The RIMS Special Interest Group has an exciting project underway and is inviting Roading Professionals to get involved.
What is the project?
The Road Corridor Fault Assessment Guideline is a RIMS (IPWEA NZ) led project, alongside Waka Kotahi and Te Ringa Maimoa, and a component of the Asset Management Data Standard (AMDS) initiative. The primary aim is to create consistency in describing and classifying pavement (sealed and unsealed), surfacing and shoulder asset faults, ensuring there is a standardised consistent approach across the sector.
The project is being delivered in two phases:
- Phase One is the development of the guideline in two parts
- Part One (Complete): Define standardised descriptions of pavement, surface and shoulder asset faults. This is published as a fault list.
This was delivered in July 2021 and adopted by the Asset Management Data Standard (AMDS) and included in release version 1.0.
- Part Two (this Initiative): To engage with industry to compile fault images and define severities for faults defined in Part One. The output will be a published visual guideline, freely available to the sector.
- Phase Two will be the deployment and training which will be delivered via IPWEA training arm.
Why are we doing this?
There is currently no sector standard for the description and classifying of road faults. State Highways and local authority RCA’s specify their own requirements meaning there is no consistency in the language used, the severity rating system, and the data structure. This inconsistency can lead to confusion, ambiguities and inefficient data exchange with an impact that can result in suboptimal road maintenance outcomes. The guide will provide a sector (including AMDS) endorsed guide complete with visual aids to provide a common approach. This will have the benefit for the sector to more easily share information and invest in new technologies that can provide more complete and consistent data to enable better decision making with an anticipated improvement in road maintenance outcomes.
Who are we engaging with?
For this Guideline development (phase one) we have established a working group led by WSP and involving major suppliers in NZ (Downer, Fulton Hogan, Higgins & HEB). The working group is supplying fault imagery and severity rating details to build on previously completed Part One information. These suppliers cover most of the networks in NZ, so we believe their experience will be representative of the wider sector. As Road Controlling Authorities we wish to extend the invite for your organisation to participate in the review and consultation.
How to get involved?
The Part One fault list has been adopted by AMDS and is available for review through their website (AMDS Asset – Fault and Activity). We welcome any feedback from those who have used this rationalised fault list and have comments or suggestions. Please submit any published Fault related feedback directly to AMDS (amds@nzta.govt.nz) prior to Friday 14th Nov. This list will form the basis for the Guideline.
We will be holding a virtual information session to present the draft guideline at 10am on the 28th November 2022. An invitation to register for this session will be sent to the Te Ringa Maimoa mailing list in mid-November. Following this session, we will be releasing the draft guideline for review and will be seeking further feedback through 16th December 2022. The final guideline will be published in early 2023.
For inquiries or feedback please get in touch with Elke at nz@ipwea.org.