Cambridge Asset Management with IBM and RIM
Around 2011 the City of Cambridge, Ontario announced a project to track and plan the upkeep of its public infrastructure using IBM analytics software, with Research In Motion supplying BlackBerry PlayBook tablets for field crews. Forum threads on CrackBerry discussed the announcement, and that is why the page still draws visitors. It explains the terms involved. Last checked: November 2026; most project details rest on the city's original announcement as relayed by Cambridge Now.
Quick facts
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| City | Cambridge, Ontario |
| Technology partners | IBM (analytics software) and Research In Motion (tablets) |
| Device | BlackBerry PlayBook, released April 19, 2011 in Canada and the US |
| Funding source named | Government of Canada Gas Tax Fund |
| Mayor quoted | Doug Craig |
| Topic | Infrastructure asset management |
What infrastructure asset management means
Infrastructure asset management covers the strategies used to keep public assets such as water facilities, sewer lines, roads, utility grids and bridges working. According to Wikipedia, it focuses on the later stages of an asset's life (maintenance, rehabilitation and replacement) and uses software to organise that work and extend the service life of long-term assets.
A city with a limited budget has to decide which roads, pipes or buildings to repair first. Keeping records from separate departments in one system is meant to make that decision more consistent.
The Cambridge project
The Cambridge Now announcement described a system in which staff from different departments, and private contractors working with the city, could add to a shared body of information. It named IBM's "Analytics for City Services and Safety" program as the software platform. It said the city's Transportation and Public Works Department maintained about 250,000 assets across 50,000 locations and that the city managed more than $1.2 billion worth of assets. These figures are as stated in that announcement and have not been matched to city records.
RIM's role, per the same account, was to supply BlackBerry PlayBook tablets so crews in the field could send and retrieve information. The PlayBook was a seven-inch tablet with weak sales. Wikipedia reports that at the end of June 2013 BlackBerry's CEO announced the platform would not be developed further.
The Gas Tax Fund
The research and development work was said to be funded through the federal Gas Tax Fund. The program has since been renamed. Infrastructure Canada describes the Canada Community-Building Fund, formerly the Gas Tax Fund, as predictable federal funding passed to provinces and territories, and then to communities that choose projects such as roads, bridges, transit and water systems. Its page also says the program has been rebranded as the Community stream of the Build Communities Strong Fund, and that from 2014 to 2024 it funded over 50,000 projects across Canada. Cambridge Now reported that Cambridge had received over $16.4 million through the fund between 2005 and 2011, a figure not verified here.
Frequently asked questions
What was the City of Cambridge's IBM project about? Pulling together asset and service data from several departments to plan infrastructure spending.
What device did crews get? BlackBerry PlayBook tablets, supplied by Research In Motion.
What is the Gas Tax Fund called now? It became the Canada Community-Building Fund and is now presented as the Community stream of the Build Communities Strong Fund.
Who was Cambridge's mayor at the time? Doug Craig, according to the original announcement.
Is the PlayBook still sold? BlackBerry announced in 2013 that it would not develop the platform further.
Sources
Wikipedia articles on the BlackBerry PlayBook, infrastructure asset management and Infrastructure Canada, and the Infrastructure Canada page on the Gas Tax Fund successor program. Project details are attributed to the Cambridge Now item that the CrackBerry threads linked to.