Asset Integrity Management (AIM) is a term used to describe the practice of managing an asset (power plant, oil rig, refinery, etc) to ensure its ability to perform its function effectively and efficiently is maintained. Well run AIM strategies ensure that the people, systems, processes and resources that enable an asset to deliver its function are in place over the life cycle of the asset, while simultaneously maintaining health and safety and environmental legislation. AIM applies to the entirety of an asset’s operation, from its design phase to its decommissioning and replacement.
The primary industry sector served by AIM is upstream oil and gas. This is owing to the escalating worldwide demand for energy, which has resulted in the oil and gas sector increasing investment into this area to extend the operational service life of existing rigs. However, the AIM process can be implemented for any asset of high value, including oil refineries, electrical power generation plants and chemical processing plants.