--- title: "Do municipal asset management software systems enable better asset management?" description: "Author | Dasagen Pather, Solutions Specialist Through all the legislative requirements of GRAP and mSCOA, we have seen a growing emphasis on asset" image: http://pragmaworldnet.k53rpra8ca-pj68e8dzp6l2.p.temp-site.link/wp-content/uploads/Dam-1.jpg canonical: https://www.pragmaworld.net/do-municipal-asset-management-software-systems-really-enable-better-asset-management/ url: https://pragma-world.getmd.ai/do-municipal-asset-management-software-systems-really-enable-better-asset-management/.md last_converted: 2026-10-06T20:00:57.659Z --- # Do municipal asset management software systems enable better asset management? September 20, 2021 Water purification plant*Author | Dasagen Pather, Solutions Specialist* Through all the legislative requirements of GRAP[1] and mSCOA[2], we have seen a growing emphasis on asset management within local government during the past decade. Naturally, there has also been a lot of focus on software systems to support the various requirements. Still, for the most part, these system requirements tend to take on a compliance role that is heavily finance orientated. While compliance is essential, it is equally important to deeply consider whether the current processes and systems ingrained within local government are genuinely aiding the physical management of assets. In addition, you would be hard-pressed to find software systems that are equally able to meet the financial compliance and technical requirements to manage and report on public assets managed by municipalities. Much has been done to successfully break down silos between finance and technical directorates of asset management within local government entities, and one cannot deny the importance of each of their respective roles. Open communication, collaboration, and consistency remain key, which begs the question, “Why can’t the same principle be applied to their respective software systems?”. An asset management system supported by accountants will always steer more towards financial compliance and reporting; while a system supported by engineers will always be more technically inclined and sound. In this technologically advanced day and age, nothing stops two specialised systems, like an ERP or accounting system, to integrate or “speak” with a technical system like an enterprise asset management system (EAMS) or computerised maintenance management system (CMMS). Over the last couple of years, the general observation is that South African municipalities have placed a lot of time, effort, and money into eradicating the backlog of infrastructure to its people. These efforts have ensured better equality and access to services. Still, the same focus and efforts have not been applied to the operations or the maintenance requirements of these existing, recently acquired or newly built assets. Failing infrastructure and the resulting implications has since forced a lot of attention on the need to maintain assets better, promote sustainable service delivery and delaying capital expenditure as far as possible. To ensure that public assets are taken care of, the National Treasury has since stipulated that a fixed percentage of municipal budgets must be allocated towards operations and maintenance. Most municipalities are used to financial management systems, systems that cater for asset verifications and the development and support of sound asset registers. While these municipalities tend to follow all the supply chain regulations very well, the best interests of physical and proper asset management are lacking. Yet, many opportunities for improvement could be unleashed when using a CMMS to support their maintenance management. The basic functions of maintenance work planning and control, job card creation, the more advanced artisan or service provider tracking or measurement, stores or spare parts administration and optimisation, and associated reporting could significantly improve the work lives of municipal employees and service delivery by these municipalities. The negative impact of reactive and inefficient maintenance, experienced by the majority of local government, can be reversed by using the appropriate software systems supported by the proper training and business processes. Sadly, many municipalities cannot provide a history of the service or maintenance of the assets to which they are custodians. This vital information is a building block for predictive maintenance that prevents unplanned breakdowns and setbacks that cost thousands, sometimes millions of rands. Therefore, municipalities must differentiate between the different software systems to better serve their broader financial compliance and especially their physical asset management requirements. Each municipality also needs to acknowledge their level of maturity in asset management and their competency when it comes to investigating systems. Furthermore, municipalities need to ensure that this translates into their terms of references and scope of works that seek to find best-fit systems to avoid the common problem of broad and all-encompassing scopes that are unattainable and usually too advanced for the needs of the entity to begin with. To end, we must never lose sight of the fact that software systems are a means to enable the people in support of something, in this case, asset management. It is a mistake to think that a software system will automatically solve all of the problems faced by local government. Instead, municipalities need to be practical and specific about what they wish to achieve and they need to focus their attention on the sound management of physical assets and not just accounting compliance. Not one over the other, but both in unison and in support of better asset and maintenance management to ensure sustainable service delivery and empowered asset custodians. Only then can it be confirmed that a system has indeed bettered the management of public assets by responsible municipal asset owners. [1] Generally Recognised Accounting Practices [2] Municipal Standard Chart of Accounts ##### Subscribe to our newsletter ##### Tags Generally Recognised Accounting