Company History

The Bingham Pump Company was an American pump manufacturer based in Portland, Oregon. The business is understood to have emerged in the early twentieth century in connection with Portland’s Willamette Iron Works, the long-established Oregon foundry and machine works, and it later operated under the Bingham-Willamette name. Over the decades the company built a reputation for centrifugal and turbine-driven pumps used in demanding marine, municipal, power, and industrial applications. Through later corporate changes the pump line passed to the Guy F. Atkinson organization and eventually to Sulzer, appearing over time under names such as Bingham-Willamette and Sulzer Bingham.

During the mid-twentieth century, when Bingham pumps were widely distributed, asbestos was a standard material in mechanical sealing and thermal-insulation applications throughout the pump industry. Pump manufacturers routinely incorporated third-party asbestos-containing gaskets, packing, and insulation that were considered safe and industry-standard at the time.

According to U.S. Navy machinery records, Bingham turbine-driven cargo and transfer pumps and centrifugal pumps were documented aboard U.S. Navy vessels including the aircraft carriers USS Nimitz (CVN-68) and USS Forrestal (CVA-59) as documented naval original-equipment-manufacturer (OEM) machinery.

Asbestos-Containing Products

Bingham did not manufacture asbestos as a raw material. However, according to asbestos litigation records, pumps of this era were commonly built and serviced with asbestos-containing sealing components — principally gaskets and shaft packing — and, in higher-temperature service, with associated thermal insulation.

Gaskets seal the mating surfaces of a pump casing, cover plates, and flanged connections. Plaintiffs have alleged that pumps of this vintage were originally fitted with compressed asbestos fiber gaskets and that replacement gaskets specified for such equipment were similarly composed of asbestos-containing materials.

Pump packing — also called shaft or gland packing — was used to seal rotating shafts where they exit the casing. Plaintiffs have alleged that braided or compressed asbestos packing was standard in centrifugal and turbine-driven pumps of this period and that installing, adjusting, or replacing it could release asbestos fibers.

According to court filings, the hazard associated with these components was not limited to initial installation. Because gaskets and packing degrade under heat, pressure, and continuous operation, they required periodic replacement, and each removal of worn material — typically involving scraping, wire brushing, or cutting — allegedly generated airborne asbestos fibers. Individuals seeking to confirm whether a specific Bingham pump model is associated with asbestos-containing components are encouraged to consult asbestos litigation records, period product documentation, or an attorney with access to product-identification databases.

Occupational Exposure

According to asbestos litigation records, exposure to asbestos-containing components associated with pumps of this type occurred across a range of marine, naval, and industrial occupations. The following worker categories appear with regularity in asbestos claims involving pump equipment:

Machinist’s Mates and Shipboard Engineers — Navy personnel who operated and maintained cargo, transfer, and auxiliary pumps aboard ship allegedly worked in direct, repeated contact with gaskets and packing during routine maintenance and overhaul.

Shipyard Workers — Personnel who installed, overhauled, or repaired pumps during construction, refit, or drydock periods may have encountered asbestos-containing components associated with this machinery.

Pipefitters and Boiler-Room Personnel — Workers who connected pumps to piping systems handled gaskets at flanged connections and worked around pump packing and adjacent insulated lines.

Industrial, Power, and Refinery Workers — Because Bingham pumps were used broadly in municipal, power-generation, and process applications ashore, workers who maintained this equipment in plants and stations appear in litigation involving pump-type equipment.

Bystander and Secondary Exposure — Asbestos litigation records also reflect claims by workers who did not perform the maintenance themselves but worked in proximity to those who did, as well as family members who may have experienced take-home exposure from fibers carried on work clothing.

The latency period for asbestos-related diseases — including mesothelioma, asbestosis, and asbestos-related lung cancer — is typically 20 to 50 years following initial exposure, so workers exposed during the peak decades of asbestos use may only recently be receiving diagnoses.

Trust Fund / Legal Status

Bingham Pump Company is classified as a Tier 2 manufacturer for purposes of this reference site. This designation means the company and its corporate successors have been associated with asbestos-related personal injury litigation, but no dedicated Bingham asbestos bankruptcy trust fund has been established. Accordingly, claims involving this equipment are not resolved through a trust fund claims process in the same manner as claims against companies that reorganized under Chapter 11 specifically due to asbestos liability.

Because the Bingham pump business operated through corporate relationships — including the Willamette-era operations and later ownership by the Guy F. Atkinson organization and Sulzer — individuals pursuing legal claims may need to account for corporate succession when identifying appropriate defendants. An experienced asbestos attorney can assist in tracing these corporate histories.

For individuals who worked with Bingham pumps and were also exposed to asbestos-containing products from other manufacturers — a common circumstance in shipboard and industrial environments — separate trust fund claims may be available through those manufacturers’ established asbestos trusts.

If you or a family member worked with or around Bingham pumps and has since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer, legal options may be available.

Key points to understand:

  • Bingham Pump Company has been associated with asbestos litigation but does not operate a dedicated asbestos bankruptcy trust fund. Claims would be pursued through direct civil litigation rather than a trust claims process.
  • Corporate succession involving Willamette-era operations, the Guy F. Atkinson organization, Sulzer, and other entities may be relevant to identifying proper defendants.
  • Workers exposed to multiple asbestos-containing products — as was common aboard Navy ships and in industrial plants — may be eligible to file claims against multiple responsible parties, including manufacturers with established trust funds.
  • The long latency period for asbestos-related disease means that exposure from decades ago can give rise to claims today.
  • An attorney specializing in asbestos litigation can review your work history, identify relevant products and manufacturers, and advise on available legal remedies.

Documentation of your work history — including employers, job sites, job titles, ship assignments, and any product names or model numbers you can recall — is valuable when consulting with an attorney and should be preserved.