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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide a theoretical framework to improve understanding of physical asset management (AM) practices contained in well-known AM standards and guidelines. Design/methodology/approach Textual thematic analysis of physical AM standards and guidelines was carried out after developing a priori template derived from existing theories in management knowledge. Triangulation to validate the developed theoretical framework was used based on a deductive logic of inquiry equipped with semi-structured interview. The interviewees were managers of physical asset departments of 15 out of 24 ministries of Saudi public sector. Findings The developed theoretical framework called “systematic asset management practices” (SAMP) explains the logic behind physical AM practices contained in well-known standards and guidelines in terms of the essence of directly related practices for the life cycle of physical assets. SAMP shows that all AM standards and guidelines use a similar logic for managing the life cycles of physical assets. Practical implications AM developers can use the SAMP theoretical framework to develop and improve AM guidelines. In addition, the framework enables practitioners to further understand differences among standards and guidelines in addition to their potential future development. Originality/value This paper provides an original theory for AM practices, which originally evolved from informal to formal on the basis of practitioners’ logic.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to understand the characteristics of the current asset management (AM) practices across the Saudi public sector (SPS).Design/methodology/approachThe study uses a mixture of inductive and deductive logic, including, at the outset, developing a framework tool to assess the SPS using thematic analysis. The framework is based on seven well-known international AM standards and guidelines. Later, a structured interview with 196 items is used to capture characteristics of SPS AM practices. Univariate and interpretive analyses were performed.FindingsAM practices across the SPS are characterised by the following: in the majority of ministries, practices are below expectations; performance indicators are unrealistic and incomprehensive; public servants lack awareness of AM practices; the majority of the public sector overlooks the existence of professional standards; policies are not consistent across the sector; and finally, there is an over-reliance on public servants’ experience.Research limitations/implicationsPolicy implications – current AM practices across the SPS need to be established, in particular by introducing policies and professional standards.Originality/valuePhysical assets are vital resources for organisations and, in turn, countries. There are no extant studies about AM practices across the SPS, and thus the evident need for such studies to develop current SPS knowledge, particularly given the notable increase in the country’s physical assets since its emergence and the formal AM practice development worldwide.

The purpose of this research was to analyze the livelihood of farmers on fire-prone peatlands and their efforts to maintain their sustainable livelihoods. The study took place in Banjarbaru, Indonesia, a fire-prone peatland area. Our 251 samples were farmers cultivating the peatland. The variables measured in this study were livelihood assets, including human assets, social assets, natural assets, physical assets, and financial assets. We employed classification and principal component analysis. The findings revealed that physical and natural assets played the most significant roles in ensuring the sustainability of farmers’ livelihoods in the fire-prone peatland. Human assets also played an important role because the farmers have been cultivating peatlands for a long time, giving them the skills and knowledge for sustainable and zero-burning peatland management. Peatlands managed by farmers have a low fire potential because farmers protect their land from burning. Social and financial assets did not play significant roles because the farmers did not take advantage of the existing cooperatives and farmer groups. Increasing the role of cooperatives and farmer groups would improve people's livelihoods by increasing the contribution of social and financial assets. Sustainable peatland cultivation as a productive space has proven beneficial for preventing fires on peatlands (ecology) and livelihoods (economy).

The purpose of this study was to apply new methods of econometric models to the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of physical assets, by integrating investments such as maintenance, technology, sustainability, and technological upgrades, and to propose a means to evaluate the Life Cycle Investment (LCI), with emphasis on sustainability. Sustainability is a recurrent theme of existing studies and will be a concern in coming decades. As a result, equipment with a smaller environmental footprint is being continually developed. This paper presents a method to evaluate asset depreciation with an emphasis on the maintenance investment, technology depreciation, sustainability depreciation, and technological upgrade investment. To demonstrate the value added of the proposed model, it was compared with existing models that do not take the previously mentioned aspects into consideration. The econometric model is consistent with asset life cycle plans as part of the Strategic Asset Management Plan of the Asset Management System. It is clearly demonstrated that the proposed approach is new and the results are conclusive, as demonstrated by the presented models and their results. This research aims to introduce new methods that integrate the factors of technology upgrades and sustainability for the evaluation of assets’ LCA and replacement time. Despite the increase in investment in technology upgrades and sustainability, the results of the Integrated Life Cycle Assessment First Method (ILCAM1), which represents an improved approach for the analyzed data, show that the asset life is extended, thus increasing sustainability and promoting the circular economy. By comparison, the Integrated Life Cycle Investment Assessment Method (ILCIAM) shows improved results due to the investment in technology upgrades and sustainability. Therefore, this study presents an integrated approach that may offer a valid tool for decision makers.

The purpose of this research was to analyze the livelihood of farmers on fire-prone peatlands and their efforts to maintain their sustainable livelihoods. The study took place in Banjarbaru, Indonesia, a fire-prone peatland area. Our 251 samples were farmers cultivating the peatland. The variables measured in this study were livelihood assets, including human assets, social assets, natural assets, physical assets, and financial assets. We employed classification and principal component analysis. The findings revealed that physical and natural assets played the most significant roles in ensuring the sustainability of farmers’ livelihoods in the fire-prone peatland. Human assets also played an important role because the farmers have been cultivating peatlands for a long time, giving them the skills and knowledge for sustainable and zero-burning peatland management. Peatlands managed by farmers have a low fire potential because farmers protect their land from burning. Social and financial assets did not play significant roles because the farmers did not take advantage of the existing cooperatives and farmer groups. Increasing the role of cooperatives and farmer groups would improve people's livelihoods by increasing the contribution of social and financial assets. Sustainable peatland cultivation as a productive space has proven beneficial for preventing fires on peatlands (ecology) and livelihoods (economy).

