Asset Identification
This topic covers:
Adopting an asset numbering system is critical, and needs to be completed right at the start before any data collection or systems input.
The organization may already have an asset numbering system. This may need to be retained because of the enormous amounts of data already available under that identification code. However, in many cases these systems do not include all assets, and often have duplications or repetitive numbers that are used for individual but similar assets and therefore cannot be used effectively as an identifier in a computerized asset management system.
The next task involves splitting the assets into their various classifications or their hierarchical structure. Each computer system will have different names and different levels but in general they will follow this sequence:
- Asset group
- Facilities
- Assets
- Components
- Sub components
- Spare parts.
Numbering systems fall into three major categories:
- Unintelligent (random sequential numbers)
- Semi-intelligent (numbers that may indicate the type of asset, department, or responsible organization and may identify its approximate location but then use an unintelligent sequential number for the balance of the number)
- A fully intelligent number (that will have a detailed structure so that it can indicate the type of asset, the location and other issues uniquely).
A hierarchical code gives some relationship to the type of asset and its part in the system eg. a pump in a conditioning system versus the building in which it operates.
By thinking in hierarchical terms, we can develop the system such that the workforce and maintenance activities are easily related into the file number system.
Zonal or Location systems identify assets according to their location or their relationship within their total asset group. It can be related to states or towns, but it really should be related to the way in which the agency splits the asset group for operations and maintenance.
In some cases, systems will allow for a separate location field that can be completely tied to the digital mapping system through its property attributes system.
Many numbering systems can be based on purely sequential numbers for each asset and its components as they come into creation. A sequential numbering system has no intelligence attached to it; just a number for each asset without any interrelationship.
People with intelligent numbering systems will often wonder whether sequential numbers would be easier, and people with sequential numbering systems will always believe that an intelligent numbering system would be better. What we do know is that in systems where both intelligent and sequential numbering systems have been used and a general enquiry is to be made, staff will always search for that asset through the intelligent numbering system rather than use another way.
Sequential numbering systems do have some advantages when they are used in a large multi-national asset grouping, but for the typical agency a blend of the systems has been found to be most suitable. That is, for like assets some form of intelligent system that enables operators to roughly identify the asset and its group by location as well as by its type.
By adopting this partially intelligent numbering system, staff can interrogate the system to find assets of like types and locate an asset in various facilities, etc.
A major benefit of this type of system is in the setting up of the system, the recording of data, and the implementation phase, where the form of intelligence is very helpful to staff and data collectors, and to keyboard operators etc. if they do not have a computer system to interrogate and find the difficult assets or their components.
THE ESSENTIAL INGREDIENT FOR A RESPONSIBLE ASSET MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IS HAVING A UNIQUE NUMBER FOR EACH INDIVIDUAL ASSET AND ITS COMPONENTS, SO THAT THIS NUMBER CAN BE USED THROUGHOUT THE ORGANIZATION FROM A FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC, AND TECHNICAL VIEWPOINT.
The asset numbering system must be specified as part of the corporate asset classification and identification system. This is essential if the numbering system is to be meaningful to the organization as a whole, as part of the totally integrated business system, or if staged or distributed development of asset information systems are to occur.
It is important to get financial and administrative colleagues involved in the choice of numbering system. However, it must be realized that the technical staff will be required to carry out the operations and maintenance on these assets, and so the numbering system should be created to best serve these functions.
Once understood, an intelligent numbering system will also be of use to financial and economic staff in their interrogation of the system.