Asset management: making our AMP ‘real’.
Ruapehu District Council is taking a customer focused approach to our asset management planning, putting people and places front of mind, rather than just thinking about assets. They work across different Council teams to ensure asset management practices are aligned and can demonstrate value for money, robust procurement practices and outcomes delivery to local communities.
A principle and people-based approach
In making their AMP ‘Real’ Council work to the following principles:
- Community focused
It’s all about our community, what they need; what problems are they facing; how can we address these in the short, medium and longer term, and what benefits will they get from our planning and investment.
- Teaming up
We are working across Council teams to better understand what we are all trying to provide the community and for what reasons to align our asset management planning. i.e. maintenance, operations, renewals; and future improvements through our Long Term Plan, 30 year infrastructure plan; District Plan and other asset planning.
- Evidence based
We are focusing on building our evidence base and our programme confidence across teams and with our partners.
- Engagement and communication
We involve our community and let them know what we are doing. A lot of what we do is business as usual, so we explain what this is and help them better understand the thinking undertaken to get there.
Initiatives they have taken include:
- Transport activity procurement practices
Council reviewed current procurement processes and have separated the previous ‘one’ contract into a number of more targeted contracts, to support focused procurement and alignment of contractor skills and expertise to the relevant activities.
The contracts are managed collaboratively which has resulted in better timing and alignment of maintenance and activities, targeted prioritisation of work programmes, better financial forecasting and improved accountability and communications between Council and the contractors.
- Spatial planning
Council is currently working with their regional partners to develop a Spatial Plan for the Manawatū–Whanganui region. The Plan will outline a shared regional direction as well as the region’s collective efforts and multi-agency delivery on agreed priorities.
To support this, Council is also developing a district level Spatial Plan and Destination Management Plan to deliver on the regional priorities across the District.
- Community pre-engagement sessions
Council has held pre-engagement sessions with the community as part of the Long-Term Plan 2021–31 development to hear what they are looking for and how the transport system and wider asset management can help deliver on those needs and aspirations.
Figure 1. Building the Ruapehu District Council AMP
