A Lloyd’s Register Group company has awarded its first approval to the Publicly Available Specification for Asset Management (PAS 55-1) published by the British Standards Institution (BSI). The approval has been awarded to National Grid’s electricity transmission business.
Gael Lewis, Lloyd’s Register’s Director of Energy & Transportation, presented the PAS 55-1 certificate to National Grid at the company’s Warwick headquarters on November 11, marking the culmination of an intensive three week assessment.
Assessors reviewed National Grid’s asset management system design and tested how well it is applied. Sample checks on the condition of assets indicated that the management system had been followed and is achieving its aims. Gael Lewis said: “Certification to the PAS 55 specification is a very significant achievement and confirms the connection between corporate goals and asset management activity at all levels – National Grid’s system is well connected, risk based and focused on delivering the corporate objectives of the organisation.”
Jon Carlton, Director of Network Strategy for UK Transmission at National Grid said “We have welcomed the introduction of a universal benchmark for asset management and have been actively involved in the development of PAS 55 since its inception. National Grid is delighted to receive this certificate after a comprehensive review of our systems.”
Lloyd’s Register’s assessment procedures for asset management verification activities are closely based on those used for certification of management systems to the familiar international standards such as ISO 9001. Gael Lewis explained: “With any standard, a significant investment in training and development is required to ensure that verification activities can be carried out in a thorough and consistent manner. Not only are our procedures rigorous, but our assessment teams have a thorough understanding of PAS 55, audit best practice, risk management and domain specific skills. We tested our approach through a pilot programme with clients in a number of sectors.
“Lloyd’s Register believes that PAS 55-1 is a useful framework against which organisations can structure and review their asset management activities. Independent assessment against this framework is a means of providing assurance both internally and to external stakeholders that corporate risk issues are being tackled properly and that the organisation is controlling its asset base from a position of knowledge.”