1. Purpose

To manage South East Water’s assets in a way that will meet customer needs, support the health and wellbeing of the public and workforce, protect the environment and maximise the value realised from our assets over their total lifecycle while balancing financial, environmental and social costs, risks, quality of service and performance related to assets.

2. Scope of Policy

This policy applies to South East Water and must be observed by all directors, employees, agents, and contractors.

Assets are defined as an item, thing or entity that has potential or actual value to South East Water, including but not limited to related data, information and intellectual property required to deliver services to our customers.

3. Policy Statement

South East Water is committed to:

  • Establishing and maintaining an Asset Management System that is aligned with, and progresses to certification against, ISO 55001 by June 2023;
  • Maintaining an Asset Management System that ensures safe, efficient and timely planning, condition monitoring, maintenance, operation, security, creation, rehabilitation and appropriate disposal of assets, as an integrated part of South East Water’s business;
  • Developing our people and service providers to achieve the necessary competencies and culture required to manage asset lifecycle activities;
  • Engagement with customers, regulators and other stakeholders to develop short and long-term performance targets that are optimised within organisational resource constraints and risk appetite;
  • Embedding the United Nations Global Compact principles into our asset management strategy, culture and day to day operations in support of meaningful action on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals;
  • The development of asset management objectives, strategies and Asset Management Plans and associated implementation plans that enable these targets to be achieved;
  • Monitoring and reviewing our performance against our asset management objectives;
  • Management to undertake a review of the Asset Management Plan over both a 10 year and longer-term outlook. This will involve an integrated analysis of asset service, risk and financial objectives as they relate to future planning scenarios;
  • Implementing Asset Management Plans safely, in a cost-effective and timely manner; 
  • Innovating and continually improving the efficiency and effectiveness of asset management processes by researching, developing and applying new technology, enhancing supplier and industry relationships, and by contributing to the development of industry codes, standards and regulations; 
  • Meeting all regulatory and statutory requirements relevant to our assets; 
  • Complying with asset management related policies from all levels of government;
  • Developing an assurance framework to proactively identify, assess, evaluate, treat and monitor our asset related risks consistent with South East Water’s organisational objectives and risk appetite;  
  • Actively managing the security and resilience of our assets against malicious and incidental threats.  This shall include explicit consideration of climate change as a key asset risk;
  • Establishing an asset information management framework to maintain alignment between our assets and the associated asset information to manage risk and support asset management decision making;
  • Establishing information asset management and governance to support our transformation into a digital utility; 
  • Aligning our technical and financial information to support life cycle costing and whole of lifecycle cost optimisation; 
  • Proactively identifying and managing changes to requirements, assets, asset management practices and the asset management system to identify risks, control risks and capture benefits created by change; and
  • Reducing our emissions in line with our Emissions Reduction Pledge.
4. Related Policies
5. Enacting Legislation and Related Documents
  • Asset Management Accountability Framework
  • Environment Protection Amendment Act
  • Professional Engineers Registration Act
  • Security of Critical Infrastructure Act
  • South East Water Emissions reduction Pledge
  • Pricing Determination
  • Statement of Obligations
  • South East Water’s Regulatory 
  • UN Global Compact and Sustainable Development Goals
  • Victorian Digital Asset Policy
  • Victorian Protective Data Security Framework
  • Water Act
6. Accountability

The Managing Director is accountable to the Board of Directors for ensuring this policy is implemented.

7. Approval

Approved by: South East Water Board of Directors

Approved on: 24 October 2022

Sponsors:

  • General Manager - Liveable Water Solutions
  • General Manager - Service Delivery
  • General Manager - Finance and Technology
  • General Manager - Future Water Strategy

Implementer: All asset-related groups led by the Strategic Asset Management committee

Review date: 24 October 2026

Related policies