National Service Industries (NSI), headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, was a diversified industrial and services company with divisions manufacturing building products including asbestos-containing materials. NSI’s building products divisions included manufacturers of asbestos-containing joint compounds, patching materials, and construction products used in both commercial building construction and military facility construction. Bondex International — an NSI subsidiary — manufactured asbestos-containing joint compound and patching products that were widely used in drywall and plaster construction before the phase-out of asbestos in construction materials.

Asbestos in NSI/Bondex Products

NSI and Bondex products used asbestos as a component in construction materials:

  • Asbestos-containing joint compound — Bondex and similar joint compound products manufactured through the early 1970s contained asbestos fiber as a component providing crack resistance and adhesion in the compound. Bondex joint compound was used in the construction and repair of naval facility buildings — barracks, administrative buildings, and support facilities — with application and sanding of the joint compound releasing asbestos fiber during construction and renovation work
  • Patching and repair compound — NSI patching products containing asbestos were used for interior wall repair in military construction, with patch application and sanding operations at naval facility buildings releasing asbestos during maintenance repairs
  • Asbestos-containing texturing compounds — ceiling texture products with asbestos content were applied to interior ceilings in naval facility buildings during construction and renovation in the 1950s-1970s period

NSI/Bondex products were used by civilian construction contractors and military construction trades (Seabees) building and renovating naval facilities:

  • Construction Electricians (CEs), Builder (BU) Seabees, and Utilitiesman (UT) ratings performing interior construction and renovation work at naval facilities used joint compound and patching products with asbestos content during building construction
  • Military and civilian construction workers applying, sanding, and finishing Bondex and similar asbestos-containing joint compounds in the construction and renovation of Navy barracks, administrative buildings, and support facilities at naval stations accumulated asbestos exposure from the compound application and finishing operations

VA Claims

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure from construction materials in Navy facility construction and maintenance. Seabee construction ratings and other Navy personnel who applied or worked in proximity to NSI/Bondex and similar asbestos-containing joint compounds during Navy facility construction and renovation and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.