Asset class strategies: where the rubber hits the road in decision-making
Most infrastructure organisations now have a Strategic Asset Management Plan. Fewer have solved the problem that sits immediately below it.
A SAMP establishes the portfolio-level decision-making framework: the definition of value, the strategic objectives, the overall approach to managing risks and opportunities across the asset base. It is essential. But for organisations managing large, technically diverse asset portfolios, the SAMP alone cannot carry the weight of every asset lifecycle decision. The gap between a high-level strategy and a defensible, consistent decision about when to replace a fleet of ageing transformers, or how to prioritise maintenance across hundreds of kilometres of pipeline does not close by itself.
Asset class strategies are the layer that closes it. They translate portfolio-level intent into technical guidance applicable to specific equipment types, and in doing so they enable the kind of informed, consistent, and traceable decision-making that mature asset management demands.
This article draws on a paper presented at Āpōpō Congress 2026. The full paper and presentation are available on our Thought Leadership page.
What is an asset class strategy?
An asset class strategy provides a strategic view of a specific equipment fleet or facility type, covering its performance, condition and risk profile, and setting out how the organisation's portfolio-level decision-making framework applies to lifecycle management decisions for that asset class. Where the SAMP asks "how do we manage our asset portfolio to realise value?", the asset class strategy asks "how does that apply to this specific fleet?"
Done well, an asset class strategy does four things. It presents a clear picture of fleet performance and risk. It decomposes the SAMP's strategic objectives into objectives meaningful at the asset class level. It provides lifecycle guidance from acquisition through to disposal. And it acts as a controlled repository of technical knowledge; one that endures beyond the tenure of any individual specialist.
That last point matters more than it might first appear. Infrastructure organisations routinely lose hard-won engineering knowledge when experienced staff move on. An asset class strategy, properly maintained, locks that knowledge into the organisation.
Where they sit in the asset management system
ISO 55001 requires organisations to establish three key layers of documentation: a policy stating top management's non-negotiable commitments; a Strategic Asset Management Plan setting out the decision-making framework and strategic objectives; and Asset Management Plans detailing the planned work on assets. Asset class strategies sit between the SAMP and the AMPs, subordinate to the SAMP, providing more specific strategic guidance to those developing the AMPs.
Some may ask whether asset class strategies belong in the SAMP or the AMPs. This paper argues they belong with the SAMP, for two reasons. Conceptually, they do for individual asset classes what the SAMP does for the portfolio as a whole. This parallel is instructive and worth preserving. Practically, strategies are updated less frequently than AMPs, reflecting the slower rate at which engineering assumptions and failure mode analyses change compared with condition assessment results or forward work programmes. Aligning asset class strategies with the SAMP better reflects how these documents actually behave in practice.
Why asset class strategies matter
For many organisations, the gap between a well-written SAMP and consistent, defensible decisions at the asset level is where strategy quietly breaks down. Asset class strategies close that gap, but making the case for them internally requires connecting them to outcomes that senior leaders care about.
The cost of not having them
Without asset class strategies, several problems tend to emerge. Technical knowledge sits with individuals rather than the organisation, and leaves when they do. Different teams apply different criteria to similar decisions, producing inconsistency that is difficult to defend under scrutiny. Day-to-day decisions drift from the value framework established in the SAMP, because there is no documented bridge between the two. And improvement opportunities identified by subject matter experts rarely get locked into organisational practice in any enduring way.
These are not hypothetical risks. They are patterns we observe regularly in infrastructure organisations across New Zealand.
What motivates organisations to act
In practice, organisations have been motivated to develop asset class strategies by a range of near-term pressures: equipment fleets in visibly degraded condition, funding constraints driving a need to optimise maintenance expenditure, preparation for regulatory scrutiny, or commitments made to a regulator as a condition of a customised price-quality path approval.
This points to an important lesson: asset class strategies are most effectively positioned not as a documentation exercise, but as enablers within broader initiatives to improve organisational performance. Those wanting to establish them need to be able to clearly articulate the link between desired business outcomes and the role asset class strategies play in supporting better decisions.
Regulatory recognition
The regulatory dimension is increasingly significant. In its draft decision on Aurora Energy's transition from a customised to a default price-quality path, the Commerce Commission cited Aurora's fleet strategies as a reason for fully accepting its proposed asset replacement and renewal expenditure forecasts, noting that the strategies clearly identified asset failure modes, age profiles, asset types and condition within each class, and that investment had been considered against managing current and future asset health.
“Aurora’s fleet strategies are well documented. These strategies identify the asset failure modes, age of assets, type of assets within each class and the condition. Investment for each fleet is considered against managing current and future health of the assets.”
