History of the Asbestos Industry

With its heat-resistant properties and durability, asbestos was deemed a vital component of many construction projects at the beginning of the 1900s. Many business owners and executives amassed great fortunes on the back of asbestos products.

Asbestos was prominently used in several industries, including shipbuilding, insulation and fire protection. Whether knowingly or unknowingly at the time, business executives placed individuals in these occupations at significant risk of developing asbestos-related diseases, including mesothelioma. Even as science started to prove the harmful effects of asbestos, manufacturers were slow to react – prioritizing profits over people. 

As new research came to light in the middle of the twentieth century, greater understanding of the harmful effects of asbestos became apparent. This led to a string of personal injury claims and lawsuits in the 1970s, and eventually resulted in hundreds of asbestos manufacturers filing for bankruptcy. The consequence was the creation of asbestos trust funds to pay out compensation to victims of asbestos-related diseases.

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Occupations Affected By Asbestos Manufacturers

Workers across several industries were affected by asbestos manufacturers. These include:

  • Construction workers
  • Demolition crews
  • Firefighters
  • Miners
  • Navy workers
  • Insulators
  • Auto Mechanics
  • Blacksmiths
  • Carpenters
  • Electricians
  • HVAC Mechanics
  • Plumbers
  • Railroad workers
  • Aircraft mechanics
  • Bakers
  • Chimney sweeps
  • Warehouse workers

List of Companies That Manufactured Asbestos Products

Below is a list of companies which have used asbestos as part of their manufacturing processes, or whose employees have handled asbestos as part of their duties.

Employees who have worked for any of these companies may be entitled to mesothelioma compensation.

  • 3M, the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company
  • ABB Lummus Global, Inc.
  • ACandS
  • A.P. Green Industry
  • The Abex Corporation
  • Advance Auto Parts
  • AlliedSignal
  • Amatex Corporation
  • American Biltrite
  • American Cyanamid Company
  • American Olean Tile Company
  • American Standard
  • Anchor Packing Company
  • Armstrong World Industries
  • Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO)
  • Aurora Pump Company
  • A.W. Chesterton Co.
  • Babcock, Wilcox & Company
  • Bath Iron Works
  • Bell Asbestos Mines
  • Bestwall Gypsum
  • BorgWarner Incorporated
  • Burnham Holdings
  • C. E. Thurston Company
  • Celotex Corporation
  • CertainTeed Corporation
  • Chrysler
  • Cleaver-Brooks
  • Combustion Engineering (CE)
  • Congoleum Corporation
  • Crown Cork & Seal
  • Dana Corporation
  • EaglePicher Industries Inc.
  • Ehret Magnesia Manufacturing Company
  • E.J. Bartells
  • Federal-Mogul Corporation
  • Flexitallic
  • The Flintkote Company
  • The Ford Motor Company
  • Foseco
  • Foster Wheeler
  • General Aniline and Film (GAF) Corporation
  • Georgia Pacific
  • Garlock Sealing Technologies
  • General Electric
  • General Motors (GM)
  • Gold Bond
  • Great Lakes Steel
  • H.K. Porter Inc.
  • Harbison-Walker Refractories Company
  • Honeywell Heating Specialty Co.
  • Imerys
  • Ingersoll Rand
  • International Paper
  • J.H. France Refractories Co., Inc.
  • J.T. Thorpe and Son, Inc.
  • John Crane Company
  • Johns Manville
  • Johnson & Johnson
  • Kaiser Aluminum
  • Kelly-Moore
  • Kentile Floors
  • Leslie Controls
  • Lincoln Electric Company
  • M.H. Detrick Company
  • Malleable Iron Range Co.
  • Metalclad
  • Mergenthaler Linotype Company
  • Mobil Oil Corporation
  • National Gypsum
  • National Automotive Parts Association
  • The Nicolet Company
  • North American Refractories Company (NARCO)
  • Owens Corning Corporation
  • Owens-Illinois, Inc.
  • P & H Mining
  • Philadelphia Asbestos Corporation
  • Pittsburgh Corning
  • Plibrico Company
  • Porter Hayden Company
  • Rapid American Corporation (Philip Carey Manufacturing Corp.)
  • Raybestos Industries
  • Republic Powdered Metals (RPM Industries)
  • Rock Wool Manufacturing Company
  • Riley Stoker Corporation 
  • Rutland Fire Clay Company
  • Shook and Fletcher
  • SPX Cooling Technologies
  • Synkoloid Company
  • Turner & Newall
  • Union Asbestos and Rubber Company (UNARCO)
  • Union Carbide
  • U.S. Steel
  • W.R. Grace & Co.
  • Western MacArthur Company
  • Westinghouse Electric Company

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Written and legally reviewed by Samuel Meirowitz

Attorney and On-Site Legal Advocate

Samuel Meirowitz is a member of the “Top 100 Trial Lawyers.” Mr. Meirowitz was named a “Rising Star” in 2013 & 2014 by Super Lawyers and then a Super Lawyer every year since 2016. In 2013, Mr. Meirowitz obtained what is believed to be the first multi-million-dollar asbestos verdict seen in more than two decades in a New York federal court. In that highly contentious matter, Mr. Meirowitz was able to convince the jury to hold a boiler manufacturer responsible for 60 percent of the $3.8 million awarded, despite the defendant’s attempt to escape all blame by pointing fingers at the plaintiff’s employer and the U.S. Navy (in which the plaintiff admirably served from 1966-70 during the Vietnam conflict). This verdict was upheld by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

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