Burns and Roe Enterprises never mined, milled, or manufactured the asbestos which led to lawsuits being filed against it by hundreds of people diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, asbestosis, asbestos-related lung cancer, and other asbestos-related diseases. Nevertheless, the New Jersey-based engineering construction firm was negligent in having exposed hundreds of people to the toxic material as they designed and performed engineering work for nuclear power plants for the U.S. military and the Department of Energy. In 2000, the company’s asbestos liabilities to victims grew to over 13,500 and led to the company filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Burns and Roe Company History and Asbestos
Burns and Roe was established by Ralph C. Roe, Allen E. Burns., C.E. Lakin, and J.P. Mailler after they lost their jobs at the Electric Management and Engineering Company in 1932. The colleagues had been engineers and designers, and they set out to provide high-quality services, but when the newly formed company failed to earn adequate funds in its first year, C.E. Lakin and J.P. Mailler exited the partnership, leaving just Burns and Roe.[1]
The two men slowly grew the company, doubling its income over three years and expanding its client list. Still, Burns decided to leave the company in 1935, leaving Ralph Roe to continue operating on his own. He incorporated the business, keeping the name and boosting its reputation with 20 different engineering patents. A contract from The Lansing Board of Water and Electric Light Commission to design a new 25,000-kilowatt power plant sealed the company’s success: the design won accolades in Power Plant Engineering magazine and the company’s staff grew to 42 as it worked to meet the needs of the power plant industry.[1]
World War II saw a continuation of the company’s success, as more power plants were built and the company’s design, engineering, and construction prowess led to it being hired to create steam-electric power plants. By 1948, the company employed over three hundred people and had added the design and construction of turbine and hydroelectric plants to its capabilities. It was also hired to engineer the Aircraft Engine Testing Laboratories for Pratt and Whitney and the Helicopter Test Project for Sikorsky Aircraft. Viewed as pioneers in engineering, they were constantly sought out for help in aviation and aeronautical projects.[1]
During the 1950s, the company was contacted by government agencies seeking help with national defense projects. They began designing missile defense systems and missile installations, including the Nike-Zeus Missile Tracking Radar Project, the door mechanism for the Bull Goose Missile Shelter Project’s missile shelter door, and a missile launcher tower for the Republic Aviation Corporation.[1]
The 1960s saw Ralph C. Roe succeeded by his son Kenneth, who expanded the company’s involvement with large capital projects, including nuclear power plants, desalination plants, and defense and aerospace projects. They also began doing work overseas. They were involved in Project Mercury, NASA’s Manned Satellite Program, and in the 1970s the company moved to the forefront of designing and constructing nuclear power plants. Other projects included the recovery of Three Mile Island’s Unit #2 and the construction of the King Khalid Military City in Saudi Arabia. The 1980s saw the company involved in the construction of Base Operating Services at the U.S. Naval Base on Guantanamo Bay in Cuba and the BZ Demilitarization Plant Project in Pine Bluff Arsenal, Arkansas.[1]
Today the company has incorporated state-of-the-art technologies including three-dimensional computer-aided design and virtual plant walk-throughs to its capabilities and it continues building technically complex facilities.[1]
How Did Burns and Roe Use Asbestos?
Through its years of operations in engineering, construction, and related activities for the power generation industry, an inseparable aspect of Burns and Roe’s responsibility was minimizing the safety risks to plant operators from high-temperature liquids and vapors used to produce electrical power within the power generating facilities they were designing and building. During the years between the company’s formation and the mid-1980s, those risks were typically addressed through the use of asbestos and asbestos-containing materials, which provided fire and heat-resistant properties.[2]
Who Was at Risk of Asbestos Exposure from Burns and Roe’s Activities?
Those who were most at risk of being exposed to asbestos from Burns and Roe’s activities were employees of any of the facilities that they constructed that contained asbestos or asbestos-containing materials and those directly involved in or present during the construction of the facilities that the company built. At particular risk were those who worked directly with or in the areas where the asbestos use was greatest. These include those in the following trades:
- Construction workers
- Plumbers
- Power plant employees
- General contractors
- Engineers
- Architects
In addition to those who were directly exposed to the asbestos at Burns and Roe’s worksites and projects, the family members of anybody exposed were also at risk of illness from secondary exposure to asbestos carried home on their hair, skin, or clothing.
