Prestigious Club Honors Legacy, Strength of Cast Iron Pipes

BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Sept. 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Ductile Iron Pipe Research Association (DIPRA) proudly welcomes the City of Troy (AL) Utilities to its prestigious Century Club, recognizing more than 100 years of reliable service from the community’s cast iron drinking water infrastructure.

“It’s an honor to announce the induction of my hometown – Troy, AL – into the Century Club,” said DIPRA President David Cole. “This is a tribute to the engineers who, more than a century ago, chose cast iron pipe because it was built to last. It’s also a tribute to the generations of city leaders who have continued that commitment by choosing modern Ductile iron pipe today to deliver safe, healthy drinking water to residents. Ductile iron pipe has been engineered to the highest standards, and it builds on the extraordinary legacy of cast iron, which was designed to last generations, not just decades.”

The section of pipe being inducted into the Century Club was originally installed in 1895 and remains in service today. The 10-inch diameter pipe runs underneath the 300 block of North Three Notch Street.

“Cast and Ductile iron have been critical in supplying water throughout the city of Troy,” said city Mayor Jason A. Reeves. “Ductile iron pipe is the preferred material when conditions and locations are the toughest. It is currently specified on the water distribution system when a water main is proposed to be installed under heavily trafficked areas.”

Reeves added that Ductile iron’s compatibility with a wide range of pipe applications, along with its ready availability, reinforces its role as a preferred material for the city’s water system.

Cole presented a framed certificate to Reeves during a City Council meeting, welcoming the city into the association’s Century Club. City of Troy Utilities General Manager Brian Chandler said iron waterlines stamped with dates prior to 1900 were discovered during a project, prompting the municipality to contact DIPRA.

“We knew it was old but until we uncovered it and found the dates stamped, we didn’t know it was that old,” Chandler told the council. “It’s still in good shape, too, and in operating condition.”

Cast iron pipe became widely used in municipal water systems beginning in the 1800s, valued for its structural integrity and ability to withstand internal pressure and external loads. Today’s modern Ductile iron pipe builds on that legacy, offering even greater strength, flexibility, and longevity.

The Century Club honors municipalities across Canada and the United States whose cast iron pipes have demonstrated exceptional durability, performance, and resilience over a century or more of continuous service. Membership reflects not only the quality of the material, but also the foresight of civic leaders who invested in infrastructure built to last. Across North America, many cast iron water systems installed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries remain in operation, forming the backbone of modern water distribution networks. 

The Cast Iron Pipe Century Club was organized in 1947 to publicly recognize water utilities with cast iron mains that have provided service for 100 years or more. There are more than 550 water utilities in the United States and more than 35 water utilities in Canada that are members of DIPRA’s Century Club. DIPRA also sponsors a Sesquicentennial Club, of which 27 utilities in the U.S. and five in Canada are known to have had cast iron pipelines in service for more than 150 years.

About DIPRA

Founded in 1915, the Ductile Iron Pipe Research Association (DIPRA) has served as a resource and technical advisor to the water industry. DIPRA provides representation on standards-making committees as well as technical research on a variety of applications-based topics. While DIPRA member companies have different names and locations, they share a common commitment to produce and deliver the finest quality water and wastewater pipe material in the world — Ductile iron pipe — at the greatest possible value to its purchasers.

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SOURCE Ductile Iron Pipe Research Association (DIPRA)