A municipal water tank in Wamego, Kansas, USA, is this year’s winner of the 2019 Tank of the Year competition sponsored by coatings manufacturer Tnemec Company, Inc. (Kansas City, Missouri, USA). The pedestal water tank was selected by a panel of water tank enthusiasts based on criteria such as artistic value, significance of the tank to the community, and challenges encountered during the project.
The Wamego tank was also designated the People’s Choice winner based on online voting conducted in October.
“The Wamego tower represents a connection to the city’s Oz museum, which includes a large collection of Oz memorabilia and artifacts,” says Randy Moore, director of sales, agency development, and industry affairs for Tnemec. “The 500,000-gallon [1.9 million L] Wamego water tank was repainted with a HydroFlon fluoropolymer coating system, which will help the many hues on the tank retain their color and gloss over time.”
Having opened in 2003, the Oz Museum is home to the largest permanent public display of Oz artifacts in the world, including an original flying monkey, costumes, and production notes from the original 1939 MGM film, “The Wizard of Oz.” Also among the museum’s unique collection are books from L. Frank Baum, who authored 14 novels in the Oz series.
The Wamego tank, which was painted by Classic Protective Coatings (Menomonie, Wisconsin, USA) using eight different colors, received the most online votes to claim the People’s Choice title. More than 300 water tanks were nominated, and nearly 20,000 online votes were cast this year from across the United States and Canada.
“This is the 14th anniversary of the competition, which recognizes the most impressive coatings projects in the water tank industry,” Moore adds. “This year’s finalists represent several different types of water tanks including legged designs, composite constructions, ground storage tanks, and pedestal styles in various shapes and sizes.”
The Tank of the Year will be featured as the month of January in Tnemec’s 2020 water tank calendar, while all finalists and nominees will be included in the following months of the calendar. The complete list of 12 finalists can be viewed at the contest web site.
Source: Tnemec, www.tnemec.com/about/tankoftheyear.