Civil-Comp Press, 2005.

Proceedings of the Tenth International Conference

on Civil, Structural and Environmental
Engineering Computing,
B.H.V. Topping (Editor),
Civil-Comp Press, Stirling, Scotland.

Paper 75

Improving Quality and Data Acquisition in

Asset Management
J. Christian
Department of Civil Engineering
University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, Canada

Abstract
This paper describes a process for an asset management programme in which a
database for benchmarking quality can be acquired. A pilot project in Canada is
attempting to predict the performance of flat and low-slope roofing systems and is
being developed from in-field performance data collected from numerous sites
across Canada. An expanded project similar to this pilot project could be used to
improve quality for the life cycle asset management of entire facilities. A case study
is presented, that was a small segment of the larger national project, which gives
some details of the data acquisition process and the data acquired. This data was
then entered into a database. The asset management system incorporates a
computerised maintenance management system which can create a decision support
tool which provides systematic and consistent methods of assessing the roof
conditions, the selection of repair and replacement requirements, and prioritises
work based on maximising benefits and minimising costs. It provides a windows
based system for data entry.
Keywords: quality, data acquisition, asset management, lifecycle costs, roofing
systems.

1 Introduction
There is an emerging trend in asset management, which places more emphasis on
the rehabilitation and maintenance of existing infrastructure rather than the creation
of new infrastructure. In Canada typical estimates are that infrastructure has used up
almost 80% of its initial life expectancy, on average, and that C$60 billion is
required to repair and prolong the life of existing infrastructure.
Prolonging the life of infrastructure puts a greater emphasis on quality control
and assurance in asset management. When considering the life cycle costs of
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facilities, the maintenance, operating and rehabilitation costs can be more than the
construction costs [1, 2]. Figure 1 shows the life cycle costs of a particular building
[3], based on a 40-year life. As the building gets older, the percentage of the
construction costs will be less. The major problem with this type of cost analysis is
that there has been very little data recorded on the life cycle costs of facilities. A
major impediment in linking quality to life expectancy and life cycle costs is
therefore this deficiency in data acquisition. In addition, a dichotomy exists in the
meaning of quality. The everyday meaning of quality, with connotations of
excellence, is not used in asset management. Instead the meaning generally is
described as conformance to specified requirements in the construction stage, and
satisfaction of users and owners in the operating and maintenance stage.
Systems need to be developed which provide processes, procedures and an
organisational structure to enable data to be acquired so that future databases will
provide benchmarking to link life cycle costs with quality asset management.

39%

Construction

Operating

51%

4%

Maintenance

6%

Rehabilitation

Figure 1: Percentage of building costs associated with life cycle costs for a
particular public sector building.

2 Quality Asset Management and Data Acquisition

An asset management programme must establish the scope, objectives and goals to
devise a plan that will measure the quality of facilities and their components in order
to acquire a database for benchmarking. This procedure would then overcome the
dearth of information in quality measurement for good asset management.
An asset manager needs to consider the whole life costs of a facility. These costs
include design, construction, operating, maintenance and rehabilitation costs, and
may also include interest, land acquisition, and demolition costs. The levels and
frequency of maintenance are important to whole life costs and prolonging the life of
2

a facility. The asset manager knows instinctively that money well spent on design
and construction will minimise operating and maintenance costs. A quality
operating and maintenance programme will ensure a good performance and an
extended life for a facility. A condition index report on the facility would enable
asset managers to determine where money must be spent immediately. It would also
provide sound data describing the condition of the components of a facility so that
more accurate benchmarks could be created along with a more logical direction for
future investment strategies.
Asset Management involves the following process:

Create inventory of assets

Assess condition of assets
Evaluate assets and worth of assets
Compare performance of assets against performance standards
Determine the remaining service life
Determine the maintenance required and sequence
Prioritize the work required
Determine the allocation of resources and create a strategic plan
Consider alternatives
Implement the plan and schedule
Monitor and adjust performance standards
Implement a rolling average allocation of resources schedule to maintain
consistency of funding

