Premises Description

Plaintiffs alleged in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation that Continental Can Company — headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, and later New York City — operated one of the two largest metal-container manufacturing networks in the United States (rivaled only by American Can Company). Continental Can’s plants produced three-piece steel and tin cans for food and beverage packaging, aerosol cans, two-piece drawn-and-ironed aluminum beverage cans, oil cans, paint cans, and specialty metal containers, and operated dozens of production plants nationwide from the 1920s through the 1980s.

Plaintiffs alleged that Continental Can plants ran high-temperature can-body lithography (printing) curing ovens, lacquer bake ovens, and enamel bake ovens where printed and coated tin-plate stock was cured before forming, and that this equipment was allegedly built with asbestos-containing oven insulation, oven-door rope packing, high-temperature gaskets, and refractory-lined burner chambers.

Plaintiffs further alleged that:

  • Plant steam boilers and process piping supplying soldering, seaming, and can-washing operations were allegedly insulated with asbestos-containing pipe covering, block insulation, and mud
  • Can-body seaming, soldering, and forming machines allegedly used asbestos-containing high-temperature gaskets, packing, and thermal shielding
  • Lithography and lacquer bake ovens operating at 300 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit allegedly used asbestos-containing wall insulation, door-seal rope, and gasket material
  • Aluminum-can-body drawing and ironing lines (from the 1960s forward) allegedly used asbestos-containing coolant-line gaskets and thermal barriers around wall-ironing dies
  • Asbestos-lined gloves, hot-pads, and thermal aprons were allegedly worn by workers handling hot printed tin-plate and hot cans coming off curing ovens

Workers Exposed

Plaintiffs alleged that the following trades faced asbestos exposure at Continental Can plants:

  • Maintenance mechanics and millwrights who serviced and rebuilt lithography ovens, lacquer bake ovens, and can-seaming machinery
  • Insulators who applied and removed asbestos block, pipe covering, and mud on boilers and process piping
  • Pipefitters who cut and installed asbestos-lagged steam, condensate, and lacquer-supply piping
  • Boiler mechanics working on the plant powerhouse boilers and connected asbestos-insulated steam distribution
  • Can-line operators and helpers working downwind of oven-rebuild and gasket-replacement activity

If You Worked at a Continental Can Company Plant

If you or a family member worked at a Continental Can Company plant — Chicago IL headquarters, or any of Continental’s national can-manufacturing plants — and were exposed to boiler insulation, oven insulation, gaskets, or asbestos-lined thermal protective wear, you may have a claim.

Free, confidential case evaluation: Speak with O’Brien Law Firm — (314) 936-2956