Narcogun CRD-347 by Keene Corporation
Product Description
Narcogun CRD-347 was an industrial product manufactured by Keene Corporation, a diversified manufacturing company that operated across multiple product lines throughout much of the twentieth century. Keene’s portfolio spanned industrial materials, construction products, and specialty compounds, and the company supplied products to a wide range of commercial and industrial markets during a period when asbestos was routinely incorporated into building materials, insulation systems, and refractory applications.
The CRD-347 designation places this product within a broader family of industrial materials associated with Keene’s manufacturing operations. Based on litigation records and product categorization data, Narcogun CRD-347 was associated with applications spanning floor tile, pipe insulation, refractory materials, spray-applied fireproofing, and valves and steam traps. These categories represent some of the most common delivery mechanisms for asbestos-containing materials in industrial and commercial construction environments, underscoring the broad reach of this product type across job sites and facilities where Keene products were in use.
Keene Corporation became a significant defendant in asbestos-related litigation as awareness of the health consequences of asbestos exposure grew during the latter decades of the twentieth century. The company’s involvement across multiple product lines and industries meant that exposure claims arose from a wide variety of occupational settings, including manufacturing plants, refineries, shipyards, power generation facilities, and commercial construction projects.
Asbestos Content
Specific asbestos fiber type and percentage composition data for Narcogun CRD-347 has not been independently confirmed in publicly available regulatory filings or product safety documentation at the time of this writing. However, litigation records document that plaintiffs alleged the product contained asbestos as a functional component, consistent with the manufacturing practices of the era in which Keene Corporation was active.
During the mid-twentieth century, asbestos was widely used in products falling within the same categories as Narcogun CRD-347. Floor tiles commonly incorporated chrysotile asbestos as a binder and reinforcing agent. Pipe insulation products frequently used chrysotile, amosite, or crocidolite depending on the temperature and pressure requirements of a given application. Refractory and spray-applied fireproofing materials were among the heaviest users of asbestos, sometimes containing the mineral at concentrations exceeding fifty percent by weight. Valve and steam trap packing materials similarly relied on asbestos fibers for their heat resistance and compressibility under pressure.
The AHERA regulations established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency define asbestos-containing material as any product with asbestos content greater than one percent by weight. Products falling within the categories associated with Narcogun CRD-347 have historically been found to meet or far exceed this threshold in laboratory analysis.
How Workers Were Exposed
Industrial workers represent the primary exposure population documented in connection with Narcogun CRD-347 and similar Keene Corporation products. Exposure pathways varied depending on the specific application category involved, but all share a common mechanism: the release of respirable asbestos fibers into the breathing zone during routine work activities.
Workers involved in the installation of floor tile products containing asbestos were exposed when tiles were cut, scored, ground, or sanded to fit a given space. These activities generated visible dust clouds in enclosed spaces where ventilation was often inadequate. Workers who did not directly handle tile products could nonetheless be exposed through bystander contact with airborne fibers released by others working nearby.
Pipe insulation applications created exposure at multiple stages of the product lifecycle. Insulators who mixed, applied, and finished pipe insulation products worked in close proximity to loose or powdered asbestos-containing materials. Maintenance workers and pipefitters who later disturbed, removed, or worked near aging insulation faced exposure from friable material that could release fibers with minimal physical disturbance.
Spray-applied fireproofing represented one of the highest-exposure application methods associated with asbestos-containing products. Workers who operated spray equipment were directly exposed to aerosolized material during application. Those working in the same areas during or after application, including ironworkers, electricians, and other trades operating on the same floor of a building under construction, were exposed to fibers that settled on surfaces and remained suspended in the air long after application was complete.
Refractory applications in furnaces, kilns, and high-temperature industrial equipment required workers to install, maintain, and eventually remove materials that could contain substantial concentrations of asbestos. Teardown and replacement of refractory linings during scheduled maintenance or unplanned repairs generated particularly intense fiber releases. Workers in refineries, steel mills, and chemical processing plants who performed this work often did so in confined spaces with little ventilation.
Valve and steam trap maintenance exposed pipefitters, steamfitters, and millwrights to asbestos-containing packing and gasket materials. The act of breaking flanged connections, removing old packing, and cutting new gaskets from sheet stock were all documented sources of fiber release. Plaintiffs alleged that these routine maintenance tasks, performed repeatedly over the course of a working career, resulted in cumulative exposures sufficient to cause asbestos-related disease.
OSHA’s permissible exposure limit for asbestos, currently set at 0.1 fibers per cubic centimeter as an eight-hour time-weighted average, reflects the agency’s determination that even low-level exposures carry measurable health risk. Many of the occupational tasks described above, performed before modern exposure controls were mandated, likely generated fiber concentrations far exceeding current regulatory thresholds.
Documented Trust Fund / Legal Options
Narcogun CRD-347 is classified as a Tier 2 product for legal purposes, meaning that claims involving this product are pursued through asbestos personal injury litigation rather than through a pre-established bankruptcy trust fund. No dedicated Keene Corporation asbestos trust fund has been identified in publicly available trust fund documentation at the time of this writing.
Litigation records document that Keene Corporation faced asbestos-related personal injury and wrongful death claims filed by industrial workers and their families. Plaintiffs alleged that Keene knew or should have known of the hazards associated with asbestos-containing products and failed to provide adequate warnings to workers who would foreseeably come into contact with those materials.
Individuals who were diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, or other asbestos-related conditions following occupational exposure to Narcogun CRD-347 or other Keene products may have actionable claims depending on the specific facts of their exposure history, their diagnosis, and the applicable statute of limitations in their jurisdiction.
Because this product falls within the litigated tier, claimants are advised to consult with an attorney who specializes in asbestos personal injury law. Experienced asbestos litigation counsel can evaluate exposure documentation, work history records, and medical records to determine whether a viable claim exists and identify all potentially responsible parties. Many asbestos attorneys handle these cases on a contingency fee basis, meaning no legal fees are owed unless a recovery is obtained.
The information presented in this article is drawn from litigation records, regulatory documentation, and publicly available product categorization data. It is intended for reference purposes and does not constitute legal advice.