Was Lafarge / Lehigh Hanson / Holcim — asbestos documented in litigation?

Lafarge / Lehigh Hanson / Holcim — is documented in public asbestos litigation records as a manufacturer whose products contained asbestos during the mid-twentieth century. Workers in industrial facilities, power plants, refineries, shipyards, and commercial construction who handled or worked near these products may have experienced occupational exposure.

Which trades had the most exposure?

Pipe coverers and insulators, pipefitters, boilermakers, millwrights, and maintenance workers are among the trades most frequently documented in asbestos exposure claims. Workers who cut, fitted, or removed asbestos-containing products — and those working in close proximity during that work — typically had the highest fiber concentrations.

How long do workers have to file an asbestos claim?

Statutes of limitations for asbestos personal injury claims vary by state, typically ranging from one to five years from the date of an asbestos-related diagnosis. The clock generally starts at diagnosis, not exposure — mesothelioma can have a latency period of 20 to 50 years. An asbestos attorney can identify the deadlines that apply to your specific situation.

Can workers file claims related to Lafarge / Lehigh Hanson / Holcim — asbestos exposure?

Yes. Workers diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, or asbestosis after exposure to Lafarge / Lehigh Hanson / Holcim — products may pursue claims through civil litigation. An experienced asbestos attorney can assess available defendants, applicable trust funds from co-defendants, and the states where claims can be filed most effectively.

Can family members file secondary exposure claims?

Spouses, children, and household members who developed asbestos-related disease through contact with contaminated work clothing brought home by an exposed worker may be eligible for secondary (household) exposure claims. Wrongful-death claims can also be filed by surviving family members of workers who died from asbestos-related disease.

Industrial-Furnaces

Lafarge / Lehigh / Holcim Portland Cement Manufacturing Plants

⚖ Litigation RecordAsbestos era through 1980sAsbestos refractory and block insulation on kilns and preheater towers, asbestos pipe covering, asbestos electrical insulation

Overview Product Facts Trades

Litigation Record: Information below reflects allegations in publicly filed asbestos litigation — plaintiff allegations, not findings of fact.

Premises Description

Lafarge Corporation (later Lafarge North America, today consolidated into Holcim Group), Lehigh Cement Company (today Lehigh Hanson / Heidelberg Materials), and Holcim US (along with Holnam Inc., Ideal Cement, Atlantic Cement, and numerous historic regional cement majors) collectively dominate U.S. portland cement manufacturing today. Each of these cement majors and their predecessors operated multiple U.S. cement plants through the asbestos era.

Portland cement manufacturing is among the most asbestos-intensive heavy-industry processes documented in U.S. occupational asbestos litigation. Cement kilns operate continuously at approximately 1450°C and were specified with extensive asbestos refractory, asbestos kiln-shell insulation, asbestos pipe covering on preheater-tower process piping, asbestos electrical insulation on plant motor and switchgear systems, and asbestos fireproofing on plant structural steel through the documented era.

Plaintiffs alleged in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation that Lafarge, Lehigh Cement, Holcim, Holnam, Ideal Cement, Atlantic Cement, and other principal U.S. cement majors — as premises owners of their U.S. cement manufacturing plants — exposed cement-plant workforce and contractor pipefitters, insulators, boilermakers, and trade workers to extensive asbestos materials.

The cement majors have been named as Premises Defendants in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation.

Workers Exposed

Cement-plant operators and maintenance workers
Insulators (HFIAW Local members) insulating cement-plant kilns and preheater towers
Boilermakers (IBB Local members) building and repairing cement-plant kiln shells and pressure vessels
Refinery pipefitters and millwrights working cement-plant capital projects
Electricians (IBEW Local members) working cement-plant electrical systems
Construction-trade workforces on cement-plant capital projects

If You Worked at a Lafarge, Lehigh, Holcim, or Ideal Cement Plant

If you worked at a Lafarge, Lehigh Cement, Holcim, Holnam, Ideal Cement, Atlantic Cement, or other U.S. portland cement manufacturing plant during the asbestos era — as an employee or as a dispatched contractor trade worker — and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, or another asbestos-related illness, you may have legal rights.

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

Lone Star Cement / Lone Star Industries Asbestos Cement Plant Premises

Product Facts

Trade NameLafarge / Lehigh / Holcim Portland Cement Manufacturing Plants

Years ProducedAsbestos era through 1980s

Asbestos ContentAsbestos refractory and block insulation on kilns and preheater towers, asbestos pipe covering, asbestos electrical insulation

CategoryIndustrial-Furnaces Gaskets

Trust FundNo active trust

Exposed Trades & Occupations

Cement workersInsulatorsBoilermakersRefinery pipefitters

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Were You Exposed to an Asbestos-Containing Product?

If you have been diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease and were exposed to asbestos-containing products, you and your family may be entitled to significant compensation through asbestos trust funds and civil litigation. An attorney experienced in product liability and asbestos claims can evaluate your case — at no cost to you.

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Statutes of limitations may limit the time you have to act
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Asbestos Product Liability & Mesothelioma Claims

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