CEE Seminar: Cody Stephens and Robert Johnson

Title: Industrial Flood Protection:  A.O. Smith, Ashland City, TN

Abstract
A.O. Smith Corporation is currently the largest producer of water heaters in North America.  Since their Ashland City, Tennessee facility was established, they have experienced multiple flood events that resulted in significant financial impacts including damaged infrastructure, equipment, and product; lost production time; and general disruption.  In May of 2010, ten to twenty inches of rain (equivalent to at 1,000-year storm event) fell in parts of middle and western Tennessee creating unprecedented flood discharges on the Cumberland River, located 1,700 feet west of the facility.  The event flooded office and production space with over five feet of water.

To prevent significant increases in insurance protection costs, A.O. Smith Corporation selected Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc. (CEC) to design a 6,500-foot long levee and concrete floodwall system around the facility and two adjacent public agencies’ facilities: The Cumberland Electric Membership Corporation Substation and the Ashland City Sewage Treatment Plant.  Construction of the flood protection system required reviews and approvals by local authorities, Tennessee Department of Transportation, the US Army Corps of Engineers, and, due to a discovered portion of the affected property being owned by the US Government, the Congress and President of the United States.

Construction began in November 2020 with substantial completion by the end of 2022.