Infrastructure Management 1: Process

Abstract

Infrastructure management is the process used to ensure that infrastructure provides desired levels of service for specified time periods. This course provides an overview of the process, from setting goals to developing intervention programs. It consists of groups of lectures by externals that are followed by discussion sessions to investigate the opinions and understanding of the students.

Objective

The objective of this course is to provide an overview of the infrastructure management process. The high-level process can be used as a starting point to ensure that infrastructure management is done professionally, efficiently and effectively. Students can use this process to help improve the specific infrastructure management processes in the organisations in which they work in the future. More specifically upon completion of the course, students will understand • the main tasks and decisions of an infrastructure manager and their complexity, • the importance of setting goals and being in alignment with the wishes of stakeholders in the management of infrastructure, • how to develop and evaluate asset strategies, as well as the importance of data and analytics in their development and evaluation • the principles of conducting project appraisals, and • how to develop portfolios of interventions and make trade-offs between projects if necessary.

Content

The weekly lectures are structured as follows: 1 Introduction: An introduction to infrastructure management. 2 Organisation / Process: An example of a real world infrastructure management organisation 3 High level goals / benefits: At the highest level decisions have to be made with respect to how an organisation will invest. The first half of this lecture gives an example of how this is done in a real world organisation. The second half of the lecture is focused on how benefits should be consistently defined so that they can be used to make aligned decisions throughout the organisation. 4 Discussion session 1: In this session students will be expected to present and defend their thoughts on questions pertaining to the previous three lectures. 5 Asset management approaches: This lecture gives an example of how a management approach for a single asset type can be developed. 6 Data: This lecture outlines the importance of data in an organisation, the things to consider and the role in making the right decisions 7 Intervention strategies: This lecture provides an overview of the different ways of determining optimal intervention strategies. 8 Discussion session 2: In this session students will be expected to present and defend their thoughts on questions pertaining to the previous three lectures. 9 System plans: This lecture focuses on what a system plan is, what is has to consider and how it can be presented, and how projects emerge from it 10 Project appraisals: This lecture focuses on the aspects to consider in generating and appraising projects. 11 Portfolio management: This lecture focuses on how to develop a portfolio, including the things to consider, and how to make trade-offs when necessary. 12 Discussion session 3: In this session students will be expected to present and defend their thoughts on questions pertaining to the previous three lectures. 13 Review: In this lecture we will provide an overview of the course, a summary of the discussion sessions and provide insight into the exam.

Resources