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Federal funding is accelerating investment in drinking water, wastewater, water reuse, and advanced treatment infrastructure across the United States. That funding can help utilities modernize aging facilities and implement more resilient treatment processes, but it also introduces important procurement responsibilities.
The Build America, Buy America Act, commonly called BABA, establishes domestic sourcing requirements for certain products and materials incorporated into federally assisted infrastructure projects. For utilities, consulting engineers, contractors, and equipment manufacturers, BABA can directly influence equipment selection, documentation, project schedules, and procurement strategy.
Ozone systems deserve careful attention because they are not a single commodity. A complete installation may include ozone generators, oxygen supply equipment, cooling systems, electrical controls, instrumentation, injection equipment, contact systems, ozone destruct equipment, piping, valves, tanks, and structural components.
BABA compliance is not a final-step procurement check. For federally funded ozone projects, it should be treated as a design requirement from the beginning.
Understanding how the equipment package is defined, classified, manufactured, documented, and ultimately incorporated into the project can help prevent redesigns, delayed approvals, and procurement problems later in the schedule.
What Is the Build America, Buy America Act?
BABA establishes a domestic content preference for infrastructure projects receiving applicable federal financial assistance. Covered iron and steel products, manufactured products, and construction materials incorporated into the project must be produced in the United States unless an applicable waiver or exception is available.
For water infrastructure, the requirement can affect projects supported through federal programs administered directly by federal agencies or through state funding mechanisms. The exact applicability depends on the funding source, award date, project structure, and current agency guidance.
This makes the funding review one of the first project questions. Before equipment specifications are finalized, the project team should understand:
- Which federal funding programs are supporting the project
- Whether BABA applies to the project or a specific project phase
- Which products will be permanently incorporated into the infrastructure
- Which agency or state program will review compliance
- What certifications and supporting records will be required
- Whether any applicable waivers or adjustment periods affect the procurement
BABA should not be treated as paperwork to complete after equipment has already been selected. It should be incorporated into the basis of design, procurement schedule, and submittal requirements.
Why Ozone Systems Require Careful Review
Ozone treatment systems combine mechanical, electrical, process, and structural equipment into one treatment platform. A typical municipal ozone installation may contain:
- Ozone generators and high-voltage power electronics
- Oxygen concentrators, liquid oxygen equipment, or feed-gas controls
- Water chillers and heat-rejection equipment
- Programmable logic controllers and human-machine interfaces
- Ozone, oxygen, pressure, flow, and dew-point instrumentation
- Gas injection and mass-transfer equipment
- Contact vessels, basins, or process piping
- Off-gas collection and ozone destruct equipment
- Electrical panels, disconnects, transformers, and motor controls
- Skids, enclosures, structural supports, valves, and fittings
It may be tempting to classify the entire installation as one product. In practice, the project may contain several BABA product categories, and separately supplied field components may require their own review and documentation.
Many ozone-system components, including generators, controls, analyzers, electrical equipment, pumps, motors, compressors, and integrated treatment equipment, are generally evaluated as manufactured products. Other items, such as certain steel tanks, structural members, pipe, valves, or construction materials, may be evaluated under different requirements depending on their composition and how they are supplied.
The correct classification depends on the specific product, its function, how it is delivered, and the guidance of the applicable funding agency. That determination should be made deliberately, not assumed from the equipment name.
What Makes a Manufactured Product BABA Compliant?
For a manufactured product to meet the general BABA domestic-content standard, the product must be manufactured in the United States and the cost of components produced in the United States must be greater than 55 percent of the total cost of all components, unless a different standard, adjustment, or waiver applies.
This distinction is especially important for complex treatment equipment. An ozone system may be assembled in the United States while still containing motors, sensors, analyzers, power components, valves, or other parts sourced internationally. Final assembly in the United States is important, but final assembly alone does not automatically establish compliance.
The manufacturer must understand the components incorporated directly into the final product, maintain an appropriate cost methodology, and be able to support the required certification for the actual equipment configuration delivered to the project.
