Manufacturer Background

Westinghouse Electric Corporation was one of the two largest U.S. manufacturers of power transformers during the asbestos era (alongside General Electric), supplying utility-scale and industrial transformers to the U.S. electrical grid from the late 19th century through 1989, when Westinghouse sold its Transmission & Distribution (T&D) business to ABB (Asea Brown Boveri). Westinghouse manufactured transformers at multiple U.S. plants — including the East Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania transformer works, the Sharon, Pennsylvania transformer plant, and the Muncie, Indiana transformer plant. Westinghouse also allegedly operated a national network of transformer service centers across major U.S. metropolitan markets, where field transformers were dismantled, rewound, refurbished, and reconditioned. Per publicly filed allegations in U.S. asbestos litigation, Westinghouse stated that it manufactured ‘hundreds of types of transformers for both general application and for specific customer uses since the 1880s,’ and that Westinghouse arc-chute components in its switchgear and transformer product lines ‘contained certain internal asbestos cement board and/or asbestos rope components’ during the asbestos era. Westinghouse’s branded Micarta phenolic laminate is documented as one of the principal asbestos-bearing transformer-internal insulation materials.

Documented Asbestos-Bearing Products

  • Westinghouse power transformers (utility-scale, 1880s-1989; ABB era 1989+)
  • Westinghouse distribution transformers, pad-mount transformers, and substation transformers
  • Westinghouse Micarta phenolic-asbestos laminate (transformer-grade — see dedicated AP product page)
  • Asbestos-filled phenolic spacers (tube, coil, winding, oil duct spacers, spacer sticks)
  • Asbestos cement board and asbestos rope components in arc-chute / switchgear applications
  • Asbestos paper, craft paper, glass cloth, and paper tubing transformer insulation
  • Asbestos gaskets at transformer flanges, bushings, and tap-changer interfaces
  • Phenolic-asbestos transformer bushings

Documented U.S. Plants

  • East Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania — Westinghouse’s principal large-power-transformer manufacturing works
  • Sharon, Pennsylvania — Westinghouse transformer plant (named in publicly filed allegations)
  • Muncie, Indiana — Westinghouse transformer plant (see dedicated Indiana facility page)
  • Westinghouse / ABB transformer service centers across major U.S. metropolitan markets — St. Louis MO (4350 Semple Ave.; see dedicated MO facility page), Detroit MI, Chicago IL, Louisville KY, Houston TX, Cedar Rapids IA, Omaha NE, Wichita KS, Cleveland OH (each with dedicated state-site pages)

How Workers Were Exposed

Per publicly filed allegations in U.S. asbestos litigation, workers were allegedly exposed to Westinghouse Electric asbestos-bearing transformer components during:

  • Transformer assembly at Westinghouse Electric plants — handling phenolic spacers, asbestos paper, Bakelite-type laminate, gaskets, and asbestos cloth during new-transformer construction
  • Transformer dismantling and rebuild at service centers — extracting aged asbestos components from field-aged Westinghouse Electric transformers (highest documented exposure category)
  • Coil-winding operations — fitting asbestos transformer paper and phenolic spacers during winding assembly
  • Machining and trimming — drilling, sawing, and finishing operations on cured phenolic and asbestos-bearing laminate
  • Field maintenance and substation service — utility substation electricians, lineworkers, and industrial electricians handling Westinghouse Electric transformers during in-service repair
  • Reconditioning operations — heat-baking, vacuum drying, and oil refilling of disassembled transformer units saturated with asbestos fiber

Documented Servicing Locations

Westinghouse Electric power transformers manufactured during the asbestos era were allegedly serviced, dismantled, and rebuilt at the Westinghouse / ABB transformer service centers in St. Louis MO, Detroit MI, Chicago IL, Louisville KY, Houston TX, Cedar Rapids IA, Omaha NE, Wichita KS, and Cleveland OH (as well as at GE service centers and independent transformer-rebuild shops). Asbestos-bearing components common across all major U.S. transformer brands include phenolic spacers, Westinghouse Micarta laminate, Bakelite-type laminate, asbestos paper, asbestos cloth, asbestos gaskets, and phenolic-asbestos bushings.

The occupational health risks associated with asbestos inhalation are well established under OSHA standards and documented by regulatory bodies including the EPA. Diseases associated with asbestos exposure include mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, and other asbestos-related conditions, which may have latency periods of decades between initial exposure and clinical diagnosis.

Workers exposed to Westinghouse Electric power transformers at any U.S. transformer manufacturing plant, transformer service center, utility substation, or industrial facility may have legal rights if they have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, or another asbestos-related disease.

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

All consultations are free. No fee unless a financial recovery is made on your behalf.