3.4 What is the Condition of My Assets?

After the assets are identified and located on a map, it is important to know their condition. A condition assessment can be completed in many different ways, depending on the capability and resources of the utility. The simplest approach is to gather people who have current or historical knowledge of the assets in a room. The group can then select a condition rating approach (0 through 5, A through F, Excellent through Unacceptable, etc.). The group then considers the list of assets and rates each one using the selected methodology. This approach relies on the best information available but does not require utilities to gather additional data in order to rate the assets. Any condition rating system that is understood by the utility and that is consistently applied is acceptable. A condition rating system should be agreed upon before rankings are made and a pilot project can be performed using a small subset of assets to test the effectiveness of the chosen ranking system. Each asset in the pilot project is ranked based on condition, and then everyone can examine the results to determine whether they make intuitive sense and if the selected approach was easy to use. If needed, the condition rating system can be revised and the pilot repeated. Once the condition rating system is selected it should be used consistently throughout the utility.

When you look at condition...the more people you have involved, the better. --Ted Riehle, Old Forge, NY

IV-8

Examples of ranking systems are presented in Appendix A.