Councils can now take park in IPWEA’s Yardstick Roads benchmarking program to benchmark the management and operation of roads against other councils in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific.
Participating councils will need to set aside approximately one day to complete the survey, which drills down into the council’s investment and maintenance data, as well as be subject to an onsite audit of the submitted data.
However, once the survey and audits are complete, participants gain access to a report summarising the key findings of the survey. In addition, they can access the report data online where they can conduct their own interrogations. In a data driven world, this tool is invaluable for asset managers.
Benchmarking
The scheme is being delivered by management consultancy Morrison Low and industry partner Xyst in conjunction with IPWEA.
Benchmarks have been developed that provide detail about provision, investment and efficiency, operational excellence, asset management and environmental sustainability.
“Importantly councils will be able to compare the cost of asset ownership with similar councils”, says Dan Bonifant, Director, Morrison Low.
“They will then be able to use this information to inform their budget processes for new and existing assets,” Bonifant adds.
Early adopters
The Yardstick Roads Benchmarking program launched in 2014 with the publication of a summary report of the findings from a survey of 29 councils from across New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia, New Zealand and The Pacific Islands.
The survey was officially launched following a successful pilot completed by seven NSW councils in July 2014.
City of Canada Bay Director Technical Service and Operations John Osland was one of the first to sign up to participate in the survey.
“Roads Maintenance is one of our largest expenditure areas and our most valuable asset,” says Osland. “We have found the roads benchmarking programme a valuable tool in identifying efficiency’s in the management of our road network.”
From the findings of the 2014 Benchmarking program, a number of key areas for improvement have been identified. Asset valuation continues to be a challenge for most councils as similar councils report significant variation in comparable asset data.
Determining realistic and appropriate asset values and depreciation rates are key to an organisation’s ongoing financial viability.
Many councils also have problems separating operational and maintenance expenditure. This distinction is important to ensure that assets are appropriately maintained and will allow council funds to be directed where they will provide the greatest benefit.
The results from the latest survey are now available online for participants.
Councils seeking more information on the 2015 program can call Dan Bonifant on 02 9211 2991 or email
d.bonifant@morrisonlow.com