Howden Buffalo and Asbestos-Containing Pipe Insulation

Company History

Howden Buffalo is an industrial equipment and engineering company with operations in the United States, known primarily for the manufacture of fans, blowers, heat exchangers, and related industrial ventilation and process equipment. The company’s name reflects a corporate lineage connected to the broader Howden Group, a global engineering concern, as well as the Buffalo Forge Company, a longstanding American manufacturer of industrial machinery headquartered in Buffalo, New York.

Buffalo Forge Company was a well-established industrial manufacturer that supplied equipment to heavy industries across the United States for well over a century. Over time, through corporate reorganization, acquisition, and merger activity, the Buffalo Forge identity became associated with the Howden Group’s North American operations, resulting in the entity known as Howden Buffalo. The company continued to serve industrial clients in sectors including power generation, steel production, chemical processing, and heavy manufacturing — industries where thermal insulation of pipes and equipment was a standard and widespread practice throughout the mid-twentieth century.

During the decades when asbestos was the dominant insulating material in American industry — roughly the 1940s through the early 1980s — companies supplying equipment to these sectors routinely worked alongside asbestos-containing materials or incorporated them into their products and systems. According to asbestos litigation records, Howden Buffalo and its corporate predecessors are among the industrial manufacturers whose products and operations have been identified in occupational exposure claims filed by former industrial workers.

Asbestos-Containing Products

The specific product documentation associated with Howden Buffalo in the context of asbestos litigation centers on pipe insulation. Pipe insulation was one of the most pervasive categories of asbestos-containing material used on American industrial jobsites from the 1940s through the early 1980s. It was applied to steam lines, process piping, boiler feed lines, condensate return systems, and a wide range of other thermal conveyance systems found throughout power plants, refineries, shipyards, steel mills, and manufacturing facilities.

Court filings document that plaintiffs alleged exposure to asbestos-containing pipe insulation in connection with equipment and systems associated with Howden Buffalo and predecessor entities. Because pipe insulation in this era frequently contained chrysotile, amosite, or crocidolite asbestos — sometimes at concentrations exceeding 15 to 20 percent by weight — the material posed significant fiber release hazards when cut, fitted, removed, or disturbed during maintenance.

Plaintiffs alleged that pipe insulation associated with Howden Buffalo products was present on job sites across multiple industrial sectors in the United States. According to asbestos litigation records, workers who installed, maintained, or worked in proximity to this insulation during the decades of peak asbestos use have been among those bringing claims related to occupational asbestos exposure.

It should be noted that, beyond pipe insulation, industrial equipment of the type manufactured by Howden Buffalo and Buffalo Forge — including large fans, blowers, and heat transfer equipment — was routinely installed in facilities where asbestos insulation was applied to surrounding pipe systems by other trades. Court filings document that plaintiffs in such cases often alleged bystander exposure: that is, exposure occurring not from direct handling of a specific product, but from working in environments where asbestos-containing insulation was present on nearby systems and equipment.

The company is understood to have ceased use of asbestos-containing materials in its products by approximately the early 1980s, consistent with the broader industrial transition away from asbestos following regulatory action by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) during that period.

Occupational Exposure

Workers in a range of trades and industries have alleged asbestos exposure in connection with Howden Buffalo products and operations. According to asbestos litigation records, the occupational groups most frequently identified in such claims include:

  • Pipefitters and pipecoverers, who cut, fit, and applied insulation to industrial pipe systems and were among the trades with the heaviest direct contact with asbestos-containing pipe covering
  • Boilermakers, who worked in proximity to insulated pipe systems in power generation and industrial boiler facilities
  • Millwrights and maintenance mechanics, who performed repair and overhaul work on industrial equipment including fans, blowers, and associated pipe systems in facilities where Howden Buffalo or Buffalo Forge equipment was installed
  • Insulation workers (insulators), who applied and removed pipe insulation in industrial settings and were exposed to airborne asbestos fibers released during those operations
  • Power plant workers, who labored in generating stations where large industrial fans, ventilation systems, and extensively insulated pipe networks were standard features of the plant infrastructure
  • Refinery and chemical plant workers, who operated in process facilities where Howden Buffalo equipment was commonly installed alongside heavily insulated piping systems

Court filings document that plaintiffs alleged exposure occurred across multiple decades, with the period from approximately the 1940s through the 1970s representing the era of highest risk. During this time, asbestos-fiber concentrations in industrial environments were routinely far in excess of levels now understood to cause disease, and respiratory protection was rarely provided or required.

The diseases most commonly associated with occupational asbestos exposure include mesothelioma — a malignancy of the lining of the lungs, abdomen, or heart — as well as asbestosis, lung cancer, and other asbestos-related conditions. These diseases are characterized by latency periods that can span 20 to 50 years between initial exposure and clinical diagnosis, meaning that workers exposed to asbestos in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s may only now be receiving diagnoses.

Howden Buffalo is classified under Tier 2 for purposes of this reference: the company has been a named defendant in asbestos litigation, but no bankruptcy reorganization or associated asbestos trust fund has been established for Howden Buffalo or its identified corporate predecessors as of the time of this writing.

According to asbestos litigation records, claims involving Howden Buffalo have been pursued through the civil court system rather than through a trust fund claims process. Plaintiffs alleged in these proceedings that exposure to asbestos-containing pipe insulation associated with Howden Buffalo products contributed to the development of mesothelioma, asbestosis, and related conditions.

Because no dedicated trust fund exists, individuals or families seeking compensation for asbestos-related disease allegedly connected to Howden Buffalo products would generally pursue claims through direct litigation against the company. The legal landscape for asbestos claims is complex, and outcomes vary significantly depending on the nature of the exposure history, the specific products involved, and other factual circumstances particular to each case.

Importantly, individuals with asbestos-related disease who worked in industries or facilities where Howden Buffalo equipment was present may have exposure claims involving multiple defendants, including manufacturers of other asbestos-containing products used at the same jobsites. Many of those other manufacturers have established asbestos bankruptcy trusts, and claims may be filed with those trusts simultaneously with or independently of litigation against non-bankrupt defendants.

If you or a family member has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, or another asbestos-related condition, and your work history includes employment at power plants, refineries, industrial facilities, shipyards, or other heavy industry settings where Howden Buffalo or Buffalo Forge equipment was present, the following points are relevant to understanding your options:

  • No asbestos trust fund has been established by Howden Buffalo. Compensation claims involving this company must be pursued through the civil court system.
  • Multiple-defendant claims are common. Workers in industries where Howden Buffalo equipment was installed almost certainly encountered asbestos-containing products from numerous manufacturers. Many of those manufacturers have established trust funds, and trust fund claims may be filed in parallel with litigation.
  • Latency periods are long. Asbestos diseases can take 20 to 50 years to manifest after initial exposure. A diagnosis today may be traceable to work performed decades ago.
  • Statutes of limitations apply. Claims must generally be filed within a defined period after diagnosis or discovery of disease. Timelines vary by jurisdiction, and delay can affect eligibility.
  • Documentation of work history matters. Employment records, union records, Social Security earnings histories, and co-worker testimony can all be used to establish the occupational exposure history necessary to support a claim.

Individuals researching exposure history connected to Howden Buffalo, Buffalo Forge, or associated corporate entities are encouraged to consult an attorney experienced in asbestos litigation to evaluate the specific facts of their case and identify all potential sources of compensation.