Johns Manville Corporation — headquartered in Denver, Colorado, and formerly in New York — was the dominant manufacturer of asbestos-containing thermal insulation products in the United States, with a nationwide network of manufacturing plants producing asbestos block insulation, pipe covering, sectional covering, insulation cement, and asbestos cloth under the Manville brand and successor product lines. Johns Manville supplied asbestos insulation products to the US Navy under direct supply contracts and through naval shipyards, making their products the most widely installed asbestos insulation material in the US fleet across all vessel classes using steam propulsion.

Johns Manville Navy Supply Record

Johns Manville held direct Navy supply contracts for asbestos thermal insulation throughout World War II and the postwar Cold War shipbuilding programs:

  • Asbestos block insulation — the primary thermal insulation material for boiler casings, turbine casings, and high-temperature equipment in Navy engineering plants was manufactured and supplied by Johns Manville under Navy specifications throughout the 1940s-1970s
  • Asbestos pipe covering — sectional asbestos pipe covering in standard Navy pipe sizes, used to insulate steam piping, feedwater piping, and auxiliary steam distribution throughout Navy ships, was a core Johns Manville product supplied to Naval shipyards and contractors
  • Asbestos insulation cement — used to seal and finish insulation block joints and irregular surfaces, applied as a finishing layer over pipe and equipment insulation throughout the engineering plant
  • Asbestos cloth and tape — used at expansion joints, irregular surfaces, and as a finishing layer over block insulation, supplied by Johns Manville to insulation contractors and Navy yards

Fleet-Wide Product Distribution

Johns Manville insulation products were distributed to the major Naval construction shipyards — Bath Iron Works, Newport News Shipbuilding, Bethlehem Steel, Federal Shipbuilding, Puget Sound Shipbuilding, and others — where their asbestos block and pipe covering products were installed by insulation contractor trades during vessel construction. The company’s dominant market position in asbestos insulation meant their products were present in virtually every class of steam-powered Navy vessel built between 1940 and the mid-1970s.

Bankruptcy and the Manville Trust

Johns Manville filed for bankruptcy in 1982 due to asbestos liability, creating what became the Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust — one of the earliest and largest asbestos bankruptcy trusts. The Manville Trust continues to process claims from Navy veterans and others with asbestos-related diseases resulting from exposure to Johns Manville insulation products. Veterans diagnosed with mesothelioma who served aboard vessels with Johns Manville insulation — which encompasses virtually all steam-powered pre-1975 Navy vessels — may have Manville Trust claims available in addition to VA benefits.

VA Claims

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure from insulation products in Navy engineering plants. Engineering ratings who worked with or in proximity to asbestos insulation in Navy steam plants — including insulation manufactured by Johns Manville — and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.