Access to municipal asset data enables collaboration in The Pas

The Town of The Pas, Manitoba, is a multi-industry community situated at the confluence of the Pasquia River and the Saskatchewan River, in the vast Northern Region of Manitoba. Known as "The Gateway to the North," The Pas is located on Treaty 5 Territory and has an approximate population of 5,500 people.

In 2020, The Pas was in the early stages of its asset management journey. A small number of town staff had taken asset management training, helping others who were less familiar with asset management become interested to learn more. Operations staff had been collecting detailed data about infrastructure material, size, age and repair history over several years, but not everyone was familiar with the information they had. They believed that creating a shared understanding of asset management and their existing asset information amongst staff and council could spark a change in its decision-making culture. Staff had a desire to engage more deeply with this data and create the town’s first Asset Management Plan to better understand and plan for the infrastructure it provides to the community.

Receiving a grant from FCM’s Municipal Asset Management Program (MAMP) allowed The Pas to take their existing data and create a robust asset inventory database, develop asset renewal and replacement forecasts, formalize an Asset Management Plan, and engage in customized council and staff training.

As of March 2023, MAMP has approved 96 asset management grants for local governments in Manitoba and has funded training through partner organizations to more than 60% of Manitoba communities. 

Highlights

• Made existing data more accessible and understood across the organization
• Consolidated quality data into a robust inventory, and developed a 20-year asset replacement forecast
• Convened workshops for staff and council to understand their data and how to apply the findings
• Created a deeper understanding of asset management within the organization
• Empowered staff and council to begin to build an asset management decision-making mindset into their operations

The challenge

The town was typically making reactive repairs to their infrastructure and did not have a long-term plan to help inform renewal and replacement decisions. For example, the town’s approach to maintaining and repairing existing water infrastructure was very reactive, which resulted in water pipes that had been clamped and banded multiple times. This mindset of ‘band aid repairs’ does not allow the town to invest in growth and development. A good understanding of infrastructure realities and a methodical approach to growth and infrastructure development is necessary for the town to grow sustainably.

Some staff knew they had a lot of data to work with and there was significant institutional knowledge about the town’s assets but did not have the tools to share their asset information with council. The challenge was to bring all the data and information they had together, make sense of it and begin to understand how to use it in the decision-making process, while finding ways to meaningfully bring council into the conversation. Council was interested in learning more and supporting staff to develop an asset management plan.

“Asset management allows us to strengthen decision making processes by ensuring we are doing the right things at the right time. It provides the opportunity to see a better return on investment and gives visibility to the value and risk management aspects of municipal operations.”

– Mayor Andre Murphy

The approach

Led by a core group consisting of the Controller, Municipal Superintendent, Assistant CAO, and Economic Development Officer, the town worked with a consultant to support the development of a 20-year asset replacement and renewal forecast, to develop their first comprehensive Asset Management Plan, and to deliver asset management awareness training for staff and council.

The consultant supported managers in understanding their existing data, forecasting renewal and replacement costs, and initiating conversations about community risks and service levels.  The process focused on utilizing the town’s detailed data and conveying it in the most appropriate manner to support ongoing decision-making. This included creating consolidated spreadsheet inventories and a series of easy-to-understand charts and figures that summarized the town’s 20-year replacement and renewal forecast by infrastructure category. These visuals helped staff and council understand the total value of their infrastructure and significant spikes in the replacement cycle. This provided insight into the infrastructure investments council should be planning for in the short and long-term.

Staff and council engaged in a series of facilitated workshops and meetings, which included background information on the fundamentals of asset management, how to interpret and use data and information, and how to commit to an asset management decision-making mindset.

In the years before this project, staff had taken some awareness and technical assistance training through MAMP-funded partner organizations including PEMAC Asset Management Association of Canada, Canadian Network of Asset Managers, Association of Manitoba Municipalities,  and NAMS Canada. Having invested in staff training allowed them to build on their knowledge and develop solid asset management practices for their municipality. 

Results

The town developed a robust asset inventory database and prepared an asset replacement and renewal forecast. This information was collected into an Asset Management Plan grouped into seven asset categories:

• water
• wastewater
• stormwater
• roadway
• buildings & facilities
• vehicles & equipment
• parks & recreation

The plan provides detailed information about what the own owns, when it needs to be replaced, what needs to be done to replace it, and what funds will be needed. This information provides a strong foundation for staff and council to make better decisions about their assets and priorities.

The Pas, like most Manitoba municipalities, owns a lot of assets and is facing pivotal decisions about their infrastructure renewal and replacement. Bringing together their data and information helped start the conversation between staff and council. The town is now on a journey to use this information and embed an asset management mindset into their operations to make more informed decisions. Council has adopted the Asset Management Plan as a “living document” that they will reference year-round at council meetings and during the capital planning and budgeting process. They intend to use the consolidated information and visuals in their asset replacement forecast to help prioritize projects, support funding applications, and share relevant information with the community. This allows staff and council to unite around a central source of information that provides a clearer insight into the decisions that need to be made. With a deeper understanding of their infrastructure to inform their planning, the town will ideally proceed with proactive maintenance and repairs, saving time and money in the future.

Benefits

Through this process, The Pas has realized the impact of asset management, and how it can create a change in its decision-making culture. Council and staff feel they are better positioned to make holistic decisions using the information they have at their fingertips. This has resulted in increased support for asset management planning and a stronger desire to take action on their infrastructure decision making.

“The Asset Management Plan is bringing structure into the decision-making process. Especially when it comes to new development, we are leaning on the Asset Management Plan to ensure the types and locations of new development can be sustained. We know we want to grow, and we know there is demand, but the Asset Management Plan puts things into perspective on what we can achieve and what it will cost.”

– Jackie Rechenmacher, Economic Development Officer

Lessons learned

Start the conversation. Getting started can be the hardest part. Using available tools like Starting the Conversation in Your Municipality can help kickstart the conversation with staff and council and help guide your asset management journey.

Go into the project with an open mind. Be prepared to learn and take other courses on asset management to help learn more.

Use the knowledge and information you already have. Use any available data you have and harness the experience and skills of staff who know and understand their assets.

Engage council frequently. Provide education and awareness opportunities to build the capacity of council before and during project delivery.

Keep the conversation going. Your asset management journey is never over. Building asset management into your organization is an ongoing process and a collaborative effort of staff and council.

Next steps

Equipped with detailed and consolidated information about their assets, the town will begin to develop and implement a method of measuring asset condition and performance.

This process also laid the groundwork for the town to initiate conversations about levels of service with the community. This will help the town understand who is using its infrastructure and services, what community needs are today and into the future, evaluate climate risks to service delivery and ensure that all residents’ voices are considered in the asset management process.

The town is also setting out to identify performance measures to monitor their asset management progress and is committed to making progress in the People and Leadership competency of FCM’s Asset Management Readiness Scale (AMRS), by:

• Identifying an asset management team responsible for leading asset management within the organization.
• Identifying ways to communicate progress on asset management to the wider staff group and to the community.
• Identifying ways to increase council support for continued funding for asset management activities.

By bringing staff and council together to collaboratively learn and grow their asset management knowledge, the town is more prepared than ever to implement their program and carefully plan for its future.

Contact

info@townofthepas.ca