Can Your Team Own This AF Structure?

Most PI teams don't fail because of the tool. They struggle because they inherit vendor decisions they can't undo.

I've seen this pattern too many times.

A contractor delivers an Asset Framework "standard."
It looks polished.
It checks the boxes.
Everyone signs off.

Fast forward 6–12 months.

The contractor is gone.
The internal team is left with:

• AF templates they're afraid to touch
• Structures that don't scale beyond the first site
• Analyses that are hard to explain, harder to maintain

And suddenly the question becomes:
"Why was it designed this way?"

Most vendor AF standards are optimized for delivery, not long-term ownership.

That doesn't mean the contractor was bad.
It means their incentives were different.

They needed:
→ Speed
→ Reusability across clients
→ A structure that works now
→ You to keep them after the project

You need:
→ Something your team can defend a year later
→ Decisions you won't have to redo
→ An AF structure that still makes sense after the vendor leaves

Those are not the same goals.

If you're reviewing an AF proposal right now, ask yourself one question:

"Can my team confidently own and evolve this without the contractor in the room?"

If the answer isn't a clear yes — slow down before approval.

Not after go-live.

Because rework doesn't just waste effort.

It costs credibility.

And not just yours.

The teams who inherit the mess? They remember who built it.

For years.

Curious how others responded? Read the post and commentshere

Ricky Sun
AVEVA PI System Specialist
Sunlead Technologies Inc.

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