Shook & Fletcher
Created in 1901 as a manufacturer of a number of products – including iron, brick and coal – Shook & Fletcher Supply Company is a thermal insulation contractor and distributor. It calls itself one of the Southeast’s leading commercial and industrial insulation companies.
The company began producing insulation in 1949. Wayne W. Killion Sr. and fellow employees of Shook & Fletcher bought the company in 1967. Killion’s son, Wayne W. Killion Jr., took over as president and CEO in 2000. He is also president of the National Insulation Association (NIA), which represents the mechanical and specialty insulation industry and has about 450 member companies.
Shook & Fletcher has six distribution facilities in Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee. The company now offers more than 50 different products, working with more than 30 manufacturers.
Shook & Fletcher and Asbestos
Asbestos is a naturally-occurring mineral that is fire and heat resistant. Today it is recognized as a hazardous material and carcinogen, including by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). But historically it was widely used in insulation products. Exposure to asbestos is known to cause asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma.
Shook & Fletcher used asbestos in insulation products for a generation, starting in the 1950s and continuing through the 1970s. Today’s consumer insulation instead contains fiberglass. This material is also dangerous, but warning labels are printed on the packaging. Shook & Fletcher suppliers now provide customers with a material safety data sheet (MSDS) upon request. Commercial insulation might also contain other dangerous chemicals that are classified as hazardous such as polystyrene, talc and hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD). These are not as dangerous as asbestos, however.
Asbestos minerals are classified into one of two groups: serpentine or amphibole. Serpentine, or “white” asbestos, is the most common form. The curly, flexible fiber has been used in nearly all the buildings in the United States. Amphibole, which includes five different forms of asbestos, is more needle-like. Blue asbestos, a form of amphibole asbestos, is more flame retardant than white asbestos and is therefore the most common type used in thermal insulation.
Shook & Fletcher and Asbestos Litigation
Shook & Fletcher began getting sued for asbestos use around 1976, shortly after the Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration classified asbestos as a hazardous material. The company Fletcher entered into an agreement with other asbestos claim defendants in 1985, and they formed a claims facility to defend themselves. In 1993, along with 19 other asbestos manufacturers, Shook & Fletcher filed a class action suit to settle their asbestos-related claims. The U.S. Supreme Court rejected the suit. By 1999, the company enjoyed settlement agreements with all its insurers except Safety National Casualty Company. It filed suit against Safety National for claims between 1983 and 1985.
Shook & Fletcher went into Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2002. The company’s annual income of $22 million was not enough to offset projected settlement costs of more than 80,000 pending asbestos-related suits. The Shook & Fletcher Settlement Trust was established to protect the company from the millions of dollars in lawsuit rulings. The trust evaluates claims on a first-in, first-out basis and evaluates each claim for validity. Once a suit is deemed valid, a payment determination is made. There are sets of disease categories and exposure criteria used to determine whether the claim will be paid from the trust. Different diseases are paid different amounts based on these criteria.
If you or someone you know has been exposed to Shook & Fletcher products, do not hesitate to contact a doctor. Find a specialist in the Mesothelioma Doctor Directory, or have a Patient Advocate assist you. To speak with a Patient Advocate, call (800) 615-2270. Mesothelioma has a long latency period, and it could take years for symptoms to arise. Symptoms include shortness of breath, wheezing and chest pain. For more information about mesothelioma, complete the form on this page.
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© 2012 The Mesothelioma Center |
Last Modified Thursday, February 9th, 2012 | Disclaimer | Privacy Policy |
The information provided by The Mesothelioma Center is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
Sponsored by a law firm concentrating in asbestos litigation, The Peterson Firm, LLP with offices at 1350 Connecticut Ave, NW, Fifth Floor, Washington DC 20036.