3 A Case Study Creating a Database

A research program conducted by the Construction Engineering Group at the
University of New Brunswick investigated the contrasting operating and
maintenance approaches of roofing assets of two public sector organisations [4].
The study was part of a larger National Building Envelope Life Cycle Asset
Management (BELCAM) project [5, 6, 7].
The goal of the Building Envelope Life Cycle Asset Management (BELCAM)
project is to address the growing problems faced by asset and building managers
who wish to know when and how to repair and replace their building stock and
components. This project is co-ordinated through the Institute for Research in
Construction at the National Research Council of Canada. The BELCAM project is
attempting to predict the performance of flat to low-slope roofing systems based on
a probabilistic Markovian model and case-based reasoning. This model is
developed from in-field performance data collected from numerous sites across
Canada including a small segment of the larger national study at the University of
New Brunswick (UNB) and the Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Gagetown.
Roof maintenance management systems were studied for two public sector
organisations to determine whether or not the quality of an Operations and

Maintenance programme has an effect on the actual condition of the organisations

roofing systems. The study focused solely on flat and low-slope roofs.
Visual inspections were conducted on the flat to low-slope roofs of both
organisations and a roof condition index (RCI) was computed using a computerised
maintenance management system called MicroROOFER [8]. The roof condition
index is a number from 0 100 where 0 indicates a failed roof and 100
represents a roof with no distresses or defects.
The first organisation investigated was the University of New Brunswick. UNB
has 35 buildings, totalling 150 flat and low-slope roof sections on its Fredericton
campus encompassing over 39 000 m2 of roof area. In this case, a roof maintenance
management system is not currently utilised although, to some extent, some of the
principles in such a system are used.
UNB relies mostly on hard copy documentation, in the form of specifications and
the roof plans, to identify its roofing assets. Many gaps exist in the body of
knowledge when attempting to identify roofing system components (membrane
type, insulation type, etc.). These hard copy documents are also difficult to manage.
Updating the documentation also poses problems, as there is no system in place to
ensure information is accurately updated.
Routine inspections are not undertaken at UNB. Since the roofs are not
inspected, it is difficult to determine which roofs need repairs or need to be replaced.
A lack of programming for roofing system projects (repairs or replacement) can lead
to problems in the future when more roofs are in need of repairs or replacement than
there is money available to fund and implement the repairs.
All major repair or replacement project work is contracted out at UNB. An inhouse project coordinator has the responsibility of overseeing the roofing work even
though he/she may have little knowledge of roof construction. This allows the
contractor significant latitude in what is provided and how it is provided.
The second organisation investigated was the Combat Training Centre Gagetown,
located in Oromocto, New Brunswick. This facility has a flat and low-slope roof
inventory of 156 buildings, covering over 133 000 m2 of roof area. In this study,
101 roof sections on 15 buildings were investigated, totalling over 47 000 m2 of roof
area. A roof maintenance management system is fully utilised at this location.
Roofing system components are identified in a more convenient and centralized
manner. Buildings are identified on spreadsheets along with information pertaining
to the roofs of each building.
Inspections, both external (visual) and internal (Capacitance Radio Frequency
Scanning and Infrared Thermography), are regularly undertaken by the organisation.
Based on a combination of the age of roofing systems, their leak history, and regular
inspections, the organisation develops future plans for their roofing assets. It
decides what needs to be repaired, what needs to be replaced, and when these plans
need to be executed while keeping in mind that the objective is to maximise the
service lives of the roofing systems and minimise costs.
Roofing repair and replacement projects are contracted out by the organisation.
It is a contractual requirement that the contractor be certified by the roofing
membrane supplier. A qualified individual, separate from the in-house project
coordinator, and experienced in roofing system construction, oversees the

construction of the roof. For this reason, the organisation is assured that it is getting
a quality roofing system.

