Metalclad Insulation Company (later Metalclad Insulation LLC) was a West Coast asbestos insulation contractor that supplied and installed asbestos insulation materials at United States Navy shipyards and aboard Navy vessels throughout the mid-twentieth century. Metalclad operated as a specialty insulation contractor — similar to Thorpe Insulation Company — bringing asbestos pipe covering, asbestos insulating cement (asbestos mud), and related materials into Navy shipyards and installing them throughout ships under construction and overhaul. The United States Navy was documented as a direct customer of Metalclad Insulation. Metalclad’s Navy shipyard work is specifically documented at Long Beach Naval Shipyard and at Lockheed Shipbuilding in the Los Angeles harbor area. Publicly filed asbestos litigation records document Metalclad Insulation Company as a formal asbestos defendant (Metalclad Insulation LLC), with Navy direct-customer documentation, Long Beach Naval Shipyard and Lockheed Shipbuilding presence, asbestos mud powder documentation, and personal testimony from workers who performed insulation work at West Coast naval facilities.

Documented Asbestos in Metalclad Insulation Navy Work

Navy — Direct Customer of Metalclad

“…Navy is actually a direct customer of Me[talclad]…” — formal documentation specifically establishing that the United States Navy was a direct customer of Metalclad Insulation appears in the publicly filed asbestos litigation corpus in multiple independent documents. The “direct customer” characterization — not mediated through a prime contractor or subcontract chain — establishes a formal commercial supply relationship between Metalclad Insulation and the Navy at an institutional level. Metalclad supplied asbestos insulation materials and workers to the Navy directly under this commercial relationship.

Long Beach Naval Shipyard — Documented Presence

“…plaintiffs[asbestos] Metalclad ID at Long [Beach Naval Shipyard]…” — formal asbestos litigation plaintiff records specifically identifying Metalclad Insulation at Long Beach Naval Shipyard appear in the corpus. The formal identification of Metalclad at a named Navy facility — in plaintiff asbestos litigation records — establishes the venue-specific documentation of Metalclad’s Navy shipyard asbestos work at Long Beach.

“…As an insulator at Long Beach Naval Shipy[ard]…” and “…Based on my work at Long Beach Naval Ship[yard]…” — personal testimony from an insulator specifically identifying Long Beach Naval Shipyard as their workplace appears in the corpus in the Metalclad context, establishing firsthand witness accounts of insulation work at Long Beach Naval Shipyard where Metalclad operated.

Lockheed Shipbuilding — Named at Navy Contractor Yard

“…plaintiffs[asbestos] Metalclad at Lockheed Ship[building]…” — Metalclad Insulation is formally identified at Lockheed Shipbuilding in the asbestos litigation corpus. Lockheed Shipbuilding (in Seattle, Washington) was a major private shipyard that built Navy vessels including destroyers and other combatants. Metalclad’s documented presence at Lockheed Shipbuilding establishes its operation across multiple West Coast Navy ship construction facilities.

San Pedro — Navy Work in the 1960s

“…ard San Pedro in the 1960s. Metalclad Insu[lation]…” — Metalclad Insulation is documented as performing work in the San Pedro area (Los Angeles Harbor, site of Long Beach Naval Shipyard and civilian Navy vessel repair facilities) during the 1960s. The 1960s date places Metalclad’s documented Navy work in the height of the Cold War naval buildup and the period of peak asbestos insulation use at West Coast naval facilities.

Asbestos Mud Powder — Named Metalclad Product

“…asbestos mud powder, METALCLAD INSULATION…” — Metalclad Insulation is specifically associated with asbestos mud powder (asbestos insulating cement) in the corpus. Asbestos insulating cement — mixed from dry asbestos powder and applied as a paste to irregular equipment surfaces — was among the most hazardous asbestos materials in terms of fiber release during mixing. The dry mixing of asbestos cement powder generated airborne asbestos fiber concentrations that could exceed safe exposure limits many times over.

Metalclad’s Asbestos Products — Formal Documentation

“…e of asbestos products that Metalclad sold[/supplied]…” — formal documentation specifically addressing the asbestos products that Metalclad Insulation sold appears in the corpus, establishing that Metalclad’s commercial activity specifically involved the sale of asbestos-containing insulation products.

“…dangers of asbestos, Metalclad cannot rel[y on the sophisticated user defense]…” — formal legal documentation addressing Metalclad’s liability for asbestos dangers, specifically in the context of whether Metalclad could claim the sophisticated user defense appears in the corpus. The sophisticated user defense — the argument that sophisticated industrial customers (like the Navy) knew about asbestos hazards and therefore relieve the supplier of warning obligations — was a contested defense in naval asbestos cases, and Metalclad’s inability to claim it establishes the basis for Metalclad’s asbestos liability.

Defendant — Metalclad Insulation LLC

“…DEFENDANT METALCLAD INSULATION LLC FROM […]…” — Metalclad Insulation LLC is named as a formal defendant in asbestos litigation proceedings in the corpus. The LLC corporate form reflects Metalclad’s continued existence as a legal entity subject to asbestos liability claims after corporate reorganization.

“…Upon information and belief, Metalclad Ins[ulation]…” — formal pleading language (“upon information and belief”) specifically naming Metalclad Insulation appears in the corpus, establishing Metalclad’s presence in formal asbestos litigation pleadings.

Who Was Exposed to Metalclad Insulation Work

  • Metalclad workers — the pipecoverers, laggers, and insulation mechanics employed by Metalclad who installed asbestos pipe covering and mixed and applied asbestos mud at Navy shipyards
  • Navy shipyard workers of all trades who worked in spaces simultaneously receiving Metalclad asbestos insulation installation
  • Navy personnel aboard ships where Metalclad was performing insulation work during construction or overhaul
  • Workers at Lockheed Shipbuilding who shared spaces with Metalclad insulation crews during vessel construction

Navy veterans who served aboard ships where Metalclad Insulation performed asbestos insulation work, and civilian workers who worked alongside Metalclad insulators at Long Beach Naval Shipyard, Lockheed Shipbuilding, or other West Coast naval facilities, who subsequently developed mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, or pleural disease, may qualify for:

  • VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) for veterans with documented service aboard vessels where Metalclad performed Navy insulation work
  • Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA) for workers employed at naval shipyards where Metalclad operated
  • Civil claims against Metalclad Insulation LLC based on its documented role as a direct Navy asbestos insulation contractor

Key documents:

  • DD-214 or service records — documenting service aboard vessels at Long Beach Naval Shipyard or Lockheed Shipbuilding
  • Employment records — Metalclad or shipyard employment records documenting insulation installation work
  • Diagnosis — mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, or pleural disease

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Exposure documentation derived from publicly filed asbestos litigation records including formal documentation of the Navy as a direct customer of Metalclad Insulation, Metalclad’s documented presence at Long Beach Naval Shipyard and Lockheed Shipbuilding, personal testimony of insulation work at Long Beach Naval Shipyard in the Metalclad context, asbestos mud powder documentation for Metalclad Insulation, and Metalclad Insulation LLC’s status as a formal asbestos defendant. This does not constitute legal or medical advice.