Facing thousands of personal injury claims filed by people who had been sickened following exposure to asbestos on their worksites, Burns and Roe Enterprises began preparing for a bankruptcy filing by compiling a list of over 350 work sites where the toxic material had been used and where individuals face the potential for asbestos exposure. These sites were located all over the United States and included:[3]
- Allegheny Airline terminal (Pennsylvania)
- Bell Telephone Labs (New Jersey)
- Catawba Nuclear Plant (South Carolina)
- Colgate Palmolive Corp. (New Jersey)
- Columbia University – High Beta Fusion Research Lab (New York)
- Dearborn YMCA (Michigan)
- Ecko Products (Tennessee)
- ESSO Bayway Refinery (New Jersey)
- Ford Motor Company Automotive Wind Tunnel (Michigan)
- General Foods Corp. (Kansas)
- Grumman Aerospace (New York)
- Los Angeles Zoo (California)
- Michelin Distribution Facility (New York)
- Minot Air Force Base (North Dakota)
- NASA Langley Research Center (Virginia)
- Norfolk Naval Base (Virginia)
- Philadelphia Naval Base (Pennsylvania)
- Princeton University (New Jersey)
- Salem Nuclear Plant (New Jersey)
- Sikorsky Aircraft (Connecticut)
- Three Mile Island (Pennsylvania)
- Union Carbide Corporation (Oklahoma)
- Wright Patterson Air Force Base (Ohio)
Burns and Roe Personal Injury Settlement Trust.
Burns and Roe was named in its first asbestos bodily injury lawsuit in 1984, and over the following six years, another 150 lawsuits were filed. By the early 2000s, the company was facing more than 12,000 asbestos-related personal injury actions and it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Over the following years, several amendments were made to the company’s original bankruptcy reorganization proposal, and there were several settlements approved between the company and its major insurance carriers to enable the establishment of their Asbestos Personal Injury Trust in exchange for release from some of their liabilities. The trust was funded with more than 172 million dollars set aside to compensate injured workers and their families.[2]
The company pays claims in the order in which they’re received, although it does have allowances for those identified as exigent hardship cases. It provides 32 percent of the established compensation amount to preserve the fund for future claimants. Claims can be filed on either an expedited review basis or an individual review basis.[3]
Victims who choose the expedited review basis must meet the presumptive exposure and medical criteria to be eligible and be paid more quickly, at a lower compensation amount.
The expedited review payments are as follows:[3]
- Mesothelioma – $60,000
- Lung Cancer I – $30,000
- Other Cancer – $15,000
- Severe Asbestosis – $25,000
- Asbestosis/pleural disease III – up to $5,000
- Asbestosis II – $2,000
The individual review process takes longer and undergoes more extensive scrutiny, but offers higher compensation values based on an assessment of the claimant’s situation and what outcome could be expected if the case were to be pursued in the tort system. Family members seeking compensation for secondary exposure are required to pursue the individual review process to ensure that they meet the required exposure criteria. Compensation following the individual review can be set well above the scheduled value identified by the trust, but cannot exceed the maximum value, as follows:[]
- Mesothelioma – $90,000 (maximum – $500,000)
- Lung Cancer I – $15,000-40,000 (maximum – $200,000)
- Other Cancer – $18,500 (maximum – $50,000)
- Severe Asbestosis – $27,000 (maximum – $125,000)
- Asbestosis/pleural disease – $2,300-$5,400 (maximum $15,000)
The average settlement payment is $60,000.[3]
What to Do if You Were Exposed to Asbestos Following Exposure at a Burns and Roe Site
Being diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, or any other asbestos-related disease is a life-changing and traumatic event. Because of the long latency period between asbestos exposure and the appearance of symptoms, many patients need assistance in identifying the source or sources of their exposure to the toxic material, as well as guidance on how best to move forward. The best place to get the information you need is an experienced asbestos attorney. These professionals have deep knowledge of the laws about asbestos exposure, as well as resources to help you match your occupational history to the various job sites and products that have already been identified as risk factors. A mesothelioma lawyer will provide you with the various options available to you, including any companies you may be eligible to file a personal injury lawsuit against, or filing a claim with the Burns and Roe Personal Injury Settlement Trust.
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