The purpose of this paper is to propose a tool to measure the performance of a Strategic Asset Management Plan (SAMP) based on a Balanced Scorecard (BSC). The SAMP converts organizational objectives into asset management objectives, as well as specifies the role of the asset management system, providing support to achieve asset management objectives. The SAMP becomes the heart of the organization and integrates the long-term, medium-term, and short-term plans. In the SAMP, the balance among performance, costs, and risks are taken into consideration in order to achieve the organization’s objectives. On the other hand, the SAMP is a guide to set the asset management objectives while describing the role of the Asset Management System (AMS) in meeting these objectives. Since the SAMP is the central figure of AMS, it is important to measure its performance and should be built and improved through an iterative process. This indicates that it is not just a document, it is “the document” that should be treated as a “living being”, which needs to adapt to internal and external changes quickly. The BSC is an excellent tool where, through the appropriate Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), the progress can be measured, and is supported by four perspectives: Financial, Customer, Internal Business Process, and Learning and Growth.

While digital twins (DTs) have achieved significant visibility, they continue to face a problem of lack of harmonisation regarding their interpretation and definition. This diverse and interchangeable use of terms makes it challenging for scientific activities to take place and for organisations to grasp the existing opportunities and how can these benefit their businesses. This article aims to shift the focus away from debating a definition for a DT. Instead, it proposes a conceptual approach to the digital twinning of engineering physical assets as an ongoing process with variable complexity and evolutionary capacity over time. To accomplish this, the article presents a functional architecture of digital twinning, grounded in the foundational elements of the DT, to reflect the various forms and levels of digital twinning (LoDT) of physical assets throughout their life cycles. Furthermore, this work presents UNI-TWIN—a unified model to assist organisations in assessing the LoDT of their assets and to support investment planning decisions. Three case studies from the road and rail sector validate its applicability. UNI-TWIN helps to redirect the discussion around DTs and emphasise the opportunities and challenges presented by the diverse realities of digital twinning, namely in the context of engineering asset management.

In order to reach a sustainable circular economy, it is important to maximise the life cycle of a Physical Asset. An evaluation of a Physical Asset Life Cycle can be conducted via several approaches, and these may provide different results. The differences may be insignificant, but they must be taken into consideration because they have consequences for a manager’s decisions. This allows for a wider time interval to decide when to withdraw a Physical Asset or renew it and/or if it ought to continue functioning when profits are higher than expenses, thus allowing for a reduction in waste and increase in sustainability. These are some of the aspects that are discussed in this paper; it presents several models for the evaluation of the Physical Asset Life Cycle, considering the market value, devaluation methods and a more generalised use of Fisher’s Equation, which can include the Risk Tax, among others. The results are discussed based on data that support evaluations obtained with the models, and these are used for each Life Cycle model with the aim of evaluating the differences among them. Not only do all of the models consider expenses, namely those in Investment and Functioning, but also profits, which allows for a more holistic evaluation of the Physical Asset Life Cycle. The models are significantly versatile, allowing for a quantitative evaluation of changes in maintenance policies, energy price variations, risks, variations of profits according to the real market and so on. The results demonstrate the robustness of the approach described and indicate that it maximises the Physical Asset Life Cycle, allowing for the consumption of world resources to be minimised and, as a result, contributing to a more sustainable world.

Throughout the Pacific Islands, shellcraft has begun to feature prominently in development intervention which aims to generate positive livelihood outcomes for coastal communities. This activity often involves the post-harvest processing of natural assets, namely shells and skeletal remains of marine taxa, into jewellery by individuals or small-sized enterprises. To foster participation in shellcraft, development intervention commonly involves gifting or subsidising physical assets. Yet knowledge of the natural (i.e., taxa) and physical (i.e., tools) assets required for shellcraft remains scant. An understanding of human dimensions in shellcraft pertaining to patterns in asset use, such as how tool ownership differentiates taxa utilised and products produced, is important for determining if access to a specific tool is necessary, or an encumbrance, for achieving a desired outcome. In this study, we identified tools used and variation in tool ownership among artisans engaged in shellcraft to afford an accurate and realistic understanding of the tools required to participate in this activity. We then evaluate how ownership of a specific tool or type of tool differentiates both taxa utilisation and product production for shellcraft. Results indicate ownership of neither all nor any specific tool was required to participate in shellcraft, with artisans typically owning a unique combination of tools. Furthermore, results identified that some specific tools were critical for affecting the attractiveness of utilising certain taxa or producing certain products. Implications of the significant relationships between specific tools and certain taxa or products are discussed in the context of development intervention and commonly articulated theories of change where shellcraft is linked to subsistence fishing, aquaculture, or tourism.

Organizations are increasingly concerned with new strategic guidelines and ways of managing physical assets to improve their competitiveness and sustainability. In this paper, we analyze the determinants of the economic management of physical assets in the specific case of a public passenger transport company located in one of the main cities of Portugal. Based on the case under analysis, it was possible to conclude that the economic management of physical assets is oriented by relevant indicators, including, for example, expenses associated with acquisition, maintenance, and operation. This paper provides a relevant contribution to monitoring and evaluating the life cycle of equipment, enabling more efficient and effective management of these physical assets for transport companies. We are convinced that the valuable results presented in this paper can open up new research avenues in the area of physical asset management.