POWER NEED

The Cumberland County Jail is a medium-security detention center located in Crossville, Tennessee. Operated by the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, the facility holds up to 212 inmates awaiting trial or sentencing and supports surrounding municipalities that do not have their own long-term lockup capabilities. It also houses electronic monitoring and control systems, as well as administrative offices.

Due to the critical nature of the facility, the Tennessee Correctional Institute requires the jail to have a backup source of power.

“The most important part of this complex is the jail,” said Captain Tim Claflin, lead administrator for the Cumberland County Jail. “We have inmates and staff in here, so if we don’t have power, we’re putting both my staff and the inmates at risk.”

In October 2019, a 28-year-old diesel generator set that provided backup power to both the jail and the jail administration offices failed, requiring an immediate solution. Repairing the unit proved too costly, which prompted Cumberland County officials to seek a solution that would fit within the original footprint and use the diesel fuel tanks already installed at the facility.

SOLUTION

County officials selected Stowers Machinery, the local Cat® dealer, to supply a 300 kW Cat D300 GC diesel generator set for the jail. Stowers Machinery supplied a mobile generator set while the new system was installed, and the dealer will provide ongoing support through a Customer Value Agreement (CVA).

To purchase the generator set, Cumberland County utilized Sourcewell, a municipal contracting agency that serves government, education and nonprofit organizations with a cooperative purchasing program that manages solicitation requirements and offers a network of awarded contracts.

“Cost was a big factor, and I think it will be proven over time that we made the right decision,” Claflin emphasized.

Cat GC diesel generator sets are configured with an optimized mix of common features that offer excellent customer value by delivering performance with a minimal footprint. They are engineered to Caterpillar’s high standards for reliability and productivity, with best-in-class support from the Cat dealer network.

“The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office depends on reliable power for the safety of its inmates and staff,” said Jason Kaiser, general manager for Caterpillar Retail Electric Power Solutions. “The Cat GC generator set for the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office demonstrates how we can deliver the performance our customers need in a right-sized package that minimizes purchasing and installation costs.”

RESULTS 

 Commissioned in the spring of 2020, the generator set has run numerous times during scheduled outages and when power from the grid was lost due to storms.

“It comes on and we hardly know that it’s running,” Claflin noted. “It does exactly what it’s supposed to do, and we’re happy with the choice we made.”

A member of the Cumberland County maintenance staff starts the generator on a weekly basis and performs routine inspections, while technicians from Stowers will provide semi-annual inspections and preventive maintenance. 

“It’s just a great working relationship that we have with Stowers. We’re very pleased with them and with Caterpillar in the product that we got,” Claflin concluded. “We sure love the idea of having a good product that will last and deliver reliable power for years to come.”

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