“Made in the USA” and BABA Compliance Are Not Identical
A general Made in the USA statement should not automatically be treated as a BABA certification. The two claims are governed by different frameworks and may use different definitions, calculations, and documentation requirements.
BABA review is typically product-specific and project-specific. Depending on the funding program, the project may require a manufacturer certification that identifies:
- The project name, location, contract number, or project number
- The specific products supplied to the project
- The applicable BABA product category
- The location where the product was manufactured
- A statement that the product meets the applicable domestic-content requirement
- The name, title, and signature of an authorized manufacturer representative
A brochure, country-of-origin statement, or general marketing claim may support the review, but it does not replace the project documentation required by the funding recipient or reviewing agency.
Why the Ozone Package Boundary Matters
One of the most important procurement questions is where the ozone manufacturer’s scope ends and the contractor’s scope begins.
Consider an ozone system supplied with an integrated generator, control panel, instruments, internal piping, cooling equipment, and injection hardware. Is that assembly evaluated as one manufactured product? Are the oxygen system and chiller included? Are field-installed analyzers, contact tanks, process piping, valves, and structural supports purchased separately?
The answers affect who is responsible for certification, what documentation is required, and how substitutions are managed. A clearly defined package boundary helps prevent duplicated documentation and compliance gaps.
Project specifications should identify which products are included in the manufacturer’s certified package and which products must be documented separately by the contractor, distributor, or other supplier.
Compliance Begins Before the Equipment Submittal
One of the most common project risks is waiting until the equipment submittal stage to investigate BABA requirements. By that point, the basis of design may already be established, equipment may have been selected, and the building layout, electrical loads, cooling requirements, and process connections may depend on the proposed system.
Discovering a compliance issue late can lead to:
- Equipment substitutions or redesign
- Revised electrical and mechanical requirements
- Additional engineering and resubmittals
- Longer manufacturing or procurement periods
- Construction delays and change orders
- Waiver requests with uncertain review schedules
- Increased project cost and administrative burden
A more effective approach is to develop a BABA compliance matrix during preliminary or final design. The matrix can identify each major product, the anticipated category, responsible supplier, manufacturing location, required certification, and current documentation status.
What Engineers and Owners Should Address Early
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Confirm Funding and Applicability
Document the funding sources and confirm the applicable BABA requirements with the funding authority. Do not assume that locally purchased equipment is outside the requirement simply because federal funds are used for another portion of the project.
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Define the Equipment Package
Identify every major component in the ozone treatment train and clearly assign procurement responsibility. Establish whether each item is part of an integrated manufactured product or a separately supplied product incorporated into the project.
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Request Documentation Before Award
Require bidders and manufacturers to state their expected compliance status and identify any exclusions, assumptions, or products that may require additional review. Documentation expectations should be included in the specification and purchase order, not introduced after manufacturing begins.
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Control Component Substitutions
Electrical, instrumentation, and mechanical components are frequently substituted because of availability or lead-time changes. The project should establish how substitutions affecting domestic-content calculations or certification will be reviewed and approved.
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Plan for Waivers Early
BABA includes waiver pathways for public-interest, nonavailability, and unreasonable-cost circumstances. However, a waiver is an agency decision, not a manufacturer declaration. Waiver requests generally require documented market research and can add time to the project schedule.
Documentation Engineers Should Expect
The exact submittal package will depend on the funding program and project specifications, but a well-managed ozone procurement may include:
- A project-specific manufacturer certification letter
- A description of the equipment included in the certified package
- The applicable product classification
- Domestic manufacturing location information
- A schedule of major separately supplied products
- A procedure for reviewing substitutions
- Records linking the approved configuration to the delivered equipment
- Waiver documentation when applicable
Owners and contractors should maintain these records as part of the project file. The manufacturer should also preserve traceability between the certified configuration and the equipment actually shipped.
