Insulators and Asbestos Exposure

How Are Insulators Exposed to Asbestos?

Tradespeople known as insulators had constant exposure to asbestos-laden materials, putting them at risk of developing mesothelioma. Insulators worked directly with asbestos products, installing, repairing and removing insulation on pipes, boilers and ducts. They cut, sanded or tore asbestos materials to size.

These actions created clouds of dust. Workers inhaled asbestos fibers as they became airborne. The materials appeared harmless, and many didn’t use any protective gear. As a result, the rate of pleural mesothelioma for insulators was more than 10 times higher than the rate for the general population rate.

The height of asbestos use was before 1980, but legacy asbestos remains a threat today. Insulators may find themselves exposed while working in older buildings, often without proper testing and remediation of materials. Not only can insulators be in danger, but their family members may also be at risk of asbestos exposure. Asbestos fibers can cling to an insulator’s work attire and expose family members at home. 

Asbestos Products Insulators Used

Insulators often handled asbestos products directly. These materials prevented heat loss and reduced fire risk but can be inhaled when disturbed. Inhaling asbestos fibers is the main cause of mesothelioma.

Asbestos Insulation Products

Blanket insulation: Flexible sheets that wrap around ducts, piping and mechanical systems.

Block insulation: Pre-formed blocks are used to insulate walls, tanks and large mechanical systems.

Cement and plaster mixtures: Used as coatings and fillers around joints, fittings and structural components.

Pipe and boiler insulation: Used to cover high-temperature pipes and boilers in industrial and commercial buildings.

Spray-on insulation: Applied to ceilings and walls to provide thermal insulation and fireproofing.

Zonolite insulation: Well-known asbestos brand for HVAC systems, used as loose-fill in attics and walls. 

Insulators used these materials across construction sites, industrial plants and shipyards. Even a small amount of airborne asbestos could cause long-term health problems. In addition to mesothelioma, asbestos can cause a number of asbestos-related diseases such as lung cancer, asbestosis, COPD and pleuritis.

Manufacturers of Products Insulators Used

Well-known companies manufactured many insulation products that included asbestos. These companies continued to sell them long after knowing the risk of mesothelioma that workers faced as a result of asbestos exposure.

Companies That Made Asbestos Insulation

• A. P. Green Industries: Used asbestos to manufacture refractory products from the 1940s to the 1970s.
• A C & S Inc.: Installed asbestos insulation in commercial and industrial buildings from 1958 to 1985. 
• Armstrong World Industries: Manufactured asbestos products, including insulation, until the 1970s. Asbestos lawsuits led to bankruptcy in 2000.
• C. E. Thurston & Sons: Sold, installed, repaired and removed asbestos insulation products until the late 1970s.
• Celotex: Manufactured asbestos insulation and construction materials from the 1920s to the 1980s. The company also operated an asbestos mine until 1986.
• CertainTeed Corporation: Incorporated asbestos in its manufactured construction materials from 1930 to 1993.
• Combustion Engineering: Utilized asbestos in manufacturing boilers, cement, insulation, adhesives and coatings, resulting in thousands of asbestos-related lawsuits.
• Crown Cork and Seal: Purchased Mundet Cork in 1963, which produced insulation products and cement containing large amounts of toxic asbestos.
• EaglePicher: Produced asbestos insulation products for the military until the mid-1970s. In 1996, it created a $400 million trust fund for asbestos compensation. 
• Fibreboard Paper Products Corporation: Made asbestos pipe coverings, insulating cement and block insulation. The company was a defendant in the 1973 landmark lawsuit Borel v. Fiberboard Paper Products that paved the way for asbestos litigation.
• GAF Corporation: Until the 1980s, GAF manufactured asbestos-containing construction materials. Several asbestos products were included in GAF’s purchase of Ruberoid.
• Johns Manville: Founded in 1858, it was among the first companies to manufacture products with asbestos, including roofing, insulation and automotive sheet cylinder packing. 
• Kaiser Aluminum: Made and sold asbestos-containing products, including firebrick, insulation and refractory cement, from the 1950s to the 1970s.
• Ehret Magnesia: Manufactured asbestos-containing insulation products until 1972. The company created a trust fund with $45 million to handle asbestos claims.
• National Gypsum Company: Known for its Gold Bond brand, under which it made insulation and other asbestos-containing construction materials.
• Garlock: Founded in 1907, it used asbestos to manufacture gaskets, valve packing and packaging materials until 1980.
• Nicolet (Keasbey & Mattison): The company purchased Keasbey & Mattison in the 1960s. K&M had been making asbestos products since 1886. Nicolet developed asbestos pipe insulation until declaring bankruptcy in 1987. It eventually became part of Armstrong World Industries.
• Owens-Corning: The result of a merger between Owens-Illinois and Corning Glass in 1935, Owens-Corning spun off as its own company in 1938. It manufactured asbestos insulation products from the 1950s through 1972. The company filed for bankruptcy in 2000 after asbestos litigation. 
• Owens-Illinois: Under the brand name Kaylo, Owens-Illinois Inc. manufactured asbestos insulation in the 1940s and 1950s.
• Pacor Incorporated: Founded in 1921, it made and distributed asbestos insulation products, including contaminated products from Johns Manville.
• Rock Wool Manufacturing Company: A wool insulation manufacturer, it used asbestos in several of its products until the 1970s.
• Shook & Fletcher Insulation Company: Manufactured asbestos insulation products from 1949 through the 1970s. The company filed for bankruptcy in 2002. 
• The Flintkote Company: Used asbestos in insulation and roofing materials from the 1930s until the 1980s. The company filed for bankruptcy in 2014. 
• Unarco: The Union Asbestos and Rubber Company manufactured various asbestos insulation products throughout the 20th century until the company went bankrupt in 1982. 
• Western MacArthur: Made and distributed asbestos pipe covering and other insulation products from 1913 until the late 1970s. 
• W.R. Grace & Company: Made insulation products with asbestos and, until 1990, owned an asbestos-contaminated vermiculite mine in Libby, Montana. 

