Castablock (Combustion Engineering)

Castablock was an insulating pouring cement made by Combustion Engineering, Inc. and its subsidiary R & I Refractory and Insulation Corporation; the sworn answers spell it "Castabloc."^1,2 In answers given in a lawsuit in February 1968, R & I and Combustion Engineering described it as "comprised of wool, vermiculite and cement, packaged in 50 pound bags," naming no asbestos.² Combustion Engineering's answers in another lawsuit in December 1969 give the same description under the spelling "Casabloc."³

In December 1971, Combustion Engineering answered that it made an insulating cement "that does not contain asbestos" for use in the 1500-1600 degree Fahrenheit range, named Castabloc, "manufactured for sale since early 1966."¹ It listed the cement as granulated wool 33.5%, raw earth 10.2%, vermiculite 17.9% and Portland cement 38.4%.¹

An insurance company's 1981 list of asbestos products, compiled from other companies' answers in lawsuits, gives a different account: it lists Castablock cement under Combustion Engineering as made from 1965 to 1966, with 1 in the column read as percent asbestos.⁴

Asbestos claims

If you or a family member worked with or around Castablock (Combustion Engineering) and later developed mesothelioma or another asbestos disease, a claim may be paid by the Combustion Engineering 524(g) Asbestos PI Trust. Free case review.

What each document says

Every statement about Castablock (Combustion Engineering) in the documents, in each document's own words.

Kind of product

We list Castablock (Combustion Engineering) with pipe covering and block insulation and insulating cement and coatings, from how the documents describe its form. Those pages explain how such products exposed workers.

Trades that worked with products like it: Insulators and Insulation Workers, Pipefitters and Plumbers, Boilermakers.

See also

• Combustion Engineering: the company's history, documents, people, products and plants
• Combustion Engineering on our products page: what the documents say about the company's asbestos products, with sources

References

1. The Potter v. Fibreboard Case File (1969-1972), Answers to plaintiff's interrogatories (December 30, 1971), pp. 1–2.
2. The Tomplait v. Combustion Engineering Case File (1962-1969), Response to plaintiff's interrogatories (February 14, 1968), p. 4.
3. The Potter v. Fibreboard Case File (1969-1972), Answers to interrogatories under Rule 33 (December 23, 1969), p. 5.
4. The Travelers Insurance Company's Product Information Booklet for Its Asbestos Seminar (1980–1981) (April 30, 1981), p. 4.
5. Travelers Asbestos Products Printout, July 1981 (July 1, 1981), p. 19.