The Benefits of Linear asset management are crucial to a variety of industries. They are defined by the length and relative location to reference points. As such, they present some unique challenges and require special management techniques.
Luckily, enterprise asset management software solutions can help address these specific challenges. Below, you’ll discover how IFS works, and how IFS can benefit your company. To find out more, read the executive summary below. This article discusses the benefits of linear asset management and how you can use IFS in your business.
Problems with hierarchical tracking of linear assets
The problem of spatially dispersing linear assets poses several challenges. A mobile workforce is necessary for their maintenance. As such, it is imperative to identify precise locations along assets.
This can be accomplished with geospatial references. A transit planning system can be used to identify the exact location of linear assets and produce a work order that accurately reflects their location and correct work order. For example, a linear asset could be a train track that is supported by concrete ties for part of its length, but a guard rail attached to it elsewhere.
A hierarchy for linear assets can help track equipment, schedule work orders, and identify failures. It can also help identify the causes of expensive breakdowns. Assets in a hierarchy are organized according to their types and their locations.
An asset hierarchy is a top-down organizational structure that helps maintenance personnel understand relationships and “parent-child” logic between different assets. This helps them identify normal wear and tear and develop work orders more efficiently.

Need for condition-based monitoring
Condition-based monitoring allows plant engineers to better understand the quirks of the equipment they maintain. For example, it allows them to determine what kind of vibration the system is experiencing and whether it’s causing the system’s downtime.
By closely monitoring assets, engineers can better make decisions for maintenance teams, which can increase the performance and reliability of their systems. In addition, condition-based monitoring helps prevent unplanned downtime.
The goal of condition-based monitoring is to avoid unexpected asset failures and downtime by identifying the type of maintenance needed to keep assets running smoothly. The method is fundamental to predictive maintenance strategies because it allows asset managers to perform maintenance only when certain thresholds are reached or indicators are indicating decreased performance.
This method incorporates a combination of scheduled tests and non-invasive measurements to identify problems and identify possible failure modes.
Benefits of a linear asset management system
A Linear Asset Management system is an important tool for railroads. It allows rail companies to map their assets for inventory and maintenance purposes. Rail companies face unique challenges, such as balancing budgets and maintaining clear financial views.
For example, it is difficult for companies to accurately break down costs for a particular segment of their assets or roll-up costs to support district structures. A Linear Asset Management System addresses these issues and makes the process easier for all concerned.
A LAM system makes it easy to define multiple levels of activity as a capital project. Asset managers can then easily apply costs to different segments of linear assets. In addition, a LAM system should make it easy to create projects of any complexity or change their scope as needed during construction.
The benefits of a LAM system go beyond enabling costing, however. This software also improves overall asset performance, resulting in greater customer satisfaction.