The manufacturers of asbestos products put insulators and their families at risk. Some of these manufacturers faced lawsuits. As a result of mounting litigation, a number of them declared bankruptcy. In that process, manufacturers created asbestos trust funds to pay future claims to exposed workers.

Insulators and Mesothelioma

Research shows insulators are among the highest-risk workers for mesothelioma and other asbestos diseases. Inhaling asbestos fibers over time can cause them to accumulate in tissue in your body. Irritation and inflammation can occur, and eventually, this can begin to change the DNA of cells to become cancerous.

A study published in February 2025 in Occupational & Environmental Medicine reports asbestos insulation workers were at a particularly high risk of asbestos-related cancers. The study authors concluded, “The meta-analyses support a causal link between occupational asbestos exposure and the risk of oesophageal, stomach and colorectal cancer.” 

A 2023 study found 95.2% of insulators had definitive occupational exposure to asbestos, averaging 30.9 years. Previous global studies found significant mortality rates from past asbestos exposure and rates of pleural mesothelioma more than 10 times higher than in the general population among insulators. Studies also confirm that many insulation workers still face asbestos exposure today.

Many people diagnosed with mesothelioma are retired insulators who worked decades ago. Because the disease can take 20 to 60 years to appear, even short-term occupational exposure long ago may lead to illness today.

Compensation for Exposed Insulators

If you worked as an insulator and have mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease, you may qualify for compensation. Mesothelioma claims can help cover treatment, travel costs and other expenses. In 2009, a Tennessee jury awarded the family of a pipefitter $1.4 million in a wrongful death lawsuit. 

One woman developed mesothelioma from secondhand asbestos exposure while washing her husband’s work clothes contaminated with CertainTeed products. A Los Angeles jury awarded her $208.8 million in April 2010.

Types of Mesothelioma Compensation 

• Asbestos trust fund claims
• Personal injury lawsuits
• VA benefits (for military service)
• Workers’ compensation

Claim amounts vary, but many trust fund payouts range from $30,000 to more than $300,000, depending on the level of exposure and the diagnosis. Some insulators have received settlements after proving they worked around known manufacturers’ asbestos materials.

Filing a claim doesn’t affect your ability to receive medical care or other benefits. A mesothelioma lawyer can help determine which options apply to your case.

Recommended Reading