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RE: Week 7 Discussion Question

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Module 8 Week 7 Initial DQ Response

Student ID: H00024785
A. Introduction
Infrastructure project in developing
countries such as The Cayman Islands are
faced with many challenges e.g. total
lifecycle consideration, project funding,
post commissioning management, and
methodology for a management concept
such as transportation infrastructure
maintenance management system
(TIMMS) (Cottrell et al. 2009). The fact
remains post commissioning management
and post project completion maintenance
funding has not being embrace to ensure
infrastructure sustainability. Therefore,
due to lack of TIMMS in the budgeting
and planning stages short life-cycle and
ballooning cost is the result.
B. Public infrastructure asset management
in your region
The roads and sea ports are the
infrastructure that I chose to analyze for
TIMMS or the lack thereof. According to
Walker and Jones (2012) leaning on the
work of Chaote and Walter, 1981; Touche
Ross, 1985; Walker et al., 2000 indicates
governments are experiencing problems in
funding the repair, restoration,
maintenance and replacement of
infrastructure assets. This is the case in
many instances as funds allocated to the

department charged with the use of the

infrastructure almost never include funds
for maintenance but only for operational
expenses. This leaves decision makers to
choose between employees salary and
engineering report to make a case for
maintenance funding. Hence efforts must
be made to move away from patch and
plug to standards of surveying, evaluating,
decommissioning rehabilitation and
commissioning.
C. Best practice
I am not sure if cost consideration was
given by Rodgers (2005 week 7 lecture
notes) in week 7 lecture notes when the
suggestion was made to have a third party
commissioning team. I do agree with the
author that all project participants should
be part of the commissioning process as
this makes for best input, quick remedies,
and creates a think-tank of project experts
that can only result in better or best
solutions. Consideration must be given for
Infrastructure Asset Management System
that can be built into the construction
model used for the project e.g. design,
build, managed maintain. As the
maintaining aspect of most project are not
given the seat at the planning table and
clients often only concern with the service
provided and any possible return (financial
and political), infrastructure maintenance
must be package differently and given
value for economic, service, and
environmental sustainability.
D. Two most critical gaps are:
1) Post commissioning management
post commission management must
not be confused with management
of the operation but focuses on the
infrastructure asset itself. So the
Port Authority can be operating

dealing with imports and exports

while the infrastructure asset is
managed by a single entity
equipped with resources
(engineers) and not just cosmetic
touch-ups.
2) Post project completion
maintenance system without
name recognition but with a
maintenance definition concern
with maintaining or adding value to
the infrastructure asset thus
ensuring its sustainability.
E. Inventory
Inventory data is critical for the value
added in relations to maintenance,
rehabilitation/renovation, and
replacement/reconstruction (Uddin,
Hudson, and Haas, 2013, p. 109).
Information from the as-built, physical
measurements and surveys (Uddin,
Hudson, and Haas, 2013, p. 130) are data
collection sources for building the
inventory database. Inventory will
contribute vital information for
Inspectioncondition-based, Proactive
preventive, and Predictiveadvanced
argued by (Ugarelli et al., 2010 week 7
lecture notes).
F. Initial investment
Initial investment must cover the sustainability of the project throughout its life-cycle by
including post commissioning cost into the budget. This cost can only be predictive with
historical data to assist in the cost accumulation. Initial investment is most valuable if it is
accompanied by an integrated maintenance management system that utilizes data, human
and material resources, appropriate funding, and expert judgment to ensure infrastructure
sustainability all considered at the initial stages of the project.
G. Conclusion
Transportation infrastructure maintenance management system (TIMMS) in the
budgeting and planning stages will eliminate short life-cycle and ballooning cost

associated in the maintenance of the infrastructure project and ensure value through its
sustainability.

H. References
Cottrell, W., Bryan, S., Chilukuri, B.R.,
Kalyani, V., Stevanovic, A., and Wu, J.
(2009)
Transportation infrastructure maintenance
management: Case study of a small urban
city [Online] Available
from http://ascelibrary.org/doi/abs/10.106
1/(ASCE)1076-0342(2009)15:2(120)
(Access October 17, 2013)

Rodgers, T. (2005) An owners

perspective on commissioning of critical
facilities,
ASHRAE Transactions,

Uddin, W., Hudson, W. R., and Haas, R. (2013) Public infrastructure asset management
Second Edition McGraw-Hill Education
University of Liverpool and Laureate
Online Education (2000-2010) Week 4
lecture notes from Master of Science in
Project Management Module 7 [Online]
Available from
https://elearning.uol.ohecampus.com/bbcs
webdav/institution/UKL1/MPM/PMAIIM/
zArchive/2011_July/Wk7/PMAIIM_Wk7_
Lecture_Notes.pdf (Access October 16,
2013)
Ugarelli, R., Venkatesh, G., Brattlebo, H., Di Federico, V., and Saegrov, S. (2010)

Asset management for urban wastewater pipeline networks, Journal of Infrastructure

Systems,
Walker, R. G. and Jones, S. (2012)
Reporting on Infrastructure in Australia:
Practices and Management Preferences
[Online] Available from
http://ehis.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liv.ac.uk
/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=2&sid=ccd
6c766-bbb3-4dce-8f13e8dd91a233ad%40sessionmgr10&hid=15
(access October 16, 2013)