliance. As institutional elements are clearly present we argue that AIS and regulatory compliance provide a rich context to further institutionalism. Since AIS may act as conduits for regulatory approaches, both systems adopters and clients may benefit from actively seeking to codify and abstract best practices into AIS. However, the application of generic institutionalized approaches, which may be applied across similar organizations, must be tempered with each firm’s business environment and associated regulatory exposure. A balance should be sought between approaches specific enough to be useful but generic enough to be universally applied.