Asbestos Exposure at North American Rayon – Elizabethtown Plant: What Affected Workers Need to Know

For Workers, Families, and Former Employees with Mesothelioma or Asbestosis

⚠️ CRITICAL INDIANA FILING DEADLINE — ACT NOW
Indiana law imposes a strict two-year statute of limitations under Ind. Code § 34-20-3-1. That two-year window begins running from the date of your mesothelioma or asbestosis diagnosis — not the date of your last asbestos exposure, which may have occurred decades ago. Once that deadline passes, your right to compensation in Indiana civil court is permanently lost and cannot be revived under any circumstances.
If you or a family member has already been diagnosed, the clock is already running. Do not wait for symptoms to worsen, for a second opinion, or for a “better time” to call a mesothelioma lawyer. Every day of delay is a day closer to losing your legal rights forever.
Call an Indiana asbestos attorney today. Trust fund claims and civil lawsuits can — and should — be pursued simultaneously under Indiana law.

Elizabethtown Plant Asbestos Exposure: Your Legal Rights in Indiana

If you worked at the North American Rayon plant in Elizabethtown, Indiana during the mid-twentieth century — or if a family member did — you may have been exposed to asbestos-containing materials without any warning of the dangers involved. Workers at this facility may have been exposed to asbestos-containing insulation, gaskets, and thermal coverings allegedly supplied by manufacturers including Johns-Manville, Owens-Illinois, W.R. Grace, and Eagle-Picher — materials that were reportedly embedded throughout process equipment, steam lines, and boiler systems across the plant.

If you or a loved one has since developed mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, or another asbestos-related disease, you have legal rights — but those rights expire. A qualified Indiana asbestos attorney can file claims with multiple asbestos trust funds and pursue a civil lawsuit simultaneously. Indiana law imposes a two-year statute of limitations under Ind. Code § 34-20-3-1, and that window begins running from the date of diagnosis — not the date of exposure. If you were diagnosed recently, your deadline may already be closer than you think.

This page explains what happened at the Elizabethtown plant, which workers faced the highest risk of asbestos-related disease, and what legal options remain open today.

What Was the North American Rayon Elizabethtown Plant?

The Facility and Its Operations

North American Rayon Corporation operated a viscose rayon manufacturing plant in Elizabethtown, Indiana as part of the mid-century synthetic fiber and chemical manufacturing expansion across the Midwest. Rayon production is a chemical-intensive process: cellulose is treated with sodium hydroxide and carbon disulfide to produce viscose solution, which is then extruded through spinnerets to create synthetic fibers.

That process required sustained, controlled heat across numerous industrial systems:

Reactors and heat exchangers
Distillation columns
Steam lines and process piping
Boiler systems
Pressure vessels

Each of these systems was routinely insulated with asbestos-containing materials throughout much of the twentieth century. Workers who handled, installed, or removed these materials may have been exposed to dangerous asbestos fibers in the course of their ordinary job duties.

Why Chemical Manufacturing Plants Were Asbestos-Intensive

Chemical manufacturing plants like the Elizabethtown facility ranked among the most asbestos-intensive industrial environments of their era. Operational demands for high-performance thermal insulation made asbestos-containing materials the industry standard from at least the 1930s through the late 1970s — and in many cases into the 1980s, when aging installations remained in place long after new applications had stopped.

The same pattern is well-documented at comparable Indiana industrial facilities operating during this period:

U.S. Steel Gary Works — documented in asbestos litigation as relying on asbestos-containing insulation and boiler materials through the 1970s
Bethlehem Steel Burns Harbor (Portage) — extensive asbestos-containing insulation and gasket use documented in civil litigation
Inland Steel (East Chicago) — widespread asbestos-containing materials in process equipment and boiler systems
Cummins Engine (Columbus) — asbestos-containing materials in engine testing and manufacturing through the 1970s

The industry-wide reliance on these materials across Indiana’s heavy manufacturing corridor is extensively documented in asbestos litigation throughout Lake County and statewide.

Asbestos-Containing Materials: What Was Allegedly Used at the Elizabethtown Facility

Thermal Insulation and Process Equipment Protection

Asbestos-containing materials were allegedly used at the North American Rayon Elizabethtown plant across several distinct operational categories.

Steam Lines, Process Piping, and Reactor Systems

High-temperature systems required insulation capable of withstanding extreme sustained heat. Pipe insulation and block insulation products reportedly containing chrysotile and/or amosite asbestos fibers — including Thermobestos and Kaylo — were allegedly among the dominant materials used through the 1970s. Workers involved in the installation, maintenance, repair, and removal of these products faced direct contact with asbestos fibers during normal job tasks.

Equipment Integrity: Gaskets, Seals, and Packing Materials

Heat exchangers, distillation columns, and pressure vessels required gaskets and packing materials capable of resisting both heat and chemical attack. Asbestos-containing gaskets, rope packing, and sheet gasket materials from manufacturers including Garlock Sealing Technologies and Eagle-Picher were reportedly standard specifications throughout this era. Routine maintenance and equipment replacement generated repeated fiber release — often in confined spaces where ventilation was poor.

Fire Protection Systems

Structural fireproofing and equipment protection in areas housing volatile chemicals allegedly involved asbestos-containing sprayed-on coatings and board products, including Monokote manufactured by W.R. Grace. Workers applying, maintaining, or removing fireproofing materials may have been exposed to aerosolized asbestos fibers at concentrations far exceeding safe limits.

