Foundry workers melted, poured, and cast metal in conditions built around extreme heat — cupolas, melting furnaces, ladles, and pouring floors. For decades the refractory linings, molding and pouring materials, and protective gear that made casting possible were allegedly made with asbestos. Molders, furnace tenders, ladle crews, pourers, and maintenance workers were exposed to fiber throughout their careers.
How Foundry Workers Were Exposed
Furnace and ladle linings wore out constantly and had to be relined — knocking out spent refractory and installing new brick, castable, and gunning mix released dust across the melt deck. Around molten metal, workers wore asbestos gloves, aprons, and coats and handled asbestos cloth and curtains, shedding fiber with every use. Molding and pouring operations used asbestos-bearing materials to insulate hot metal and protect equipment. Foundry utility systems — steam lines, pumps, and valves — carried asbestos insulation, gaskets, and packing that maintenance crews cut and scraped during repairs.
The Asbestos Materials — and the Products They Came In
Exposure tracked to a handful of material types. Each links to products documented in the AsbestosIndex as allegedly asbestos-containing:
Furnace & ladle refractory — cut, mixed, gunned, and demolished during relines:
- A.P. Green asbestos refractory ladle gunning mix · A.P. Green Kast-O-Lite gunning refractory
- Harbison-Walker plastic refractories & castables · Christy Refractories asbestos tunnel-kiln car insulation, all allegedly asbestos-containing
Molding & pouring materials — millboard and refractory board used around hot metal and mold work:
- Celotex/Carey asbestos millboard · General Refractories asbestos refractory board (reheat furnace) — allegedly asbestos-containing
Protective gear — worn and handled around molten metal:
- Amatex woven asbestos cloth · A-Best fire-resistant garments & clothing — allegedly asbestos-containing
Gaskets & packing — cut and repacked on foundry pumps, valves, and flanges:
- Garlock compressed asbestos sheet gaskets · John Crane braided asbestos pump packing — allegedly asbestos-containing
Browse the full Refractory, Industrial Furnaces, and Textiles categories for more.
Take-Home Risk to Families
Like other dusty trades, foundry workers carried asbestos fibers home on their clothing, skin, and tools — exposing spouses and children who never worked with asbestos. See take-home asbestos exposure.
If you worked in a foundry and were diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease after exposure to asbestos on the job, you may have a legal claim.
Product references reflect allegations documented in publicly filed asbestos litigation. This information is published by an independent media organization — not a law firm — and is educational only. It does not constitute legal advice or provide legal services.