USS Piedmont (AD-17) was a Dixie-class destroyer tender commissioned 5 January 1944 — Pacific Theater WWII destroyer support, Korean War, Cold War service, and Vietnam War operations through 1982 across nearly four decades of fleet maintenance support.
The 27-entry equipment manifest below is sourced from ship-specific BUSHIPS (Bureau of Ships) documentation identifying machinery and equipment installed aboard. Each entry is documented equipment with verified manufacturer attribution — primary-source material for asbestos-exposure case development by Navy veterans and surviving families.
Equipment Manifest
| Equipment | Manufacturer | Qty | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boilers - Superheated single uptake water tube | Babcock & Wilcox | ||
| Combustion Control | Mason-Neilan | ||
| Blowers | B F Sturtevant | ||
| Main Propulsion Turbine - Single Flow Impulse Type | Allis Chalmers | ||
| Reduction Gear | De Laval | ||
| Reduction Gear | Falk Corp | ||
| Main Condensers | Worthington Pump Corp | 2 | |
| Auxiliary Condensers | C. H. Wheeler | ||
| Main Distilling Apparatus | Aldrich Pump Co | ||
| Ships Service Turbine Drive Generators | General Electric | ||
| Ships Service Turbine Drives | DeLaval | 3 | |
| Emergency Diesel Generators | General Motors | 4 | |
| Ships Service Air Compressors | Worthington | 4 | 2HP-2LP |
| Ships Service Air Compressor | Gardner Denver | 1 | MP |
| Main Refrigeration | York | 2 | |
| Main Refrigeration | Carrier | 2 | |
| Auxiliary Refrigeration | Frick Ice Maker Co | 1 | |
| Fuel Oil Heater | Davis Engineering Corp | ||
| Evaporation Unit | Grisom Russell | ||
| Evaporation Unit | Foster Wheeler | ||
| Main Feed Pump | Worthington | ||
| Main Feed Pump | Ingersoll Rand | ||
| Main Condensers Pump | Worthington | ||
| Main Condensers Circulating Pump | Worthington | ||
| Main Fuel Oil Pump | Worthington | ||
| Sanitary Pump | Gould Pump Co | ||
| Distiller Condensation Pump | Aldrich Pump Co |
Asbestos-Containing Materials Aboard Piedmont
The standard asbestos-containing materials installed throughout U.S. Navy destroyer tenders of this era are documented to have included:
- Pipe lagging and thermal insulation on main steam, feed-water, fuel-oil, condensate, and saltwater piping throughout machinery spaces
- Boiler block insulation, refractory brick, and gun-blocks around the main boilers
- Asbestos gaskets and braided packing in valves, flanges, pumps, condensers, heat exchangers, and turbine glands
- Insulation jackets and removable lagging on main propulsion turbines, reduction gears, ship-service turbine generators, and forced-draft blowers
- Sheet asbestos and Marinite panels as fire-stops, bulkhead insulation, and overhead insulation
- Vinyl asbestos floor tile (VAT) in passageways, berthing, mess decks, and habitable compartments
- Asbestos rope, wick, and tape in gland-seal applications throughout the engineering plant
Sailors in Boilerman, Machinist’s Mate, Engineman, Electrician’s Mate, Hull Maintenance Technician, Damage Controlman, and other engineering ratings worked routinely in spaces where these materials were installed, maintained, ripped out, and replaced.
VA Benefits for Piedmont Veterans
The Department of Veterans Affairs recognizes mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, and pleural disease as conditions presumed to be service-connected for Navy veterans with documented asbestos exposure. The Piedmont equipment manifest is direct documentary evidence of the asbestos-containing materials her crew worked around throughout her service life.
Parallel claims against the asbestos bankruptcy trust funds established by the manufacturers of these products are also available, and do not reduce VA compensation.
Speak with an asbestos attorney with Navy veterans experience →
Equipment manifest derived from public-record BUSHIPS documentation specific to USS Piedmont (AD-17). Manufacturer attribution links to documented asbestos-product histories on AsbestosIndex.com where available. Editorial review applied per site standards.