(aerial photo source:  NASA)

The Tennessee River is a unique attraction of future industry. With minimal environmental restrictions and the access to water for manufacturing activities, real estate near the river is prime for industrial developers.
 

    Other important issues to be considered are electrical power and water used in industrial processes. The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) makes it very attractive for companies locating in their service area by using the Tennessee River to offer companies lower utility rates.
 

    Heavier industrial companies, which require shipping from a river port, view the river as a major factor in site location. For example, the Boeing Company is currently constructing a one-million square foot common core booster facility.
 

    For the project, access to a river port for shipping was essential and is a major reason the company chose to locate in Decatur and not the nearby, aerospace hub of Huntsville. The facility is being erected to help reduce costs of having to ship parts for the common core booster to the far corners of the country. Suppliers will now be able to deliver directly to one location, decatur, where final assembly will take place.
 

    From the facility, the booster core will be loaded on a transport ship and sent down the Tennessee River and the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, by barge, on its way to Cape Cavernal Air Station or Vandenberg Air Force Base. (Source:  The Boeing Company)