Dana Corporation — through its Victor brand gasket division — was one of the largest manufacturers of asbestos-containing gaskets and sealing products in the United States. Dana/Victor manufactured compressed asbestos sheet gaskets, spiral-wound gaskets with asbestos filler, and a complete line of motor and engine gaskets used throughout Navy ship propulsion systems, auxiliary machinery, and onboard equipment. Asbestos gaskets were standard throughout every naval vessel’s machinery spaces — on pump flanges, valve bodies, heat exchanger connections, engine heads, and exhaust manifolds — and were replaced as a routine maintenance task by Machinist’s Mates, Enginemen, and other engineering ratings. Dana Corporation’s Victor brand gaskets were among the most widely specified and most commonly encountered asbestos gasket products in the naval maintenance context. Publicly filed asbestos litigation records document Dana Corporation extensively: named gasket product identification with the Victor brand designation, formal documentation of Dana asbestos gaskets in Navy and marine applications, and repeated testimony about Dana asbestos gaskets encountered during Navy service.

Documented Asbestos — Dana Corporation in Naval Litigation

Motor Gaskets — Dana / Victor Brand

Dana Asbestos Gaskets — Navy and Marine Applications

Testimony — Dana Asbestos Gaskets in Navy Service

Garlock Graphite-Asbestos — Cross-Reference

Dana Corporation in Multi-Defendant Naval Proceedings

Dana/Victor Products in Naval Applications

Engine and machinery head gaskets: Dana/Victor manufactured full-face and ring-type cylinder head gaskets for ship diesel engines, auxiliary power units, and generator sets — the head gasket being replaced at every engine top-end overhaul. Compressed asbestos sheet was the standard head gasket material through the 1970s.

Pump and valve flange gaskets: Every pump, valve, and heat exchanger on a naval vessel had multiple flange gaskets — sealing connections throughout the cooling water, fuel, steam, and hydraulic systems. Dana/Victor compressed asbestos sheet gaskets were cut to size on the ship and installed by Machinist’s Mates and Enginemen during routine maintenance.

Exhaust manifold and turbocharger gaskets: High-temperature exhaust system gaskets required asbestos-fiber reinforcement to withstand operating temperatures. Dana/Victor exhaust gaskets were replaced during engine overhauls and whenever exhaust manifold work was performed in engineering spaces.

VA Claims and Legal Options — Dana Corporation (Gaskets)

Navy veterans — particularly Machinist’s Mates, Enginemen, Boiler Technicians, and other engineering ratings who routinely replaced gaskets aboard naval vessels — and shipyard workers who installed or removed gaskets from naval machinery, 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 gasket replacement and machinery maintenance
  • Civil claims against Dana Corporation and its successors based on documented Victor brand asbestos gasket use in Navy and marine applications

Key documents:

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

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Exposure documentation derived from publicly filed asbestos litigation records including Dana Corporation Victor brand motor gasket identification in Navy and marine applications, dated Dana asbestos gasket product records, testimony establishing asbestos gasket replacement in Navy service contexts, continued Dana asbestos gasket use through the 1970s, and Dana Corporation in multi-defendant naval asbestos gasket proceedings. This does not constitute legal or medical advice.