Armstrong Armaspray: Asbestos-Containing Spray Fireproofing Product

Armstrong Armaspray was a spray-applied fireproofing material manufactured during the mid-1960s that contained chrysotile asbestos as a primary component. Produced during a narrow window of commercial availability from 1966 through 1968, Armaspray was applied to structural steel and other building components in industrial and commercial construction settings. Workers who mixed, sprayed, or worked in proximity to this material during its application or subsequent disturbance may have faced significant asbestos exposure. Legal claims arising from Armaspray exposure have been pursued through civil litigation rather than asbestos bankruptcy trust funds.

Product Description

Armstrong Armaspray was a spray-applied fireproofing compound designed to coat structural steel beams, columns, and decking in industrial and commercial construction. Spray-applied fireproofing materials of this type were widely adopted during the postwar construction boom, as building codes and fire safety standards increasingly required passive fire protection on exposed steel members. By coating steel with an insulating layer, spray fireproofing products were intended to slow the transfer of heat during a fire and maintain structural integrity for a longer period.

Armaspray was manufactured under the Armstrong brand, with ASARCO identified in product documentation and litigation records as a manufacturer associated with the product. The product was commercially available from 1966 through 1968, representing a relatively short production window compared to other spray fireproofing materials of the era. Despite its brief market presence, Armaspray was used across industrial worksites during a period of intensive construction activity, meaning the number of workers potentially exposed during application and subsequent building maintenance or demolition may be substantial.

Like many spray fireproofing products of its era, Armaspray was sold and applied before the health hazards of asbestos were widely understood or regulated. Comprehensive federal regulation of occupational asbestos exposure did not begin until the early 1970s, and many workers who applied or worked near these products during the late 1960s did so without adequate respiratory protection.

Asbestos Content

Armstrong Armaspray contained chrysotile asbestos, the most commonly used asbestos fiber type in commercial building products throughout the twentieth century. Chrysotile, sometimes referred to as “white asbestos,” belongs to the serpentine mineral family and was favored by manufacturers for its flexibility, tensile strength, and heat-resistant properties.

In spray fireproofing applications, asbestos fibers were typically blended with binders, cement, and other filler materials to create a mixture that could be sprayed onto structural surfaces under pressure. The asbestos component served both as a heat insulator and as a reinforcing fiber that helped the applied coating adhere to steel and resist cracking or delamination over time.

Although chrysotile is sometimes described as less hazardous than amphibole asbestos varieties such as crocidolite or amosite, regulatory bodies including the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classify chrysotile as a known human carcinogen. Diseases causally linked to chrysotile asbestos exposure include mesothelioma, lung cancer, asbestosis, and other serious respiratory conditions. Under the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA), spray-applied materials containing any detectable asbestos are subject to management and abatement requirements in school buildings, reflecting the recognized hazard posed by these products even decades after their installation.

How Workers Were Exposed

Industrial workers generally represent the primary population documented as having encountered Armstrong Armaspray during its period of use. Spray fireproofing application is among the most hazardous forms of asbestos work because the spraying process itself generates extremely high concentrations of airborne asbestos fibers. When a dry or semi-dry asbestos-containing mixture is forced through a spray nozzle at pressure, the resulting aerosol disperses fine respirable fibers throughout the immediate work area and beyond.

Workers involved in the mixing of Armaspray material before application faced exposure during the preparation phase, as opening bags of dry mix and combining components released fiber-laden dust. Spray operators themselves worked in direct proximity to the aerosol plume, often without adequate respiratory protection given the standards and practices of the late 1960s. Bystander workers—pipefitters, electricians, ironworkers, and other trades operating in the same space during fireproofing operations—could be exposed to elevated fiber concentrations even without direct contact with the product.

Exposure did not end when initial construction was complete. Armaspray and similar spray-applied fireproofing products applied to structural steel remained in place for decades in industrial facilities. Renovation work, equipment installation, maintenance activities, and demolition operations all created opportunities to disturb previously applied fireproofing, releasing asbestos fibers into the air long after the product’s original application. Workers who were not present during original construction but who later cut, drilled, abraded, or removed fireproofed structural members may have sustained significant exposures through this secondary disturbance pathway.

OSHA’s current permissible exposure limit (PEL) for asbestos is 0.1 fibers per cubic centimeter of air as an eight-hour time-weighted average. During the era when Armaspray was applied, no such federal standard existed, and fiber counts in areas where spray fireproofing was being applied could reach levels many times higher than what is now considered legally permissible.

Documented Trust Fund / Legal Options

Armstrong Armaspray does not have an associated asbestos bankruptcy trust fund. No trust has been established specifically to compensate individuals injured by exposure to this product, which means that compensation claims cannot be filed through the expedited trust claim process available for products tied to bankrupt asbestos manufacturers.

Litigation records document civil asbestos lawsuits in which Armaspray has been identified as a product associated with plaintiff exposure claims. In these cases, plaintiffs alleged that exposure to asbestos-containing Armaspray caused or contributed to the development of serious asbestos-related diseases including mesothelioma, lung cancer, and asbestosis. Plaintiffs alleged that manufacturers and distributors of the product knew or should have known of the hazards associated with asbestos-containing spray materials and failed to adequately warn workers of those risks.

Individuals who believe they were exposed to Armstrong Armaspray and have subsequently been diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease have several potential avenues for legal relief:

• Civil litigation against manufacturers and distributors: Claims may be pursued against entities identified in connection with the manufacture, distribution, or sale of Armaspray.
• Third-party premises liability claims: In some cases, claims may be available against property owners or general contractors who directed or permitted the use of asbestos-containing spray fireproofing on their jobsites.
• Companion trust fund claims: Workers exposed to Armaspray on jobsites where multiple asbestos-containing products were present may have concurrent eligibility for claims against asbestos bankruptcy trusts associated with other products used at the same locations.

Asbestos-related diseases typically have latency periods of ten to fifty years between initial exposure and clinical diagnosis. Workers exposed to Armaspray during its production years of 1966 through 1968 may only now be receiving diagnoses of mesothelioma or other asbestos-related conditions. Statutes of limitations for asbestos claims vary by state and typically begin running from the date of diagnosis or discovery of the disease rather than the date of exposure, but timely consultation with an attorney experienced in asbestos litigation is essential to preserving legal rights.