The Corps of Engineers National Nonstructural/Flood Proofing Committee [NFPC] and the Association of State Flood Plain Managers [ASFPM] have been working for several months to develop a National program to test flood proofing/flood fighting products that are marketed within the United States and are currently soliciting interest/participation in this National Program. The vision of this Program is to ultimately provide a standardized testing opportunity in a controlled laboratory setting for those products considered as temporary barriers, semi-permanent barriers, closures, or sealants. The Program will consist of testing products by application of a standard testing protocol in a standard testing facility with the results of the tests being available to any and all entities on both a National and an International basis. The program will be funded by those vendors/manufacturers of flood proofing/flood fighting products that desire to have their products tested within this National Program. The first type of flood proofing/flood fighting product to be tested will be temporary barriers. The test program will evaluate such product related parameters as time to assemble and disassemble, special equipment requirements, quantity of fill material if needed, suitability of construction by unskilled labor, long term durability and repairability, special equipment needed for deployment, environmental aspects of disposal of the product or product related materials, reusability of the product, etc. The standardized testing protocol will include tests to evaluate resistance to hydrostatic force, hydrodynamic force, overtopping, wave action, and debris impact. Performance criteria will include seepage rates, deflection, sustained damage, etc. It is envisioned that the costs for participation in this program will range between $50,000 and $80,000 per product for the testing of temporary barrier type products.

The NFPC and the ASFPM are currently soliciting interest in this National Program. Interest by vendors/manufacturers of all types of products [temporary barriers, semi-permanent barriers, closures, and sealants] is welcome. However, the NFPC and ASFPM are most interested now in determining those vendors/manufacturers of flood proofing/flood fighting products that are considered temporary barriers who are interested in participating in this program.

A copy of the Draft Standardized Testing Protocol can be downloaded here:
Standardized_Testing_Protocol.pdf