Product Description

Plaintiffs alleged in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation that W.R. Grace & Co.’s Monokote MK-3 was a spray-applied cementitious fireproofing product allegedly formulated with chrysotile asbestos fiber blended into a gypsum-based binder. According to publicly filed asbestos litigation records, Monokote MK-3 was allegedly one of the most widely specified sprayed fireproofing systems in U.S. commercial high-rise construction during the 1960s and early 1970s, applied by hopper gun to structural steel columns, beams, and metal floor decks to achieve fire-resistance ratings required by building codes.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency banned spray-applied asbestos fireproofing in 1973 under 40 CFR Part 61 (National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants). Plaintiffs alleged that Monokote MK-3 with asbestos content was manufactured and sold through the 1973 EPA cutoff, and that sprayed material remained in place inside buildings constructed during that era — creating continuing exposure risk for renovation, demolition, and maintenance workers for decades after production ended.

Workers Exposed

Plaintiffs alleged in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation that the following trades were exposed to Monokote MK-3 sprayed fireproofing:

  • Sprayed fireproofing applicators and hopper-fillers — mixing dry asbestos-containing product with water at the hopper, operating the spray gun, and inhaling overspray during application to columns and decks
  • Ironworkers — erecting and adjusting structural steel while Monokote was being sprayed on adjacent bays, and later cutting or drilling through cured fireproofing
  • Drywall finishers and carpenters — hanging ceilings and partitions beneath sprayed decks, disturbing overspray and fallout
  • Insulators — patching, rework, and encapsulation of sprayed fireproofing around penetrations and hangers
  • Building maintenance and HVAC technicians — working above ceiling tiles in plenums where sprayed Monokote remained on the underside of decks
  • Electricians — running conduit and cable tray through ceiling voids containing sprayed asbestos fireproofing
  • Demolition workers — encountering aged, friable Monokote during high-rise renovation and tear-down
  • Post-1973 abatement contractors and workers — removing, encapsulating, or repairing legacy Monokote in occupied buildings