Author: M. Coles
April 2000
Abstract
Achieving the benefits of a whole-of-life approach to asset design, construction and business set-up has long been the Holy Grail of operations and maintenance managers. The perception by project champions that it inflates capital submissions; the technical intransigence of engineers to compromise their preferred designs; and the “on time / on budget” goals that drive project managers, have all meant whole-of-life has been more rhetoric than reality - until now.
At BHP, an Australian-based global resources and metal manufacturer, the BHP Global Maintenance Network, Hatch (ex-BHP Engineering) and BHP Project Management are working together to win over the developers of new ventures by dispelling the “cost” myths with practical assistance and demonstrated results. Our Venture Maintainability Certification and Evaluation methodology includes guidelines and standard templates for use during the conceptual, feasibility (approval) and development (EPCM) phases. We also offer a Venture Maintainability Evaluation to check compliance during the design / construct / commission phases of a project. This paper defines what we mean by Venture Maintainability, explains why it is needed, and describes how it’s applied at a large, global resources company. A case study illustrates its development and use since its inception in
early 1998.
