AlliedSignal
Page Edited by Patient Advocate Dave Foster This page has been fact checked by an experienced mesothelioma Patient Advocate. Sources of information are listed at the bottom of the article.
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AlliedSignal is today known as Honeywell, but it made and sold products made with asbestos under its own brand name for decades. Many workers suffered exposure to asbestos because of AlliedSignal, especially mechanics who worked on brakes. Some have sued the company and recovered significant damages.
About Allied Signal
AlliedSignal began in 1920 as Allied Chemical & Dye Corporation. It was a partnership made between five different companies. At that time, Germany dominated the chemical industry, leading to shortages in the U.S. The companies came together to be able to stop relying on German products.[1]
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World War II brought big demand for Allied’s products, but after the war, the company struggled. It didn’t develop new products, and its factories became outdated. It didn’t turn around until the 1960s when Allied began acquiring other companies and expanding its product types.[1]
Acquisitions included Bendix Corporation, and in 1999 Honeywell, which put Allied into the aerospace and automotive industries. After the 1999 acquisition for nearly $14 billion, Allied took on the name Honeywell.[2] Today, Honeywell is a large company that serves several industries and has headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina.
How Did AlliedSignal Use Asbestos?
AlliedSignal began making products with asbestos when it acquired automotive and friction product companies. Bendix Corporation was a big producer of brakes, brake pads, and brake linings that had asbestos to protect against the heat generated by friction in the components.
Honeywell owned North American Refractories Company (NARCO) in the 1970s and 1980s. It made refractory materials, products designed to withstand high temperatures, often used in boilers and furnaces—these contained asbestos.
Who Was Exposed to AlliedSignal Asbestos Products?
AlliedSignal’s companies that made asbestos materials exposed many workers to this harmful mineral. The company’s employees working in their factories and making products with asbestos were at major risk of exposure.
Anyone who worked with AlliedSignal products in other industries also faced exposure risks. This includes mechanics in particular. Those who worked with Bendix brakes likely inhaled the fibers liberated by replacing and repairing the components.
AlliedSignal stopped using asbestos in the 1980s; it had already caused harm to so many. Additionally, people who continued using existing products with asbestos faced risks of exposure. This includes people who used Bendix brakes, for instance, and did repairs to their own cars.
AlliedSignal Asbestos Litigation
Many people faced asbestos exposure over the years because of the products made by AlliedSignal and its subsidiaries. Some of those people got sick with mesothelioma as a result and filed lawsuits against AlliedSignal or Honeywell:
- $1.1 Million for Mesothelioma. In 2002, a jury in California awarded a man $1.1 million for his mesothelioma resulting from asbestos-containing brake components. The man developed the asbestos cancer after working on brakes on his family vehicles for years. The jury assigned AlliedSignal 100% of the liability for failing to warn of the risks of the brakes it sold.[3]
- $53 Million for Mesothelioma and Wrongful Death. Also in 2002, a New York jury awarded $53 million to the family of a man who died from mesothelioma. At the time, it was the largest single plaintiff asbestos verdict in the state’s history. Stephen Brown had worked as a brake mechanic in the 1960s and 1970s. The suit named Honeywell as a defendant, and the jury assigned nearly 46% of the liability to the company.[4]
- $18 Million for Mesothelioma Death. An Arkansas mechanic died from mesothelioma in 2017 after working with asbestos brakes for years. During trial, his attorneys said he worked on ten to twelve brakes per day for more than a decade. The jury found Honeywell liable for the man’s illness and death.[5]
- $30.3 Million to Mesothelioma Widow. A record for New Jersey, a jury awarded a woman $30.3 million after her husband died from mesothelioma. He received the diagnosis in 2002 and died that same year. He encountered asbestos through his father, who worked at a General Motors warehouse, and while working for a few summers at the warehouse. He was only 50 when he died.[6]
Asbestos Trusts for AlliedSignal Victims
If you worked with or handled any of the products AlliedSignal and its subsidiaries made with asbestos, you may be eligible for compensation. An experienced asbestos lawyer can help you determine where you were exposed and the companies responsible.
AlliedSignal, as Honeywell, contributed funds to two asbestos trusts. Depending on your exposure, you may be able to file a claim for compensation with one or both of these. One of these trusts is the NARCO Asbestos Trust, which the company began when it filed for bankruptcy in the early 2000s. The other trust is the Federal-Mogul Asbestos Personal Injury Trust. This covers claims related to Bendix Corporation’s brakes.[7]
Asbestos exposure is both devastating and confusing. You need an experienced lawyer to look over your situation and determine if you have a right to make a claim and if AlliedSignal can be held responsible and liable for your illness.
Page Edited by Patient Advocate Dave Foster
Dave has been a mesothelioma Patient Advocate for over 10 years. He consistently attends all major national and international mesothelioma meetings. In doing so, he is able to stay on top of the latest treatments, clinical trials, and research results. He also personally meets with mesothelioma patients and their families and connects them with the best medical specialists and legal representatives available.