3.1 The Maintenance Management System

MicroROOFER is a computerised maintenance management system. It is a decision
support tool which provides systematic and consistent methods of assessing the roof
condition, the selection of repair and replacement requirements, and prioritises work
based on maximising benefits and minimising costs.
The data is entered in the sequence shown in Table 1.
WINDOW ENTRY
A. Building Inventory
B. Building Section
C. Roof Inspection
D. Roof Rating
E. Building Listing Report
F. Roof Section Listing Report
G. Roof Condition Index Report

H. Inspection Schedule Report

I. Visual Inspection Summary
J. Maintenance Repair and
Replacement
Analysis Summary
K. Corrective Action Report

L. Ten Year Budget

TYPICAL DETAILS
(entered in appropriate fields of windows)
Building identification number, age,
name, location, year built, use, facility
type, etc.
Section name, occupancy, area, date
constructed, date last replaced, roof and
edge details, etc.
Inspection date, flashing details,
distress/severity/defect/ quantity, picture,
etc.
Flashing and membrane details, distress
types and quantities, hence flashing and
membrane condition indices rating
Name, facility class, roof area, number of
sections
Section ID, roofing type, insulation type,
deck type, slope, area, etc.
Sections, membrane, insulation, deck
type, area, last constructed, last inspected,
membrane/flashing/insulation condition
indices, roof condition index.
Year to inspect sections over next 6 years
All roof details, all distress details
Year to replace - with or without repairs
Replacement costs/roof/insulation per
unit area, year of replacement, cost of
repair or replacement, additional service
life with repairs
Budget for inspections, repairs,
replacement over next 10 years

Table 1: Sequence of Data Entry.

5

Extensive details are entered. For example, details for the Building Section
window entry are shown in Table 2.
Date recorded
Building No.
Section ID
Area
Occupancy
Year Original Construction
Year Last Replaced
Perimeter Details:
length of parapet/roof edge/ expansion joint/ adjacent wall/ area divider, etc.
Access:
int/ext ladder permanent/temporary/penthouse/adjacent roof section
Structural Frame:
steel/concrete/wood beams/girders/truss/bar joists/beams/flat slab/laminated
beams/joists, etc.
Roof Deck:
steel/concrete/cement/cement fibre/precast/cast in place/cellularnon-combustible wood boards/plywood/wood fibre-combustible
Design Load:
live/dead/unknown
Slope:
l in Drainage:
interior drains/gutters down pipes/overflow/adjacent roof section/roof edge/ etc.
Vapour Retarder:
none/aluminum foil/ polyethylene/laminated/coated role/pvc/vinyl/unknown
Insulation:
none/wood fibre board/glass fibre/polyurethane board/polystyrene
R-value:
value/unknown/n.a.
Membrane:
Bitumen built up-type/modified bitumen/roll/single-ply-type/liquid applied-type
etc. etc.
Table 2: Example of Data Entry Details Roof Section.
MicroROOFER provides a windows based system for data entry. After data is
entered in the appropriate fields for the Building Inventory and Building Sections
windows, a new Roof Inspection window is created. All other inspection data is
entered into the appropriate fields of the windows. Data is entered in the same
format as it was collected on the roof inspection worksheets (i.e. distress, severity,
defect, and quantity). Drop-down selection menus facilitate the process. As an
example, the Visual Inspection Function window is shown in Figure 2.
After all inspection data is entered, various reports are generated in
MicroROOFER that can be used as a basis for maintenance management decisions.

RCI reports can be generated which are based on the results of the visual
inspections. An inspection schedule can also be generated.
A maintenance management system similar to the one described will enable
facility managers to compare the quality and costs of repair and maintenance for the
facilities within their organisation but also with other organisations locally,
nationally and internationally.

