Re-valuating a council’s entire transport asset network is a daunting task.
When Nambucca Shire Council asset manager Clint Fitzsummons prepared to do just that, he had the comforting weight of the International Infrastructure Management Manual (IIMM) beside him.
“(The re-valuation of transport assets) is huge, it takes in all our road assets, all our footpaths, curb and gutter, culverts - we need to identify virtually every segment of roads we have,” Fitzsummons says.
“The IIMM is always close to hand and is referred to regularly, when further clarification is required.
“It goes through the procedures for determining the road segments and how to depreciate those assets.
“This is the go to book for asset management practice, and aids in the decision making processes.”
With the re-valuation completed in August, Nambucca Shire is preparing to take a look at the value of its parks - Fitzsummons says the IIMM will again be an important tool.
“The IIMM has made my job easier by being the reference book that describes the technical requirements of asset management,” Fitzsummons says.
“As an added bonus, there are regular case studies throughout the manual.
“These case studies further reinforce the asset management processes, and provides guidance from other practitioners that have been through a particular asset management development process.
Adopting a common reference source across all councils would eliminate inaccurate and unhelpful comparisons between them, Fitzsummons says.
“If councils are following the processes from the same source, such as the IIMM, then there will be more consistency,” he says.
“This consistency is required, as councils are often compared to one another.
“Different processes between councils can provide vastly different results, which makes this comparison inaccurate and potentially harmful.
“Although there will always be some variation, there is a strong need for practitioners to be more consistent.”
For City of West Torrens general manager of urban services Angelo Catinari, the IIMM is a “must have”.
“The IIMM forms a convenient guide and a great reference for new staff developing their career in asset management,” he says.
“The IIMM is used on a monthly basis for sourcing relevant good practice asset management examples including the numerous real world case studies that are available in the document.”
Catinari says the council also uses the IIMM’s companion financial publication, the AIFMG, which is being relaunched and updated this year as the Australian Infrastructure Financial Management Manual (AIFMM).
The 2015 editions of the IIMM and the AIFMM will be launched at both the IPWEA Queensland and New South Wales state conferences, held 12-15 October and 14-16 October respectively. 
“The AIFMG is used by the council regularly as a reference for the financial aspects of good practice asset management,” he says.
“It is my firm belief that the valuations and financial transactions should be in step with the asset management plans and anticipated renewals as much as possible.
“The IIMM and AIFMG provide the mechanisms to be able to realise this.”
The new 2015 editions of the IIMM and AIFMM are available for preorder from the IPWEA bookshop.
NZ customers - please email accounts.nz@ipwea.org for publications enquiries