Columbia Asbestos Products, based in Chicago, Illinois, was a manufacturer of asbestos sheet gasket material, asbestos rope packing, and asbestos-containing sealing products for industrial and marine applications. Columbia and similar asbestos sheet gasket manufacturers supplied rolls and sheets of compressed asbestos fiber and non-asbestos-fiber gasket material to industrial and marine users who cut their own custom gaskets from the sheet stock. Navy engineering plants maintained stocks of asbestos sheet gasket material from Columbia and other suppliers — rolls of compressed asbestos sheet from which custom gaskets were cut for non-standard pipe flanges, valve bodies, and equipment connections throughout the engineering maintenance cycle.

Columbia Asbestos Products in Navy Engineering

Columbia manufactured asbestos sheet gasket material and packing used in Navy engineering:

  • Asbestos sheet gasket material — Columbia compressed asbestos sheet gasket material was supplied in sheet and roll form for cutting into custom gaskets. Engineering ratings cutting gaskets from asbestos sheet stock used tin snips, knives, or abrasive cutting wheels to cut the sheet material to the required shape, generating asbestos dust from the cut edge of the compressed sheet at each cutting operation
  • Asbestos rope packing — Columbia asbestos rope packing used in pump stuffing boxes and valve gland packing was installed and replaced by MM and BT ratings as a routine maintenance item in the engineering plant
  • Gasket cutting for non-standard flanges — valve bodies, heat exchangers, and equipment with non-standard flange dimensions required custom-cut gaskets from sheet stock. MM ratings cutting custom gaskets from Columbia and other brand asbestos sheet performed this task regularly in the engineering maintenance cycle

Sheet Gasket Cutting Asbestos Exposure

The gasket cutting operation was among the most asbestos-intensive routine maintenance tasks:

  • Cutting compressed asbestos sheet gasket material with cutting tools generated measurably elevated airborne asbestos fiber concentrations from the sheet material’s cut edge and from the dust raised during the cutting operation. Engineering ratings performing gasket cutting in the confined engineering spaces of Navy ships accumulated asbestos exposure from this routine task throughout their service

VA Claims for Veterans Exposed to Columbia Asbestos Products

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure from gasket cutting and installation in Navy engineering service. Engineering ratings who cut and installed Columbia and other brand asbestos sheet gasket material and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.