CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM
ACTION REQUESTED:
title
Approve the award of Cooperative Procurement 26-129, IBM Maximo, to Starboard Consulting for an amount not to exceed $1,240,934.12 and for a three-year term
body
DEPARTMENT: Electric Utility
SUBMITTED BY: Brian Groth, Director
BOARD/COMMISSION REVIEW:
N/A
BACKGROUND:
The Electric Utility (Utility) relies on Cityworks Respond and ArcFM Designer as a critical business tool for developing engineering designs, preparing cost estimates, forecasting materials, maintaining its material warehouse inventory, and maintaining accurate system mapping.
In early 2028, the Cityworks Respond functionality will be deprecated and transitioned to a new cloud-based platform called Unity. At this time, a clear path for maintaining ArcFM Designer integration within this new cloud-based platform has neither been identified or committed to by the Cityworks vendor. This uncertainty impacts core business functions required to maintain warehouse materials, create estimates for new business, engineer capital and maintenance work, perform utility inspections, and ensure accurate mapping of all Utility facilities in the field.
The Utility completed extensive research and evaluation of utility-centric solutions to meet its operational needs and maintain integration with ArcFM Designer. This effort was focused on identifying a system that supports essential functions such as work management, asset tracking, financial processes, and system integration while also improving the overall efficiency of the Utility’s processes.
Staff reviewed medium-sized municipal owned utilities like Denton Municipal Electric (TX), City of Lakeland Electric (FL), Kansas City Board of Public Utilities, and Austin Power. IBM Maximo is utilized by these utilities to handle transmission and distribution assets and national regulations compliance, as well as integrate with GIS/SCADA and mobile workforce tools.
This research confirmed that over 100 utilities of varying sizes and types rely on IBM Maximo, reinforcing confidence that it is a mature, proven solution for municipal electric utilities.
DISCUSSION:
The Utility conducted research and evaluation of enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions to identify a system that meets operational and integration needs, including compatibility with ArcFM Designer and core functions such as work management, asset tracking, inventory, and reporting. No single solution met all requirements.
A hybrid solution approach was selected, with IBM Maximo as the primary platform to support key business functions, while allowing for future integrations such as Tyler Munis and Kronos.
Key benefits of IBM Maximo include reducing lifecycle costs by prioritizing the right investments, improving capital efficiency with optimized plans that boost value and reliability.
Implementation is planned to begin in the third quarter of 2026, with an estimated duration of nine to 18 months. The goal is to move away from the Cityworks Respond platform prior to the deadline for final deprecation. The ArcFM Designer integration will need to be completed in time to meet the rollout timeline for the latest generation, currently planned for August 2027.
The Utility will work with Starboard Consulting (an IBM contractor), identified through the evaluation process as a qualified implementation partner focused solely on utilities, to support system configuration, data migration, and training. Starboard has stated that they can meet the August 2027 timeline for ArcFMDesigner integration, based on Maximo project startup in early July 2026. The entire system is projected to go live before the 2028 Cityworks.
Data will be migrated from the current system to maintain continuity. A change management strategy, including training and process updates, will support adoption.
This award will include:
|
|
Year 1 |
Year 2 |
Year 3 |
Total |
|
Implementation - Starboard Professional Services: |
$693,850.00 |
- |
- |
$693,850.00 |
|
Hosting: |
$150,000.00 |
$105,000.00 |
$110,000.00 |
$365,000.00 |
|
Licensing: |
$57,758.40 |
$60,646.32 |
$63,679.40 |
$182,084.12 |
|
Totals: |
$901,608.40 |
$165,646.32 |
$173,679.40 |
$1,240,934.12 |
|
** Setup fee of $45,000 is included in Year 1 of Hosting costs. |
|
|
Staff has identified an approved cooperative contract, Omnia Partners Cooperative Contract R250307 through TD SYNNEX, for the procurement of the Maximo. Starboard is an authorized subconsultant.
The anticipated completion date of the project is June 2, 2029.
FISCAL IMPACT:
CIP #: EU080
The IBM Maximo Assets Management Solution Implementation and Migration services are expensed to the Infrastructure account listed below. This work is being done in conjunction with EU080, Utility Infrastructure Hardware and Metering Upgrades. The Electric Utility included $2,825,000 in the 2026 budget for expenses associated with EU080. The award requested is within the amount budgeted for this expense in 2026, and staff will ensure sufficient funding is included in future budgets to support the future years associated with this award.
|
Account Number |
Fund Description |
Total Budget Amount |
|
40251300-551502 |
Electric Utility Fund |
$25,151,500 |