Textile work encompasses many different processes and operations, including fiber synthesis, weaving, manufacturing, dying, and finishing,[1] as well as repairing and maintaining the equipment that makes those processes possible. Before the dangers of asbestos became known, textiles were heavily contaminated with the mineral, and so was much of the machinery on which the textiles were made. This combination placed textile workers at significant risk of developing mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases.
How Did Textile Mills Use Asbestos?
The idea of including asbestos in fabric may seem remarkable today, but it was common practice until the mineral was identified as toxic. One of the first reported uses of asbestos was for candle and lamp wicks, and the Ancient Egyptians used asbestos cloth during the mummification process of pharaohs. There are reports that Ancient Greeks would throw their asbestos-containing napkins and linens into the fire to clean them, and in medieval times asbestos-containing fabric was used to make tablecloths on which candles could safely be set.[2]
With the arrival of the Industrial Revolution, textile production transformed from small operations to a highly mechanized industry. Where yarn and cloth were once purchased directly from spinners and weavers who made fabrics and yarns themselves, the invention of the flying shuttle — which wove threads horizontally across vertical threads — changed everything. Multiple innovations in spinning followed, and soon textile mills and factories had mechanized all three aspects of the textile industry; raw material production, spinning, and weaving.[2] Workers in textile mills operated in dangerous and crowded conditions made worse by the addition of asbestos to the material that was being made.
Textile mills used both chrysotile asbestos and crocidolite asbestos to make fabric, but especially chrysotile, which possesses the same softness and pliability that cotton and flax do. Because of these properties, asbestos is the only mineral that can be woven into fabric. These characteristics made it suitable for weaving, while its strength, insulating properties, and fireproofing capabilities made it the right choice for a wide range of applications. including:[3]
- Curtains and seating upholstery for theaters, auditoriums, and public buildings
- Firefighting and industrial protective garments, including gloves and coats
- Boiler and blast furnace cloths and blankets
- Welding blankets
- Circus tents
- Camping tents
- Aprons
- Furniture padding
- Heat mats
- Oven mitts
- Pipe coverings
- Roofing felts
- Ropes
- Tapes
- Yarn
- Military textiles
- Ironing board padding
- Clutch facings
- Brake linings
- Protective garments for laboratory workers
- Public building displays such as banners, signage, and flags
Though fiber made with asbestos offered important benefits, the process of making asbestos textile products is more difficult than doing so with other materials because asbestos fiber does not have scaly bands like wool, or rough, twisted fibers like cotton, which make them bond with each other. Making material out of asbestos required special carding machines to open and blend the mineral’s fibers. The process involved fiberizing the asbestos, removing any rock impurities, carding it into a sheet, and then separating the material and winding it onto spools where it could be spun into yarn that could then be made into thread, cord, or rope.[4]
Textile mill work generates a tremendous amount of dust, and when working with asbestos fibers, the dust was particularly toxic. The process of breaking down crude asbestos fibers to prepare them for spinning involved the use of steel wheels that mechanically crushed the fibers and broke them. The crushed fibers were then passed over shaking screens and cleaned, and then the processed asbestos fibers were gathered using air suction.[4]
Later, the asbestos fibers would be blended with cotton or other fibers on equipment that fed it through sharp steel bristle rotating brushes that combed them into position. The asbestos yarn or thread would eventually be wound into roll form and rubbed into untwisted strands. Throughout the process, tiny asbestos fibers and particles would break free, where they were easily inhaled and ingested by whoever was doing the work, operating the equipment, or in the general vicinity.[4]
How Were Textile Workers Exposed to Asbestos?
Employees who worked in textile mills were exposed to raw asbestos continuously. They carried bags of raw asbestos from their point of delivery to the mill over to the carding machines that represented the initial point of processing. Workers moved the asbestos-containing materials around the mills through each step of the fabricating process. They controlled the equipment that broke the fibers down, shook it, wound it, and spun it. Each of these steps generated tremendous amounts of asbestos dust that they worked in each day. Textile mill workers were also responsible for cleaning and repairing much of the equipment and handling the asbestos-containing materials that they were making.
In addition to the asbestos fibers and asbestos-containing fabrics textile workers were exposed to while they were making various types of materials, there were other types of occupational exposure risks in the mills. Some employees risked exposure from the equipment that they worked with. Looms, drying machines, and boilers were insulated with asbestos, and other types of processing equipment were made using asbestos-containing parts including asbestos gaskets, valves, and packing materials.
