UMS Group Helps Utility Asset Managers Learn to Generate Continuous Improvement in Business Operations

PARSIPPANY, N.J., Nov. 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- UMS Group recently sponsored the Asset Management: A Holistic Approach for the Power Industry conference, organized by Insight Information (http://www.insightinfo.com/), which took place in Toronto, Ontario.  The executives and managers who attended the conference learned how their peers are using asset management to meet the challenges facing the utility industry – aging infrastructure coupled with a myriad of operational, financial, economic and environmental pressures.

Conference attendees consisted of companies looking to understand Asset Management to support a Transformation of their businesses, as well as those that have already implemented an Asset Management orientation and are committed to improving performance.  By sponsoring and participating in the conference, UMS sought to help attendees answer the question, "How do we release maximum long-term value to our stakeholders and, at the same time, manage our risk profile within levels acceptable to our customers, regulators and communities?"  

A key topic discussed at the conference was the importance of utilizing Best Practices to optimize the value of new technology.  UMS believes that the extensive experience with Utility Asset Management in countries like the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and the Netherlands, can be leveraged by North American utilities to quickly move down the learning curve to achieve best-in-class cost and service levels. To help support this knowledge sharing, UMS has established a number of Global Learning Consortia that bring together utilities from around the world to develop, identify and share asset management best practices.

Attendees also explored the potential impact of the emerging ISO 55000 (Asset Management) Standard as a potent business driver in the near future.  In addition to the concern that regulators might require utilities to become compliant with the standard, they expressed a belief that large end-users will take certification, and what it implies about a utility's management of cost and quality, into account when making decisions about business location.  UMS was a sponsor of the ISO/PC251 International Summit that took place in Arlington, VA last month where the Committee continued evolving the proposed standard.  As with PAS 55, UMS is taking an active role to ensure that our clients' actions in developing Asset Management capabilities are aligned with the coming standard.

"Asset Management has proven its ability to deliver on the need to maintain/improve the performance of asset intensive businesses," said Mike Scholtens, Senior Vice President, UMS Group.  "By gaining insight into Best Practices being implemented by others and creating a culture of continuous improvement, many utilities can dramatically improve the long term performance of their assets."

About UMS Group

UMS Group is a leading global consultancy and thought leader in utility asset management, performance assessment and improvement, and the management of sustainable change.  UMS Group's proprietary databases, analytic insights, decision support tools and transformation methodologies have been utilized by over 300 electric, gas and water utilities on six continents to build world-class operations. http://www.umsgroup.com/

CONTACT: Steven Morris, 973-335-3555

SOURCE UMS Group