Why asset intelligence will decide who succeeds under AMP8 and PR29

Published: 24 September 2026

The challenges facing the water sector are not exclusive to it. Across energy, utilities, transport, and industrial infrastructure, many organisations are under pressure to prove performance, demonstrate their resilience and make investment decisions backed up by evidence. The ones that succeed are those who understand their data and have the clearest picture of their assets, risks and operational resilience.

The shift from plans to proof

At the start of 2026, the government published A new vision for water – a white paper which sets out plans to reform the water sector and the wider water system. This paper and the start of AMP8 have changed the rules of the game.

Visibility, evidence and demonstrable control are no longer desirable – they’re expected. Utilities companies must understand asset condition, proactively manage risk, and justify investment decisions with confidence.

The challenge is that many organisations are being asked to provide evidence using systems that were never designed to deliver consistent visibility. Information remains fragmented across legacy databases, spreadsheets and disconnected processes, making it harder to create the reliable, repeatable evidence regulators now expect.

How can organisations understand their data?

Asset intelligence helps you use data to understand asset condition, performance and risks. It turns bits of information into practical action points.

Without that visibility, risks can remain hidden, investment becomes harder to justify, and decision-making slows down. In a regulatory environment that increasingly expects organisations to prove control, data gaps quickly become risk gaps.

From our experience working across multiple sectors, this isn’t unique to the water industry. We've seen similar issues emerge across energy and infrastructure as organisations respond to ageing assets, increasing regulatory scrutiny, and growing expectations around performance and resilience. Organisations can’t manage assets they can’t fully see or understand.

While the regulatory framework may differ, the operational challenges are similar, and our cross-sector experience positions us perfectly for AMP8.

Building confidence in simple ways

The most important actions in AMP8 aren't the biggest or most complex projects; they are often described as ‘low regret’ interventions. These are actions that deliver value regardless of how future investment programmes evolve. They are quick to implement, provide immediate insights, and help reduce uncertainty.

Asset inspections, condition assessments, surveys, and targeted monitoring programmes all fall into this category. They answer big questions like: ‘What condition are our assets really in?’, ‘Where are the greatest risks?’, ‘Which interventions should be prioritised?’, and ‘Where can future investment be justified with confidence?’.

Where regulators are looking for evidence of progress, low-regret interventions create something invaluable: certainty. They turn assumptions into evidence and provide a clearer understanding of real-world asset performance.

As well as AMP8 delivery, these activities also help build the evidence base for PR29.

Future business cases will need to demonstrate clear links between asset condition, operational performance, risk, and investment need. Organisations that start gathering that evidence today will be in a far stronger position.

Turning visibility into action

We help organisations transform asset data into actionable intelligence through inspections, condition assessments and asset intelligence programmes. We create a clearer picture of asset performance, risk, and where you should spend your money first.

Water companies best positioned for AMP8 and PR29 won’t be those with the biggest plans; it will be the ones with the clearest understanding of their assets, the strongest evidence base, and the ability to demonstrate performance when it matters most.