Eleven staff from Kathmandu Upatyaka Khanepani Limited (KUKL), which provides the water supply and sanitation system for Kathmandu Valley, recently completed a training course in asset management. Max Anderson, from M & S Anderson Engineering Support, provided the training on behalf of the Water Services Association of Australia, to help KUKL extend the service life of assets and minimise maintenance costs.

AWP has entered into a Water Operator Partnership with KUKL as a part of the Asia Development Bank’s Water Operators Partnerships Program. AWP aims to share Australian experiences to help KUKL grow its capacity for strategic planning and find ways to reduce the amount of non-revenue water in its supply network.

Three days of training were provided in the principles of asset management, and specifically how to apply these principles to water network assets such as pipelines, valves, hydrants, pumping stations and associated civil structures.

The trainees were introduced to the theory and practice of asset management, including risk and performance management, hydraulic compliance management, condition monitoring of assets, preventative maintenance, and renewal based on the assessed risk and/or performance. The development of documents such as a State of Assets Report and an Asset Management Plan (AMP) were presented as future tools to use by KUKL when they were further along in their improved asset management journey.  The value of establishing budgets for planned works by asset class was also discussed.

The participants completed a total of 23 activities over the course of three days. There was a high commitment to completing the course with all participants attending all three days, including two days that were public holidays!

The concepts presented during the training could next be applied to a pilot area comprising distribution and reticulation mains, property service connections and all the other valve and hydrant assets etc.  This work would also establish the process of capturing the assets on the GIS, capturing the performance into an asset maintenance management system, applying the criteria for risk and performance assessment and more.