How BABA Affects Project Schedule and Risk
BABA compliance can affect project schedules even when a compliant solution is available. Engineering firms and owners should allow time for product classification, manufacturer review, document preparation, agency questions, and potential component changes.
This is particularly important for ozone systems because they often contain long-lead electrical, cooling, oxygen, and instrumentation components. A late substitution made to protect the manufacturing schedule may also trigger a new compliance review.
The best schedule protection is early coordination among the owner, consulting engineer, contractor, equipment manufacturer, and funding authority. Clear communication allows technical performance, domestic-content requirements, and procurement timing to be evaluated together.
BABA Is Also a Supply-Chain Question
The objectives behind BABA extend beyond the location of final assembly. Domestic manufacturing can improve supply-chain visibility, communication, service access, replacement-part planning, and long-term equipment support. Those considerations are especially important for ozone systems that may remain in operation for decades.
Domestic sourcing does not eliminate the need for engineering evaluation. Project teams must still consider:
- Required ozone production and concentration
- Feed-gas quality and oxygen-system design
- Energy efficiency and operating range
- Redundancy and maintainability
- Mass-transfer performance and off-gas management
- Cooling-water and heat-rejection requirements
- Controls, instrumentation, and plant integration
- Replacement-part strategy and lifecycle cost
A system that satisfies procurement requirements but cannot reliably meet the treatment objective is not a successful design. BABA compliance should support good engineering, not replace it.
Questions to Ask Before Procuring an Ozone System
- Does BABA apply to this project and funding award?
- How is the ozone equipment package classified?
- Which components are included in the manufacturer’s certification?
- Which items will require separate supplier documentation?
- Where is the final product manufactured?
- Can the manufacturer provide a project-specific certification?
- How will substitutions be controlled during manufacturing?
- Are any critical components dependent on a waiver?
- Has adequate time been included for compliance review?
- Does the proposed system still meet the complete technical and lifecycle requirements?
The Pinnacle Engineering Perspective
At Pinnacle Ozone Solutions, we believe BABA should be approached as part of the complete engineering and procurement process. Ozone system design is not limited to generator output. It includes feed gas, cooling, controls, instrumentation, mass transfer, safety, serviceability, and the documentation required for successful project delivery.
For federally assisted projects, early coordination should establish:
- The applicable funding and domestic-content requirements
- The exact equipment and scope being supplied
- The product classification and package boundary
- The documentation required from each supplier
- The process for managing component substitutions
- Any schedule risk associated with availability or waivers
Addressing these questions before specifications and purchase orders are finalized can reduce uncertainty and help protect the treatment design, procurement process, and construction schedule.
Conclusion
The Build America, Buy America Act has changed how federally assisted water infrastructure projects approach equipment procurement.
For ozone projects, the question is not simply whether the ozone generator was assembled in the United States. The complete treatment package must be defined, classified, documented, and coordinated with the project’s funding requirements.
The most successful project teams will treat BABA the same way they treat ozone capacity, hydraulic conditions, electrical requirements, mass transfer, redundancy, and controls: as a critical design input.
When BABA is considered early, compliance becomes part of a well-managed engineering process. When it is considered late, it can become a source of redesign, delay, and procurement risk.
For federally funded ozone projects, compliance is strongest when engineering, procurement, manufacturing, and documentation are coordinated from the beginning.
Technical Source Notes
- Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Public Law 117-58, Title IX, Build America, Buy America.
- S. Office of Management and Budget, Guidance for Grants and Agreements, Buy America Preferences for Infrastructure Projects.
- S. Environmental Protection Agency, Build America, Buy America Act Overview.
- S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water, Build America, Buy America Implementation Procedures for EPA Water Infrastructure Programs.
- S. Environmental Protection Agency, Build America, Buy America Frequently Asked Questions for Manufacturers.
- Project-specific funding requirements, agency guidance, waivers, and state program procedures should be reviewed for each procurement.
BABA applicability and compliance should be confirmed with the project funding authority, legal counsel, consulting engineer, and applicable federal or state program representatives.
