A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE: AOS), a global leader in water heating and water treatment products, announced today that the Company has received WAVE water stewardship verification, a process led by The Water Council and independently verified by SCS Global Services.

A. O. Smith is one of the first companies to pilot the program.

WAVE helps companies improve their water stewardship and is independently verified, which provides additional credibility and transparency to the process. SCS Global Services is an international leader in third-party sustainability verification. The program includes a six-step methodology for improving, reporting and recognizing good corporate water stewardship by identifying water risks and opportunities within the company’s organization.

“A. O. Smith is paving the way in the water technology industry, and we are proud to be one of the first companies to complete WAVE verification,” said Jim Stern, A. O. Smith executive vice president, general counsel and secretary. “As a founding member of The Water Council, this verification not only prioritizes our commitment to water stewardship, but it validates our efforts and allows us to show progress on the work we’re doing to mitigate water-related risks and address water challenges and opportunities.”

Through this process, A. O. Smith will assess water-related risks across the enterprise, identify the highest water-related impacts using credible data and implement best practices to improve water stewardship performance.

A. O. Smith’s water stewardship goals will focus on three key areas: operations, products and community:

• We are committed to using water efficiently in our global operations.
• We will focus on innovation with our products to provide water and space heating solutions that are energy and water efficient and reduce waste.
• We will partner with interested policymakers, regulators and customers to address water quality and scarcity issues impacting our communities.

“We appreciate The Water Council’s efforts to provide a framework that companies can use to create meaningful water-related goals, targets and outcomes,” said Stern. “Water stewardship has been a key focus for A. O. Smith over the past few years, and we are eager to elevate our impact.”

About A. O. Smith Corporation

A. O. Smith Corporation, with headquarters in Milwaukee, Wis., is a global leader applying innovative technology and energy-efficient solutions to products manufactured and marketed worldwide. Listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: AOS), the Company is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of residential and commercial water heating equipment and boilers, as well as a manufacturer of water treatment products. For more information, visit www.aosmith.com.