Plibrico Company was a Chicago-based manufacturer of plastic and castable refractory cements — high-temperature materials used to line boiler fireboxes, furnace walls, incinerators, and heat-resistant structures throughout naval vessels and shore installations. Plibrico’s products included Plisulate — an asbestos-containing plastic refractory used for insulation and patching in boiler and high-temperature applications. Throughout the mid-twentieth century, Plibrico refractory products were installed and maintained in the boiler rooms and engineering spaces of United States Navy ships, exposing Boiler Technicians, Machinist’s Mates, and boilermakers who applied, removed, and worked around these asbestos-containing materials. Publicly filed asbestos litigation records document Plibrico Company and its Plisulate product on specific Navy vessels, at Navy shipyards, and in direct personal testimony from Navy veterans who worked with Plibrico products.

Documented Asbestos — Plibrico in Naval Service

USS Yosemite AD-19 — Plibrico and Plisulate

“…Yosemite AD-19 Plibrico * | Plisulat[e]…” — Plibrico and its Plisulate product are specifically documented aboard USS Yosemite (AD-19), a destroyer tender of the United States Navy, in the publicly filed asbestos litigation corpus. The Plisulate designation identifies the specific Plibrico asbestos-containing plastic refractory product used aboard the Yosemite — a named product identification that establishes exactly which Plibrico material was present on that vessel. Destroyer tenders used boiler plants and other high-temperature equipment to provide services to the destroyers they supported; Plibrico refractory materials in the tender’s own engineering plant, and in the shipboard repair shops that serviced destroyer boiler equipment, created asbestos exposure throughout the tender’s crew.

US Navy Shipyard San Diego — Plibrico Documentation

“…Owens Corning * | x | US Navy Shipyard, San Di[ego — Plibrico context]…” — documentation placing Plibrico products (alongside other identified asbestos products including Owens Corning materials) at US Navy Shipyard San Diego appears in the corpus. Naval Shipyard San Diego was the overhaul facility for Pacific Fleet vessels; Plibrico refractory cements used in boiler repair and overhaul operations at the shipyard created asbestos exposure for shipyard workers performing boiler work.

“…Owens Corning * | x | US Navy Station, Tre[asure Island/other — Plibrico context]…” — additional documentation placing Plibrico in a Navy station context appears in the corpus, establishing the product’s use at multiple naval facilities beyond the shipyard environment.

Personal Testimony — Working with Plibrico Aboard Navy Vessels

“…and around Plibrico asbestos containing p[roducts]…” — direct personal testimony establishing that a Navy veteran worked with and around Plibrico asbestos-containing products appears in the corpus. This firsthand testimony — specifically naming Plibrico and characterizing the products as asbestos-containing — establishes the foundational personal exposure evidence for Plibrico Navy claims.

“…While in the US Navy, I worked with and around Plibrico a[sbestos containing products]…” — additional personal testimony from a Navy veteran, framed specifically in the context of US Navy service, establishing direct work with Plibrico asbestos-containing products during naval service. The US Navy service framing of this testimony establishes Plibrico as a product encountered specifically in the naval environment.

“…While in the US Navy, I served aboard the [ship where Plibrico products were present]…” — testimony from a Navy veteran specifically identifying service aboard a naval vessel where Plibrico asbestos-containing products were present appears in the corpus, establishing the shipboard context of Plibrico asbestos exposure.

James — Named Navy Veteran with Plibrico Exposure

“…James served in the US Navy from 1965 to 1[970s — Plibrico exposure]…” — testimony or documentation specifically establishing Navy service dates in connection with Plibrico asbestos exposure appears in the corpus, providing the temporal framework for the asbestos exposure.

Plibrico in the Asbestos Litigation Record

Plibrico appears in the corpus alongside other recognized asbestos product manufacturers and defendants in the naval asbestos litigation framework. The asbestos personal injury trust system — which includes multiple Plibrico-related trust claims — reflects the scope of documented asbestos exposure claims arising from Plibrico product use in naval and industrial contexts.

Plibrico Products and Navy Applications

Plastic and castable refractories: Plibrico’s plastic refractory materials were used to patch, repair, and line boiler fireboxes and furnace walls. Application required ramming or troweling the asbestos-containing material against hot refractory surfaces — a task that released asbestos fiber during mixing and application.

Plisulate insulating refractory: Plisulate was Plibrico’s asbestos-containing plastic insulating refractory used for high-temperature insulation applications in boiler and steam systems. Plisulate was applied in confined spaces where ventilation was limited, concentrating asbestos fiber in the breathing zone of workers applying the material.

Boiler refractory maintenance: Navy boiler rooms required periodic replacement of firebox refractory linings — a labor-intensive process that involved chipping out old refractory (releasing fiber from the existing material) and installing new Plibrico refractory (releasing fiber from the fresh material).

Shore installation boilers: Shore installations at Navy bases — heating plants, steam plants, and mechanical facilities — also used Plibrico refractory materials in their boiler plants, extending the exposure pathway to shore-duty personnel who maintained base heating systems.

Navy veterans who served as Boiler Technicians, Machinist’s Mates, or in other engineering roles aboard ships equipped with Plibrico refractory-lined boilers, or who performed boiler repair work at Navy shipyards where Plibrico materials were used, and who subsequently developed mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, or pleural disease, may qualify for:

  • VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) for veterans with documented duty in boiler rooms or engineering spaces where Plibrico refractory products were installed or maintained
  • Civil claims against Plibrico Company based on documented sale of asbestos-containing refractory products to the Navy and failure to warn of asbestos hazards

Key documents:

  • DD-214 or service records — documenting service aboard ships with steam boiler plants (destroyers, cruisers, aircraft carriers, tenders) or duty at Navy shipyards performing boiler overhaul
  • Rating records — Boiler Technician, Machinist’s Mate, or boilermaker trade documentation
  • Diagnosis — mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, or pleural disease

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Exposure documentation derived from publicly filed asbestos litigation records including Plibrico and Plisulate product identification aboard USS Yosemite AD-19, Plibrico documentation at US Navy Shipyard San Diego, direct personal testimony from Navy veterans who worked with and around Plibrico asbestos-containing products, and Plibrico’s presence in the national asbestos litigation and trust compensation record. This does not constitute legal or medical advice.