Severity:
Severity of the
distress.
L Low
M Medium
H High

Distress:
2-letter code
for the
general type
of distress
found during
inspection.
Example:
EM
Embedded
Edge Metal
PA - Patch

Defect:
2-digit code for
a specific defect
found during
inspection.
Quantity:
Quantity of the defect.
Length or area

Figure 2: Visual Inspection Function.

4 Data Acquired A Case Study

In-field performance data can be acquired such as the data acquired from the small
segment of the national study at the University of New Brunswick and the Canadian
Forces Base in Gagetown. Typical data acquired can be seen in Figures 3 and 4.
Figure 3 shows the roof condition index against the age of the roofs for the
University of New Brunswick over two different consecutive years. A very clear
deterioration can be seen when the age of the roof is over 25 years. And very
significantly, a marked and alarming deterioration can be seen in the very new roofs.
Figure 4 shows the roof condition index against the age of the roofs for the Canadian
Forces Base in Gagetown. Clearly, by observing the linear fit line, the roofs
7

Average RCI

deteriorate at a slower rate at CFB and therefore require less immediate

maintenance.
100
95
90
85
80
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
0-4

5-9

10-14

15-19

20-24

25-29

30-34

35-39

40+

Age of Roof (years)

Average RCI (2000)

Average RCI (2001)

Average RCI

Figure 3: Average Roof Condition Indices of Roofs UNB (Gamblin, 2002).

100
95
90
85
80
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
0-4

5-9

10-14

15-19

20-24

25-29

30-34

35-39

40+

Age of Roof (years)

Average RCI

Linear Fit

Figure 4: Average Roof Condition Indices of Roofs CFB (Gamblin, 2002).

The scale of a roof operations and maintenance programme clearly determines
quality. A good roof maintenance management system is shown to have a direct
impact on the conditions of the roofing assets when comparing Figure 3 with Figure
4. The roof condition index is seen to be higher for the newer roofs and is

maintained for the older roofs at the Canadian Forces Base at Gagetown where there
had been a superior roof management system.

5 Conclusions
The acquisition of data followed by the creation and development of extensive
databases is essential to improve the long term quality in the asset management
process for facilities. The case study described shows how data can be entered into
a windows based database. A computerised maintenance management system
shows how a decision support tool could be created from case based reasoning to
provide systematic and consistent methods for assessing the condition of entire
assets with further development and extension. The advent of high technology
methods brings great potential for the ease and speed of data acquisition and the
development of databases. However, the disadvantages, for example, start-up and
implementation times need to be clearly anticipated.
The on-site study of roof management systems for the two public sector
organisations briefly described in this paper showed that the scale of an operations
and maintenance programme clearly determines quality. It was shown that a good
roof maintenance management system has a direct impact on the conditions of
roofing assets. The condition of one organisations roofing assets was found to be
worse in comparison to the assets of the other organisation due to the fact that one
organisation utilises a roof management system and the other does not. One
organisation did not really know the conditions of their roofing assets so they could
not accurately programme for maintenance, repair, and replacement. These assets
were found to be deteriorating at a much faster rate than the other organisation that
could detect problems from regular inspection, so that better conditions of the roofs
were maintained for longer periods. Much depended on the amount of funding that
was invested in a good roof maintenance management system.
A good asset management programme can ensure that budgets do more with less
money, providing that organisations resist the temptation of sudden downward
budgetary changes in leaner financial times. Five year rolling average budgetary
planning would prevent sudden budgetary changes, which can severely affect asset
management in the long term. Another problem created in good budgetary and asset
management is the relatively frequent change of asset ownership in some types of
assets. This can severely reduce the benefits of long term planning.

Acknowledgements
Support for the research mentioned in this paper is gratefully acknowledged from
the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, the M. Patrick
Gillin Chair in Construction Engineering and Management at the University of New
Brunswick, the University of New Brunswick, and the Canadian Forces Base in
Gagetown.
9

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[2]

[3]
[4]
[5]
[6]

[7]

[8]

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