[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 103 (Tuesday, June 18, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E645]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





         TRIBUTE TO A.O. SMITH CORPORATION'S 150TH ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. GWEN MOORE

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 18, 2024

  Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I 
rise today to congratulate and celebrate the 150th anniversary of A.O. 
Smith Corporation, a cornerstone of American innovation and Industry.
  A.O. Smith was founded in 1874 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and over the 
past century, has grown from a small family business specializing in 
the fabrication of metal hardware into a global leader in water 
technology, manufacturing, residential and commercial water heaters, 
boilers, and water purification equipment. Today, A.O. Smith employs 
more than 12,000 people across the world and conducts business in over 
sixty countries. A.O. Smith provided family-supporting jobs for many of 
my constituents, their parents, and grandparents.
  A.O. Smith was instrumental in helping to usher in the automobile 
revolution, developing a new, lightweight steel car frame--a 
development that caught the interest of major car companies including 
Peerless, Cadillac, Packard, Oldsmobile and Ford. Ford's initial order 
of 10,000 frames led A.O. Smith to develop the world's first mass 
production process for assembling frames, later introducing the world's 
first automated frame production line. This first fully automated frame 
assembly plant came to be known as the ``mechanical marvel'' due to the 
line's ability to make a frame every eight seconds--10,000 frames a 
day. A.O. Smith was also a large component manufacturer that supplied 
parts to another early Wisconsin pioneering manufacturer, Harley-
Davidson.
  A.O. Smith engineers discovered an improved method for welding, 
allowing for the production of a wide range of steel products. This 
included the pressure vessel for oil refining and large diameter steel 
pipe, important components in the oil and natural gas industries.
  One of the company's most important and enduring innovations was the 
process of fusing glass to steel. By perfecting this process, the 
company developed a range of new products, including glass-lined beer 
kegs, glass-lined brewery tanks, and glass-lined residential water 
heaters. Glass-lined water heaters rapidly became an industry standard 
that endures today and led to A.O. Smith's growth as a global leader in 
water heating products, which now includes industry leading models that 
are consistently among the most efficient in the market according to 
the ENERGY STAR program.
  In recent years, A.O. Smith has emerged as an industry leader in 
developing technologies that address our drinking water quality 
challenges. A co-founding member of the Water Council, A.O. Smith has 
helped ensure Milwaukee's place as a global water technology hub, while 
supporting economic development in Wisconsin. The Water Council helped 
bring about the creation of the Global Water Center, which houses 
water-related business accelerators and research facilities where 
engineers conduct controlled testing on water purification products 
sold around the world. Bringing together their work has helped 
transform Milwaukee into a world hub for water research, education, and 
economic development.
  I am proud to recognize A.O. Smith and I share my best wishes with 
the company and their employees for their continued success.

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