ISO 55000

In 2002-2004 the Institute of Asset Management (IAM) in conjunction with British Standards Institution (BSI) developed PAS 55, the first publicly available specification for optimised management of physical assets. This has become an international bestseller, with widespread adoption in utilities, transport, mining, process and manufacturing industries worldwide. The 2008 update (PAS 55:2008) was developed by 50 organisations from 15 industry sectors in 10 countries. The International Standards Organisation (ISO) then accepted PAS 55 as the basis for development of the new ISO 55000 series of international standards.

The initial launch of the project followed a preliminary meeting in London in June 2010. Thereafter, four formal meetings of the full PC251 committee occurred in Melbourne (Australia), Arlington (USA), Pretoria (South Africa) and Prague (Czech Republic), with significant development work both during and between the meetings. This resulted in two cycles of working drafts, two cycles of committee drafts and a Draft International Standard (DIS)’ status. In summary, the project remained on track through to the publication of the standards on 10 January 2014.

So what happened to PAS 55? 

If your organization has been using PAS 55, then migrating to ISO 55000 is fairly straightforward. Although the structure is very different, most of the elements above are incorporated into the requirements of ISO 55001. However, ISO 55001 is a standard for ANY asset type, whereas PAS 55 is explicitly focussed on the optimal management of physical assets. So, even though PAS 55 was ‘withdrawn’ as a BSI formal Specification in 2015 organizations may find that there is ongoing value of PAS 55 as useful guidance and education material.