Crane Co. — a major manufacturer of valves, fittings, and fluid handling equipment — manufactured and supplied Cranite, a compressed asbestos sheet gasket material widely used throughout Navy ship valve and piping systems. Cranite was Crane Co.’s proprietary brand of compressed asbestos sheet — the flat gasket material cut to custom shapes for use at pipe flanges, valve bodies, and equipment connections throughout Navy ship engineering spaces. Cranite’s performance characteristics made it a preferred gasket material for high-temperature and high-pressure applications, and its qualification under Navy military specifications (MIL-SPEC) established Cranite as a formally approved material for naval vessel applications. Crane Co.’s asbestos liability extended beyond Cranite sheet material to encompass asbestos-containing gaskets and packing supplied with its valves and fittings as standard components — creating asbestos exposure for every Navy Machinist’s Mate and Pipefitter who worked on Crane valves throughout the fleet. Publicly filed asbestos litigation records document Crane Co. and Cranite extensively: formal MIL-SPEC designation for Cranite asbestos gasket material, named Cranite Asbestos Composition product identification, Crane/Cranite defendant documentation, and asbestos gasket pipe covering co-documentation.

Documented Asbestos — Crane Co. / Cranite in Naval Litigation

MIL-SPEC — Cranite Asbestos Gasket Material

Cranite Asbestos Composition — Named Product

Crane/Cranite — Defendant Documentation

Asbestos Pipe Covering — Cranite Co-Documentation

Crane Co. / Cranite Products in Naval Applications

Cranite asbestos gasket sheet: Cranite compressed asbestos sheet was the raw material from which custom-cut flat gaskets were fabricated for use at pipe flanges, valve bodies, heat exchangers, and equipment connections throughout Navy ship engineering spaces. Machinist’s Mates and Pipefitters punched or cut Cranite sheets to create the specific gasket shapes needed for each connection — releasing asbestos fiber from every cut edge and from the scraping required to clean the old gasket from metal surfaces during replacement.

Crane valve asbestos gaskets: Crane Co.’s valves — gate valves, globe valves, check valves, and butterfly valves used throughout Navy ship piping systems — were supplied with asbestos-containing gaskets and packing as standard components. Every Crane valve served as a vehicle for delivering asbestos gasket material into Navy ship engineering spaces.

Valve stem packing: Crane valves were packed with asbestos compression packing in their stuffing boxes — packing that was re-done by Machinist’s Mates as part of routine valve maintenance. The repacking of Crane valve stems, cutting new asbestos packing rings and driving them into the stuffing box, released asbestos fiber at every maintenance interval.

High-pressure steam applications: Cranite’s MIL-SPEC qualification included high-temperature and high-pressure applications — the steam system flanges and valve connections that operated at the highest pressures and temperatures in Navy ship engineering spaces. These applications required the most frequent gasket replacement as the asbestos material degraded faster under thermal cycling.

VA Claims and Legal Options — Crane Co. / Cranite

Navy veterans — particularly Machinist’s Mates, Pipefitters, and Boiler Technicians who replaced Cranite gaskets and repacked Crane valves aboard naval vessels — and shipyard workers who installed Crane valves and cut Cranite gaskets during ship construction and overhaul, who subsequently developed mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, or pleural disease, may qualify for:

  • VA service connection under VA asbestos-claim guidance for veterans with documented duty in engineering spaces performing valve maintenance and gasket replacement
  • Civil claims against Crane Co. based on documented Cranite asbestos sheet gasket use under Navy MIL-SPEC specifications and the failure to warn of asbestos hazards

Key documents:

  • DD-214 or service records — documenting naval service in engineering ratings performing valve and gasket maintenance
  • Rating records — Machinist’s Mate (MM), Boiler Technician (BT), or Pipefitter rating with documented engineering space duty
  • Diagnosis — mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, or pleural disease

Free, confidential case evaluation: Speak with O’Brien Law Firm — (314) 936-2956

All consultations are free. No fee unless a financial recovery is made on your behalf.

Exposure documentation derived from publicly filed asbestos litigation records including United States military specification (MIL-SPEC) identification for Cranite Asbestos Gasket material in multiple independent documents, Cranite Asbestos Composition named product catalog documentation, Crane/Cranite formal defendant documentation, and Cranite co-documentation with asbestos pipe covering in Navy asbestos exposure frameworks. This does not constitute legal or medical advice.