Asbestos Magazine, 1952

Johns-Manville's notes

1. Jan. 1952, pp. 22-23 summary p. 197

   Market Conditions. Textiles - large quantities required for equipment produced under defense program. High pressure insulation - good demand predicted with heavy defense program ahead. A-C products - outlook expected higher since many military construction contracts are now being awarded.

2. Jan. 1952, p. 26 summary p. 197

   Harry Kieselbach, retired JMSC Insulation Dept. general manager, has been retained as MIMA Technical Consultant. It is expected technical activities will be expanded with emphasis on developments affecting the defense program.

3. Jan. 1952, pp. 44-48 summary p. 197

   Article written by CJM staff "Asbestos Versus Wood Bark - Their Value as Fillers". Wood bark fillers have recently been recommended as substitutes for asbestos in fillers for floor tile, plastic, asphalt roofing compounds and chemical products. Article describes superior qualities of asbestos.

4. Jan. 1952, p. 54 summary p. 197

   Article on asbestos deposits in Calif. Philip Carey has begun project after U.S. Government exploration contracts were cleared.

5. Feb. 1952, pp. 16-18 summary p. 197

   NPA Order M-96 restricts asbestos use - "The National Production Authority, U.S. Department of Commerce, acted on January 17, 1952 to assure that decreasing supplies of spinning grades of chrysotile asbestos fiber are made available to manufacurers producing end products most essential to the defense effort and defense-supporting industries. Chrysotile asbestos fiber is used in large quantities in the production of textiles, moulded plastics, safety clothing, cable insulation electrical tape, friction materials and packings and gaskets. To conserve the limited supplies of spinning grades of the mineral and provide for its use in the best interest of the defense program, NPA issued Order M-96, effective February 1, 1952. On and after that date, the use of some grades of spinning fiber is prohibited for any other than certain specified end use. Limitations are placed on the use of the material for production of certain other end-use products. The inventory position of asbestos textile manufacturers is reported to have shrunk substantially from 1949 to 1951. "Spinning grades of chrysotile asbestos fibre" are defined by NPA to be any one or more of the following: Rhodesian chrysotile asbestos Grade C & G1, C & GP1, C & G2, C & GP2, and C & G3; Canadian Crude No. 1, Crude No. 2, Crude run of mine, crude sundry, 3F, 3K, 3R, 3T, and 3Z; Arizona Crude No. 1 and Crude No. 2; and chrystotile asbestos fiber from any other sources equivalent to any of the foregoing grades. As a result of today's action, no person shall accept delivery of or use any spinning grades of chrysotile asbestos fiber on and after Feb. 1, 1952; for any purpose other than processing into carded fiber, sliver, rovings, lapps, yarns, tapes or cloths. None of the material shall be put into process or used after Feb. 1, 1952; in any month for any end use specified in Schedule A of M-96 in excess of 50 percent of his average monthly use of that fiber for the same end use during the base period (Jan. 1, 1948, to Dec. 31, 1950) or, in the case of oil burner wicking, 70 percent of his average monthly use of that yarn or cloth for the same end use in the base period. Items in Schedule A are: Theater safety curtains, gun covers, ironing board covers, passenger car woven brake linings less than a quarter-inch thick by two inches wide (except for automatic transmissions), and oil burner wickings (except for direct military orders). To conserve the material further, no person is permitted after Feb. 1, 1952, to put into process or use in any month Canadian Grade 3Z chrysotile asbestos fiber to produce 85 percent magnesia or other high temperature insulations, in excess of his average monthly consumption of the grade for that purpose during 1950. Producers of this insulation must report by letter to NPA by the 10th day of the month beginning in March the amount of 3Z used in its manufacture during the preceding month. The prohibitions and limitations on the use of the spinning grades of chrysotile asbestos fiber do not apply to Canadian grade 3Z used in the production of compressed sheet packing or electrolytic paper. Futhermore, they do apply to spinning grade chrysotile asbestos waste or scrap materials produced in the fabrication, spinning or processing of asbestos fiber that cannot be reprocessed and used in operations permitted by the order, or to any person who uses 100 pounds or less of spinning grades of chrysotile asbestos fiber during a calendar month."

6. Feb. 1952, p. 18 summary p. 199

   Wage rate changes for asbestos workers - by city.

7. Feb. 1952, pp. 20-22 summary p. 199

   Market Conditions. Textiles - "For the first time since the end of hostilities of World War II, we do not anticipate a slack season." High pressure insulation - heavy demand since defense work is speeding up.