Practices Government Immovable Asset Management Act GRAP mSCOA Municipal Standard Chart of Accounts software systems ##### More content ##### AI in maintenance: from CMMS records to better decisions Author | Henk Wynjeterp - Regional Lead – Europe AI is giving maintenance teams new ways to extract, structure and interpret information. But the... ##### Asset Management Masterclass or Awareness Training? Start with the role, not the course Author | Karen Greyling - Business Development Manager, Pragma I get asked this question quite often: Should I do the Asset Management Masterclass, or... ##### The lonely learner problem: why self-paced learning still needs people Author | Karen Greyling - Business Development Manager, Pragma Self-paced learning has solved a very real problem for busy adults. It gives people more... ##### Pragma appoints Stephan Kornelius as Chief Executive Officer Author | Pragma Experienced Pragma executive takes the helm on 1 October as the business continues its next... ##### No time for training? Look at what is taking the time. Author | Karen Greyling - Business Development Manager, Pragma “Not now. The team is too busy.” It is one of the most understandable reasons... ##### When Finance and Operations agree on spares Author | Pragma MRO spares are often the source of a familiar business tension. Finance wants to reduce... ##### You don’t train for a marathon by running a marathon Author | Tim Beavon - Partner Consultant, Pragma Why shutdown readiness depends on applying lessons before the next major event A major shutdown... ##### Pragma announces leadership transition and continues strategic momentum Author | Pragma Pragma has announced an important leadership transition as the business continues to build on... ##### Are we solving the wrong training problem? Author | Karen Greyling - Academy Business Development Manager, Pragma When organisations say they need training, they may already be solving the wrong training problem:... ##### The art of balancing work order feedback with compliance, learning, and wrench time Author | Scheepers Schoeman - Senior Associate, Professional Services Most organisations don’t choose their work order feedback culture. They drift into it. A new... ##### Why a qualified maintenance planner changes more than maintenance Author | Karen Greyling - Academy Business Development Manager, Pragma In many plants, the same pattern repeats itself. Work arrives late. Materials are chased at... ##### Why MRO inventory is different from other inventory classes Author | Andre Jordaan - Partner Consultant, Pragma MRO inventory differs from other inventory classes because demand is irregular, the consequences of stockouts... ##### How failing water infrastructure is quietly reshaping South Africa’s cities Author | Nelson Broden – Business Lead Pragma Managed Services On the school run through... ##### From dead capital to operational certainty: Smarter spare parts management Author: André Jordaan, Partner Consultant, Pragma Most MRO stores aren’t short of parts; they’re short... ##### Asset Management Awareness Training that fits real work Author | Karen Greyling, Business Development Manager If you’ve ever thought, “We don’t need another... ##### Asset Management Masterclass: Strategic training for leaders driving performance, reliability and results Author | Karen Greyling – Business Development Manager In asset-intensive industries, leaders are under growing... ##### Beyond compliance: Why repeated maturity assessments define asset performance leadership Author | Stephan Kornelius – Pragma Professional Services Business Lead In asset-intensive industries, leaders face... ##### OEMs need a connected platform for services Author | Henk Wynjeterp – Regional Lead – Europe | Henk leads Pragma’s OEM after-sales... ##### When rivers cry out: How asset management can help heal South Africa’s waterways Author | Nelson Broden – Business Lead Pragma Managed Services The Hennops River, once part... ##### Ditch the buzzword: OEM after-sales leaders buy execution, not “servitization” Author | Henk Wynjeterp – Regional Lead – Europe | Henk leads Pragma’s OEM after-sales... ##### Beyond the software – embedding your EAMS into your organisation’s DNA for sustainable value The key to a successful EAMS (Enterprise Asset Management System) implementation lies in integrating the... ##### Pragma’s perspective on what the proposed South African budget means for infrastructure governance Author | Stephan Kornelius Author | Stephan Kornelius – Pragma Professional Services Business Lead Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s 2025... ##### Government infrastructure investments must go beyond bricks and mortar – A global perspective Author | Bani Kgosana Author | Bani Kgosana Across the globe, ageing infrastructure threatens economic stability. In the US,... ##### Pragma partners with Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team to power maintenance excellence Author | Liza Schroeder Pragma is proud to announce its support of the Q36.5 Pro... ##### Revitalising South Africa – a better path to infrastructure renewal Author | Bani Kgosana, Pragma CRO South Africa faces an extraordinary opportunity to transform its... ##### Transforming maintenance from a grudge purchase to a strategic investment Author | Scott Gibson, Pragma CEO  With South Africans enjoying a break from load shedding... ##### Pragma 2.0 – CEO of Pragma, Scott Gibson’s vision is to compete with international giants through engineering excellence At Pragma, our roots are deeply embedded in engineering consulting. We are proud to be... ##### Are you proactively shaping your focused improvement process or is it evolving organically? Author | André Jordaan, Pragma Partner Consultant Focused improvement (FI) is the overarching process used... ##### Introducing Pragma’s Enhanced Asset Management Assessment Framework: AMIP Physical assets must be managed effectively for a business to grow and be competitive. Across... ##### Unlocking Asset Management Excellence: Pragma’s Spotlight at the SAAMA Conference, 5-6 June 2024 As anticipation builds for the upcoming South African Asset Management Association (SAAMA) Conference, Pragma is...