GASKET COMPANIES

Asbestos was the material of choice for most gasket manufacturing companies

GASKET COMPANIES

June 18, 2010 – Gasket companies manufactured their gaskets and other sealing products with asbestos because asbestos is durable, and resistant to heat, fire and electricity, making it a very practical material for use in many products.

Asbestos-based gasket and valve material was prominently used in automobiles, boiler systems, naval ships, private homes and commercial buildings. That is, until it became known that asbestos caused fatal illnesses (including lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma) in employees who worked for certain companies that manufactured, installed and maintained gaskets and valves.

Besides employees at gasket companies, those most affected by gasket-related asbestos exposure include workers in power plants, chemical plants, shipyards, aeronautics and aerospace facilities, and boiler system repair. Welders, electricians, plumbers, and pipe fitters are also at risk for developing asbestos-related illnesses.

In the decades preceding the 1970s, before asbestos was associated in the public mind with cancer, it was valued for its tough, heat and fire-resistant, and insulating properties. Regulations were enacted in the 1980s, when it became publicly recognized that airborne asbestos fibers that dislodge from gasket and valve material during work activities leads to irreversible respiratory diseases.

Despite 30 years of health safety regulations, the long latency period associated with mesothelioma (sometimes up to 50 years) means retired workers exposed decades ago are only now being diagnosed with symptoms of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related illnesses.

Gasket companies and legal options

The acclaimed national trial law firm of Weitz & Luxenberg is a legal force in the asbestos litigation field, having obtained record-setting verdicts and settlements for American workers seriously injured by job-related asbestos exposure.

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