E. C. Lindstrom to J-M Plant Managers on Caution Labels for High Temperature Insulations (1964)

A three-page Johns-Manville memo of October 15, 1964, from E. C. Lindstrom at division headquarters to the managers of the Manville, Long Beach, Waukegan and Pittsburg plants and the Jeffrey Mines, headed "Caution Labels, High Temperature Insulations." The Industrial Insulations Division would print a caution on the containers of all its asbestos products in the high temperature line: "Inhalation of asbestos in excessive quantities over long periods of time may be harmful." The program had been reviewed with Dr. K. W. Smith, C. L. Sheckler and A. Pocius. The label would go on new cartons and bags as old stock ran out, with "no stamping or pasting-on" of labels by the plants. The file holds two copies of the memo.

What it shows

The memo lists the products to be labeled, among them insulating and asbestos cements, 85% magnesia, Superex and Thermobestos block and pipe insulation. It shows Johns-Manville beginning to warn about its insulation in 1964, with a caution that spoke of harm only from "excessive quantities over long periods of time," and phased in as packaging was used up.

In Johns-Manville's index

Johns-Manville's legal department indexed the Motley 1,000 in 1984. Its index describes this document as follows:

E.C. Lindstrom (J-M Division HDQ.) memo to K.H. Slater, et al. (personnel at various J-M plants), 10/15/64, entitled "Caution Labels - High Temperature Insulations." Lindstrom discusses J-M's intention to place caution labels on all Industrial Insulations Division products containing asbestos in the high temperature line. Lindstrom states that a program to carry this out has been reviewed by Dr. K.W. Smith, C.L. Sheckler and A. Pocius. The caution label will state the following: "Caution: This Product Contains Asbestos Fiber. Inhalation of Asbestos in Excessive Quantities Over Long Periods of Time May Be Harmful. If Dust is Created When This Product is Handled, Avoid Breathing the Dust. If Adequate Ventilation Control is not Possible, Wear Respirators Approved by the U.S. Bureau of Mines for Pneumoconiosis Producing Dust."

Related documents

• Fred L. Pundsack's Testimony Against OSHA's Proposed Asbestos Warning Labels, with His Letter to Arthur Goldberg (1972)

About this copy

This is document 829 of the Motley 1,000, from the set the Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust's records facility certified as true copies, pages CRMC-Motley1000-Subj-004424 to CRMC-Motley1000-Subj-004429.