Engineering asset procurement: Operationalising complex adaptive system theory

Procuring the management and maintenance of engineering assets are key activities of government, particularly given the importance of these assets for business and society. Despite their importance, the most effective methods for procuring engineering assets are still to be determined due to the complexity inherent in such arrangements. While Complex adaptive systems (CAS) theory has been advocated as a coherent theoretical framework for examining both procurement and engineering assets, considerable challenges remain in operationalizing this framework for government systems. There are thus two challenges: developing an understanding of the complexity and dynamics of procurement systems, together with a practical problem of how to model such systems. This paper outlines CAS theory and suggests ways that it might be operationalized to examine engineering asset procurement.