8. Feb. 1952, p. 40 summary p. 199

   1950 U.S. Minerals Yearbook now available from BuMines - contains Asbestos chapter.

9. Mar. 1952, pp. 4-6 summary p. 199

   Report on MIMA: "In addition to carrying on a full program in the technical and promotional fields, the Association has worked closely with Government agencies concerned with 85% Magnesia and raw material requirements.

10. Mar. 1952, p. 6 summary p. 199

    ASTM sponsors symposium on Thermal Insulating Materials.

11. Mar. 1952, pp. 8-18 summary p. 199

    Article by W.E. Sinclair "Milling Asbestos Ore" (1st installment).

12. Mar. 1952, pp. 20-22 summary p. 199

    Market Conditions. Textiles - heavy demand will probably continue in 1952, "as there is every evidence that our present defense program will extend beyond that time and much of the cloth business particularly is keyed directly to the defense program. Prices are firm with a tendency toward increases when and if increases are approved by OPS." Saturated paper demand has slowed except on government orders.

13. Apr. 1952, pp. 4-12 summary p. 199

    2nd installment "Milling Asbestos Ore" by W.E. Sinclair.

14. Apr. 1952, pp. 20-22 summary p. 199

    Market Conditions. Defense production in many lines has lagged badly. Raw Fiber - demand especially high on shorter grades. Worldwide search for asbestos deposits unabated. Research underway to find uses for fibers presently considered unsuitable for certain uses. Textiles - Backlog for higher grades, especially for defense requirements. "Published Navy requirements indicate there will probably be little relief for other than government buyers." High pressure insulation - demand for government projects expected to be heavy, balance for the year depending on defense programs. Obit. - J-M's Harold Coss, Mgr. of Insulations & Textile Dept. at Research Center (heart attack).

15. May 1952, pp. 4-10 summary p. 200

    "Milling Asbestos Ore" (part 3) by W.E. Sinclair.

16. May 1952, pp. 18-20 summary p. 200

    Market Conditions. Relaxing of price control on a substantial number of commodities. Demand for almost all grades of raw fiber remains at capacity level. Textiles - no letup in demand, especially for cloth for government requirements. New high for business expected with the quantity of power turbines, marine, industrial and Navy and Air Force construction in process. U.S. Government is large buyer for Asbestos Saturated Paper. Because of expansion of industrial work caused principally by the defense program, heavy demand should continue for high pressure insulation.

17. May 1952, p. 44 summary p. 200

    BuMines consultant Oliver Bowles visits Arizona Asbestos Mines. Twelve mines were operating in 1951, spinning fiber is in demand as it can be substituted for Rhodesian fiber in electric cable covering.

18. May 1952, p. 46 summary p. 200

    Wage rate changes for asbestos workers by city.

19. June 1952, pp. 2-10 summary p. 200

    "Milling Asbestos Ore" (4th and final installment) by W.E. Sinclair.

20. June 1952, pp. 12-16 summary p. 200

    The S. S. United States is to be the safest and most comfortable ship afloat. Important in this achievement are the Marinite Joiner materials developed by J-M; used exclusively for all of the accommodations including crew quarters and passenger areas. More than a half million square feet were installed. Of the many virtues combined in Marinite, the fire protection it offers is undoubtedly the most important. Even a small fire aboard a passenger ship is of serious concern. The attendant smoke, flame and general confusion among those aboard contribute to the loss of life. The special Marinite of the type used on the S. S. United States successfully protects against this kind of development. It will not burn. It comes through fire tests with strength intact. Safety at sea has always been of grave concern, but it was the tragic Morro Castle disaster of some years ago that dramatically focused attention on the problem. Committees were set up to overhaul safety-at-sea regulations particularly those concerning fire hazards. Marinite's launching, so to speak, was on a small island steamer that was reconditioned according to plans of Gibbs and Cox in 1936. This was probably the world's first complete fireproof passenger craft and, interestingly enough, the naval architects for this vessel are the same firm who designed the S. S. United States. Since then, Marinite has become the standard joiner material for firesafe construction. Well over thirty million square feet of Marinite have gone into vesels of all types including small boats on inland waterways, as well as ocean going vessels. The half million square feet on the S. S. United States is the largest single marine installation and on this ship all the combined advantages of Marinite have been fully exploited. The fire safety that Marinite provides is of first importance but its lightness of weight is a close second. This is of particular value on the S. S. United States since less weight is emphasized thoughout the entire construction. So far as installation is concerned Marinite is a great time and labor saver. Most of the sheets were delivered factory-cut to size by J-M. However, some on-the-job cutting was inevitable and the asbestos Marinite panels can be cut and shaped as readily as wood. Marinite can be sawed and drilled using conventional types of hand or power tools. There are two other valuable features that should be mentioned, compactness or space savings and noise control.