That is a meaningful endorsement. It signals that well-developed asset class strategies are not just an internal management tool - they provide the kind of transparent, evidence-based foundation that regulators find credible when assessing expenditure proposals.
Developing asset class strategies in practice
Determining scope
One of the first questions organisations face is how many asset class strategies they need, and what each should cover. There is an inherent tension between keeping the number of documents small, which appears efficient, and developing a strategy for each distinct equipment type to maximise specificity. Neither extreme is likely to be optimal.
In practice, several factors should guide scoping decisions. Equipment that is collocated within facilities and subject to common operations and maintenance tasking may be grouped in a single strategy. Equipment performing a common function is often a natural candidate for consolidation. In electricity distribution, for example, the supporting structures of overhead lines (poles, stay wires, crossarms, braces, and insulators) are commonly addressed together. According to Dr Bob Platfoot of Covaris, a useful heuristic is that equipment types sharing approximately 80% commonality in lifecycle activities are good candidates for a single asset class strategy. The way assets are configured in information systems, and how the organisation is structured, may also provide useful starting points, though neither should be the primary driver.
The scoping decision is best made through a workshop process, with input from both asset management practitioners and those who work directly on the equipment. Once decisions are made, they should be documented. One approach is to include a simple hierarchy diagram within each strategy, clearly positioning it within the broader asset class strategy framework.
Structure and content
Despite varying approaches across organisations, there is strong convergence on the content that effective asset class strategies should include. Drawing on examples from three New Zealand utility businesses, the following content areas appear consistently:
Context and scope of the asset class
Asset population information, age profiles, and performance data
Risks, opportunities, and outputs of failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA)
Asset management objectives cascaded from the SAMP
Lifecycle strategies and decision-making guidance covering maintenance, renewal, procurement, and disposal
Supporting information including unit costs, technical references, and equipment drawings
Most organisations produce asset class strategies as standalone documents, which supports comprehensive coverage and compatibility with formal document control processes. At least one electricity distribution business has adopted a spreadsheet-based approach, enabling live data links with asset management information systems; a useful innovation, though one that can present challenges for managing qualitative technical content.
Keeping them alive
Developing an asset class strategy is a significant investment. Realising long-term value from that investment depends on how well the strategy is maintained and embedded in organisational practice.
Three practices make a material difference. First, each strategy should have a clearly assigned owner, accountable for keeping it current and ensuring ongoing compliance with any governing standard. Second, an Asset Class Strategy Standard should be established at the system level, defining the governance requirements, minimum content, and quality expectations that apply across all strategies and providing a consistent basis for internal audit and review. Third, asset class strategies should be embedded in management processes such as resource planning, performance evaluation, and management review, so that their role in enabling good decisions remains visible to senior leadership.
Based on experience, an annual review cycle is generally appropriate once the initial development phase has settled. During early implementation, more frequent revision is normal as organisational learning accumulates and assumptions are tested against operational reality.
| Content area | Utility 1 | Utility 2 | Utility 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Context and overview | |||
| Context and scope of the asset class | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Asset class overview | |||
| Asset population, age profiles and performance data | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Risks, opportunities and FMEA | |||
| Risks, opportunities and outputs of failure modes and effects analysis | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Asset management objectives | |||
| Asset management objectives cascaded from the SAMP | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| Lifecycle strategies and decision-making | |||
| Maintenance strategy | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Renewal strategy | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Procurement and spares management | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Acquisition strategy | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| Disposal strategy | ✓ | — | — |
| Supporting information | |||
| Unit costs, technical references and equipment drawings | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| © Asset Dynamics Limited 2026. | |||
Better decisions, better outcomes
For many infrastructure organisations, asset class strategies represent a critical next step in improving asset management maturity. The SAMP sets the direction. The AMPs plan the work. Asset class strategies are what make the connection between the two coherent, consistent, and defensible.
The electricity sector in New Zealand has led the way. Transpower and a growing number of electricity distribution businesses have either established asset class strategies or are actively developing them. Regulatory recognition, most visibly in the Commerce Commission's assessment of Aurora Energy's expenditure proposals, has reinforced what practitioners have long understood: that well-developed asset class strategies provide the transparent, evidence-based foundation that mature asset management demands.
The case for other sectors is equally compelling. Water utilities facing economic regulation, transport organisations managing complex and ageing infrastructure, and local authorities working to lift asset management maturity all stand to benefit from the improved risk visibility, investment efficiency, and organisational alignment that asset class strategies enable.
This article draws on a paper presented at Āpōpō Congress 2026. The full paper and presentation slides are available on our Thought Leadership page.
Interested in asset class strategy development?Asset Dynamics works with infrastructure organisations across New Zealand to develop asset class strategies that support mature, evidence-based asset management practice - from initial scoping through to governance and ongoing management.
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