American Standard, headquartered in Piscataway, New Jersey, was one of the largest manufacturers of plumbing fixtures, heating equipment, and industrial valve products in the United States. American Standard supplied the US Navy with heating equipment — steam radiators, convectors, and hot water heating units — and valve products for installation in naval shore facilities and aboard ship throughout the WWII and Cold War eras. Their products were present in the mechanical systems of naval shore installations and in the auxiliary steam distribution systems of Navy vessels.

Asbestos in American Standard Products

American Standard heating and valve equipment used asbestos-containing sealing materials in applications requiring steam or high-temperature service:

  • Steam radiator and convector connections — American Standard steam heating units installed in naval shore facility buildings used asbestos sheet gaskets at the steam supply and condensate return connection flanges to the building heating distribution
  • Steam trap body gaskets — American Standard steam traps used asbestos gaskets at trap body cover connections, disturbed during trap maintenance
  • Valve stem packing on American Standard steam service valves — braided asbestos packing in valve stuffing boxes on steam heating control valves throughout naval shore facility heating systems
  • Pipe connections and union gaskets at heating equipment connections to the building steam distribution — asbestos sheet gaskets at flanged and union connections throughout the steam heating system

American Standard heating equipment was installed throughout naval shore facilities — barracks, administrative buildings, maintenance facilities, and technical training buildings — at naval stations, naval air stations, and naval training commands across the country. Facilities maintenance personnel and naval engineers responsible for maintaining shore facility heating systems at these installations encountered American Standard equipment with asbestos-containing connection gaskets and packing.

Shipboard Auxiliary Heating Applications

American Standard valve and fitting products were also used in shipboard steam heating and domestic hot water systems, where their steam service valve and fitting products used asbestos packing and gaskets in the same pattern as other steam valve manufacturers supplying the Navy.

Shore Facility Maintenance Personnel Exposure

Navy Shore Establishment personnel — facilities maintenance engineering chiefs, utilities engineering personnel, and civilian maintenance workers — who maintained steam heating systems at naval shore facilities encountered American Standard heating equipment with asbestos-containing connection materials throughout the Cold War era of steam heating operation at Navy shore installations.

VA Claims

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure at Navy installations. Navy personnel and civilian employees who performed heating system maintenance at naval shore facilities involving American Standard and other asbestos-containing steam heating equipment and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma may qualify for VA disability benefits.