21. June 1952, p. 18 summary p. 201

    J-M announces new exterior siding - Colorbestos, an a-c sheet.

22. June 1952, pp. 20-22 summary p. 201

    Market Conditions. High pressure insulation - demand dependent on progress of defense program.

23. June 1952, p. 44 summary p. 201

    CJM moves its Montreal office to new location: 970 Sun Life Bldg.

24. June 1952, p. 44 summary p. 201

    CJM bought group of claims from Bird-Ginn group.

25. July 1952, pp. 14-16 summary p. 201

    Story taken from J-M Power Specialist re: 1903 Kansas City flood. J-M 85% mag insulation on pipes was submerged ten days and remained in service except for 5% which had to be replaced.

26. July 1952, pp. 20-22 summary p. 201

    Market Conditions. Textiles - market strong due to Navy cloth requirements. Brake Lining market at most competitive level since WWII.

27. July 1952, p. 46 summary p. 202

    J-M announced major expansion at its Watson, CA plant for production of industrial insulations, providing an additional 80-100 jobs in the Long Beach area. Construction should be completed by Fall 1953.

28. July 1952, p. 50 summary p. 202

    Herbert Morton Ball appointed Secretary and General Attorney of J-M, succeeding Vandiver Brown who resigned to devote his time to private interests. Mr. Ball has earlier been associated with Reconstruction Finance Corp. (and others).

29. July 1952, p. 54 summary p. 202

    J-M appoints new officers (including C.W. Hite as Director of Plant Industrial Relations).

30. Aug. 1952, pp. 18-20 summary p. 202

    Market Conditions. Textiles - cloth still in heavy demand, primarily due to defense program requirements. Demand heavy for Asbestos Saturated Paper, particularly for government jobs.

31. Aug. 1952, pp. 22-26 summary p. 202

    Wage rates for pipe coverers by city.

32. Aug. 1952, p. 56 summary p. 202

    BuMines has just released its 1950 Asbestos Materials Survey, compiled for the National Security Resources Board. One topic covered is synthetic asbestos substitutes.

33. Sept. 1952, p. 12 summary p. 202

    J-M announced plans for the immediate development of a mine and mill in So. Rhodesia to be operated under the direction of CJM.

34. Sept. 1952, p. 16 summary p. 202

    J-M has completed a new 36-minute color sound film describing its Celite products. The film may be borrowed without charge from J-M.

35. Sept. 1952, pp. 18-20 summary p. 202

    Market Conditions.

36. Oct. 1952, pp. 10-12 summary p. 202

    The Government announced on August 28 that it is considering establishing a mill and purchasing facilities in Arizona to handle chrysotile asbestos from independent producers in that state. The Defense Materials Procurement Administrator says the U.S. is almost wholly dependent on foreign sources for high grade, long fibre, low-in-iron asbestos of the kind known to exist in many places in Arizona.

37. Nov. 1952, pp. 22-24 summary p. 204

    Market Conditions.

38. Nov. 1952, p. 60 summary p. 204

    J-M participates in a company (Asbestos Colombianos) to explore for asbestos in Columbia.

39. Dec. 1952, p. 18 summary p. 204

    Wage rate changes for asbestos workers - by city.

40. Dec. 1952, pp. 22-24 summary p. 204

    Market Conditions. Defense production continues to improve. Millboard showing increased demand, attributable to defense activity.

41. Dec. 1952, p. 48 summary p. 204

    Recent earthquake in California failed to destroy the J-M Transite pipes utilized in the water supply system.

42. Dec. 1952, p. 48 summary p. 204

    The 1952 ASTM Book of Standards is being prepared.

43. Dec. 1952, p. 52 summary p. 204

    ATI elects officers at recent meeting. R.H. Coultrap, Miscellanous Metals and Mineral Division of NPA, addressed the meeting on asbestos textiles required to meet federal demands in the preparedness program.