CUSTOMER: Kansas City Royals’ Kauffman Stadium
SCOPE: Upgrade 130 existing ductile iron control valves in the stadium fountain with new Watts stainless steel automatic control valves
CHALLENGE: Original control valves became completely rusted due to continuous submersion and needed replacement
SOLUTION: Approximately 130 Watts stainless steel automatic control valves (ACVs) – ranging from two to six inches
RESULTS: Fountain’s stainless steel ACVs modulate, open, and close for reliable and trouble-free operation, providing an eye-catching display of vibrant colors for spectators. The entire operation is controlled via a remote programmable logic controller.
Kauffman Stadium is home to two-time World Series winning KC Royals—a central division Major League Baseball team founded in 1969.
The park’s best-known feature is the “Water Spectacular”—a massive fountain and waterfall display behind the right field fence. Built in the 90s, the fountain is now a focal point for ballpark fans.
At 322 feet in length, it’s the largest privately funded fountain in the world. Half a million gallons of water surge through fountain pipes before and after games and between innings; the waterfalls flow continuously. The impressive display changes colors often and—on occasion—serves as an off-limits swimming pool for overenthusiastic Royals fans, or rivals.
Over a period of time, the control valves—fully submerged under water—became corroded and were completely rusted through. Needing a better solution, ballpark owners chose to replace the original ductile iron control valves for the fountain in 2017, replacing them with approximately 130 stainless steel Watts automatic control valves. They worked with Watts’ local representative Mack McClain & Associates on the project.
The fountain now has valves that modulate easily, assuring park owners that fans will enjoy the dramatic water feature for years to come.
