Falk Corporation, headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, was a major American manufacturer of reduction gears, flexible couplings, and industrial power transmission equipment serving marine, industrial, and military markets. Falk supplied main propulsion reduction gears to the United States Navy for installation aboard destroyers, destroyer escorts, cruisers, and auxiliary vessels throughout the mid-20th century, with Falk reduction gear assemblies transmitting turbine output to propeller shafts in naval propulsion systems. Falk reduction gear casings incorporated asbestos-containing compressed gasket materials in gear case cover joints, inspection cover flanges, and gear case access panel sealing joints, providing oil-tight sealing on the reduction gear enclosure. Machinist’s Mates maintaining Falk reduction gears in naval engineering spaces performed periodic gear case inspections requiring removal of inspection cover gaskets, oil sampling and analysis requiring access panel removal, and gear case overhaul operations requiring gear case cover removal — each of which involved disturbing and replacing asbestos-containing compressed gasket materials in the gear case joint faces.

Reduction Gear Case Gasket Asbestos

Falk reduction gears incorporated asbestos-containing gaskets throughout the gear case assembly:

  • Gear case cover joint gaskets — Falk reduction gear assemblies used compressed asbestos sheet gaskets in the main gear case cover-to-housing flanged joints, providing oil-tight sealing between the gear case upper cover and the gear case housing. Machinist’s Mates performing gear case cover removal for turbine alignment checks, internal gear inspection, or overhaul operations removed these asbestos compressed gasket materials from the gear case cover joint faces during the disassembly process, with the gasket removal and scraping operations disturbing the asbestos sheet material and releasing asbestos fiber at the gear case joint face
  • Inspection port and access cover gaskets — Falk reduction gear assemblies incorporated smaller access ports and inspection openings in the gear case housing for oil sight glass access, gear temperature monitoring, and internal inspection, each sealed with asbestos-containing compressed gasket materials. Machinist’s Mates performing routine gear case inspections through these access points removed and replaced the access cover gaskets as part of inspection reassembly, encountering asbestos gasket material in each access cover joint
  • Oil seal and bearing housing gasket materials — the bearing housing flanges and oil seal retainer joints in Falk reduction gear assemblies used asbestos-containing compressed gasket materials at the flange interfaces, with these joint gaskets requiring replacement during bearing overhaul and oil seal replacement maintenance operations

Flexible Coupling Asbestos Components

Falk flexible couplings used in Navy propulsion systems incorporated asbestos:

  • Falk Steelflex coupling components — Falk flexible grid couplings used in Navy propulsion system shaft connections incorporated asbestos-containing materials in some coupling cover and grid housing joints. Machinist’s Mates maintaining propulsion shaft flexible couplings in naval engineering spaces encountered these materials during coupling inspection and maintenance operations

Reduction Gear Overhaul and Shipyard Asbestos

Navy shipyard reduction gear overhaul work involved asbestos gasket replacement:

  • Shipyard reduction gear overhaul — naval shipyard overhaul of Falk reduction gears during ship maintenance periods required complete gear case disassembly, with shipyard mechanics removing all gear case gaskets in the disassembly process. Shipyard workers performing Falk reduction gear overhaul in naval dry docks and machine shops removed and replaced asbestos compressed gasket materials throughout the gear case assembly during each overhaul evolution

VA Claims for Veterans Exposed to Falk Products

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure from Navy propulsion machinery maintenance. Machinist’s Mates and engineering ratings who maintained Falk reduction gears and couplings in naval vessel engineering spaces and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.