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Disinfection Solutions for Municipal Applications

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History

In 1913, two young engineers (Charles F. Wallace and Martin F. Tiernan) founded the company with the invention of a device for disinfecting water supplies with chlorine gas. They named this device a “chlorinator”.  On President George Washington’s Birthday in 1913, they installed the chlorinator in Jersey City’s Boonton Reservoir. It operated successfully, chlorinating Jersey City’s water for many years. In 1914, Wallace & Tiernan installed the first successful solution-feed chlorinator at Hagerstown, MD.  Over the next several years the company grew rapidly, due mainly to Wallace’s inventiveness and Tiernan’s sharp business sense.  The invention of the chlorinator is credited with the elimination of water-borne diseases which were all too common in the early 1900’s.

Growth continued as products were added: most were equipment developed to apply chlorine gas for such purpose as controlling slime in paper millsand bleaching in laundries and textile mills. Additional products were designed for feeding both dry and liquid chemicals into the water treating process.  Other products were as diverse as one of the first battery clocks for homes and offices, marine lanterns, precision pressure measurement equipment and an automatic system for bakeries which produced bread dough at a rate of 6,000 loaves per hour.

Over the years, Wallace & Tiernan has brought innovation and product improvements to water and wastewater treatment installations throughout the world. In 1997, the company relocated to a new custom-built, state-of-the-art facility in Vineland, NJ employing more than 150 people. 

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