Boiler Systems and Steam Distribution

Boilers and steam distribution systems were routinely insulated with asbestos-containing block insulation and lagging materials, including products from Combustion Engineering and Johns-Manville. These materials required regular maintenance, repair, and replacement — generating fiber release each time they were disturbed.

Who Made These Products? Major Manufacturers and Asbestos Exposure Risk

Johns-Manville Corporation: Largest Asbestos Insulation Supplier

Johns-Manville was the largest producer and distributor of asbestos-containing insulation materials in the United States through the mid-twentieth century.

Products allegedly present at the Elizabethtown facility:

Thermobestos pipe covering — Johns-Manville’s primary thermal insulation product line
Block insulation and boiler insulation systems
Thermal coverings for process equipment
Gasket and packing materials for valves, pumps, and process connections

Internal Johns-Manville documents produced in asbestos litigation established that company executives knew of serious asbestos health hazards decades before disclosing them — and that this knowledge was systematically withheld from workers and employers who handled their products. Johns-Manville declared bankruptcy in 1982 due to mounting asbestos liabilities and established a trust fund from which eligible claimants may now recover compensation.

Indiana residents with qualifying diagnoses have the right to file claims with the Johns-Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust independently of — and simultaneously with — any civil lawsuit filed in Indiana court. These are separate legal proceedings and do not preclude one another.

Filing deadline warning: Most asbestos bankruptcy trusts, including the Johns-Manville trust, do not impose the same strict two-year deadline that governs Indiana civil court filings. However, trust assets are finite and continue to deplete as claims are paid. The sooner you file both your trust claim and your Indiana civil lawsuit, the stronger your recovery position. Call an Indiana asbestos attorney today to coordinate your filing strategy before the Indiana statute of limitations closes your civil case permanently.

Owens-Illinois / Owens Corning: Kaylo Insulation and Elevated Mesothelioma Risk

Owens-Illinois manufactured Kaylo brand pipe and block insulation containing amosite asbestos through 1958, when it sold the product line to Owens Corning.

Key facts about Kaylo:

Among the most widely distributed asbestos-containing thermal insulation products in American industrial facilities during the postwar decades
Allegedly used at chemical plants and refineries throughout Indiana and the broader Midwest, including facilities along Indiana’s industrial corridor
Amosite asbestos — “brown asbestos” — carries elevated mesothelioma risk relative to other commercially used fiber varieties
Workers who installed, cut, or removed Kaylo insulation may have been exposed to high concentrations of amosite fibers, with corresponding elevated disease risk
Both Owens-Illinois and Owens Corning have faced extensive asbestos litigation and resolved claims through bankruptcy trusts

Filing deadline warning: If you were diagnosed with mesothelioma or asbestosis and believe you may have been exposed to Kaylo or other Owens-Illinois or Owens Corning asbestos-containing products at the Elizabethtown plant, Indiana’s two-year statute of limitations under Ind. Code § 34-20-3-1 is already running from the date of that diagnosis. Do not delay. Call an Indiana asbestos attorney immediately to protect your rights through both trust fund claims and civil litigation.

W.R. Grace & Company: Monokote Fireproofing

W.R. Grace produced a range of industrial insulation and fireproofing products containing asbestos, distributed to chemical manufacturing and industrial facilities throughout Indiana and the Midwest.

Products that may have been used at the Elizabethtown facility:

Monokote sprayed fireproofing compound
Pipe and equipment insulation products
Fireproofing applications in boiler rooms and high-temperature equipment areas
Thermal protection systems for reactors and heat exchangers

W.R. Grace filed for bankruptcy in 2001 due to asbestos liability and subsequently established a trust fund for asbestos victims. The company allegedly concealed knowledge of asbestos health hazards from workers and customers for decades. Indiana residents with asbestos-related diagnoses may file claims with the W.R. Grace trust simultaneously with any civil lawsuit pending in Indiana courts.

Filing deadline warning: The W.R. Grace trust does not impose the same hard two-year cutoff that governs Indiana civil court filings under Ind. Code § 34-20-3-1 — but trust assets are not unlimited. Asbestos trust funds have collectively paid tens of billions of dollars to mesothelioma victims nationwide, and the funds continue to deplete with every claim paid. More critically, if you have a civil lawsuit to file in Indiana court, Indiana’s two-year statute of limitations waits for no one. Call today.

Combustion Engineering: Boiler Systems with Asbestos Insulation

Combustion Engineering manufactured boiler systems, pressure vessels, and associated thermal equipment for chemical manufacturing plants throughout Indiana and the Midwest. Many of those systems were reportedly installed with asbestos-containing insulation as original equipment.

Materials and exposure risk:

Boiler systems with integrated asbestos-containing insulation
Pressure vessel components and associated piping requiring asbestos-containing gaskets and packing materials
Thermal protection systems for high-temperature process equipment

Combustion Engineering has been named as a defendant in asbestos litigation related to the insulation materials installed on its equipment, including cases filed in Indiana courts. Workers who maintained, repaired, or re-insulated Combustion Engineering boilers may have been exposed to asbestos-containing materials during routine job tasks.

Eagle-Picher Industries: Gaskets, Packing, and Sealing Materials

Eagle-Picher Industries manufactured asbestos-containing gaskets, packing materials, and thermal insulation products that were distributed widely to chemical and petroleum refining facilities throughout Indiana and the Midwest.

Materials allegedly used at the Elizabethtown facility:

Rope packing for rotating equipment and valve stems
Sheet gasket materials for process connections
Valve stem packing for pumps and compressors
Equipment sealing materials requiring routine installation and replacement

Gasket and packing work is particularly haz

North American Rayon