A case study conducted in 2002 by researchers from the Center for Occupational Toxicology in South Korea reported on the case of a worker diagnosed with lung cancer after having worked in a non-asbestos textile company for 25 years. That employee was found to have been involved in repairing the spinning machines in the mill. Specifically, he was responsible for the removal and installation of parts that were used to protect against gear abrasion. Air samples obtained in the factory found that he had been exposed to crocidolite fibers to a sufficient degree to have caused his illness.[5]
Companies Whose Products Exposed Textile Mill Workers to Asbestos.
Many manufacturers made products that exposed textile mill workers to the risk of asbestos-related diseases beyond what came from the fabric they were making. These included:
- Thermoid Corp.: Asbestos packing material and asbestos brakes for industrial machinery used in textile mills.
- DuPont De Nemours and Company, Inc.
- Southern Textile Corp.
- Southern Asbestos Company
- Laclede Christy: Asbestos permaboard, block insulation, wire insulation, and heating ducts for industrial job sites including textile mills.
- Raymark Industries: Asbestos brakes, clutches, packing material, and valves for textile mill machinery.
- Johns Manville: Insulating boards, cement panels, and floor tiles.
- Uniroyal: Asbestos lagging cloth used to wrap insulation around pipes and equipment in textile mills.
- Regal Textile
- Coats & Clark Thread Company
- Garlock Sealing Technologies: Asbestos sheet gaskets, seals, and packing material used on textile mill machinery.
- H.K. Porter Co.: Asbestos brakes, gaskets, steam valves, and pipes sold to textile mills.
What Is the Mesothelioma Risk for Textile Workers?
There have been multiple studies conducted assessing textile workers’ risk of asbestos-related diseases. These include:
- A report describing a series of three studies of asbestos factories in South Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut to assess the impact of mineral fiber type and industrial process on mortality from malignant mesothelioma, respiratory cancer, and asbestosis. The researchers concluded that the risk of lung cancer in textile processing is much greater than in chrysotile production or the friction products industry, even if the exposure within the mill was from processes in which even very small quantities of asbestos were used.[6]
- A 2016 study of occupational cancer in the textile industry found that workers in various job categories in textile industries are at a higher risk of developing cancer and that there was a significant increase in the risk of malignant mesothelioma in textile workers. The report noted that unlike what was true of other cancers, stopping the exposure of the workers to asbestos did not modify the subsequent mesothelioma risk.[7]
- In 1973, researchers examining the reasons that the number of asbestosis cases among textile manufacturing workers in the United Kingdom was higher than that of other occupations analyzed the dust in textile worksites. They established that textile manufacturing processes generated dust that was 68 percent asbestos compared to 22 percent in friction material settings, 25 percent in shingle manufacturing, and 12 percent in asbestos pipe production. The researchers also determined that carding produced the greatest dust concentrations in the textile operations process.[8]
Did Textile Mill Owners Know About the Risk of Asbestos?
As was true of many business executives and owners whose companies used asbestos, leaders in the textile industry knew of its dangers but took no action to protect workers. The Asbestos Textile Institute commissioned a report in 1947 that concluded that the exposure limit that had been recommended in 1938 could not be said to be safe on available information, “nor has information been developed permitting a better estimate of safe dustiness.” Textile mills continued using unsafe limits for another quarter of a century.[9]
Additionally, at a meeting of the same industry group in 1947, members voted down a proposal to commission a cancer study, with some arguing “that such an investigation would stir up a hornet’s nest and put the whole industry under suspicion.”[9] Documents like these and many others have provided important evidence in support of textile mill workers who have pursued justice against the companies whose negligence and reckless disregard led to their being diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, and other deadly diseases.
Are You a Textile Worker Who Was Exposed to Asbestos?
Textile workers are at high risk for being diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease, and the same is true of their family members who may have suffered secondary exposure to asbestos fibers carried into their homes on the worker’s hair, skin, or clothing. It’s important for you to notify your healthcare professional of the risks you face so they can monitor your health and screen for asbestos-related diseases.
If you’ve been diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease, a mesothelioma attorney will be an invaluable resource in your journey moving forward. These experienced professionals can provide you with information to help you make the best decisions about filing a personal injury lawsuit against the companies whose products you’ve been exposed to. In the case of asbestos companies that have established asbestos bankruptcy trusts, an asbestos attorney can help you file claims with them for compensation, as well as to identify any other companies whose negligence may have been involved in your illness. To preserve your rights, act quickly after being diagnosed to ensure that you file a claim before the statute of limitations expires.
