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Did you work with Sunds Defibrator refiner and pressurized headbox asbestos-fabric packing and asbestos-block motor-side lagging in U.S. kraft and thermomechanical pulp mills? According to publicly filed asbestos litigation records, it allegedly contained asbestos. Here is what it was, who was exposed, and who is responsible. Sunds Defibrator refiner and pressurized headbox asbestos-fabric packing and asbestos-block motor-side lagging in U.S. kraft and thermomechanical pulp mills, sold from the 1950s until the 1980s. Plaintiffs allegedly identified Sunds Defibrator refiners and pressurized headboxes as a source of asbestos-fabric packing and asbestos-block motor-side lagging exposure across U.S. kraft and thermomechanical pulp mills. Plaintiffs allegedly encountered chrysotile asbestos-fabric packing seated in the shaft stuffing boxes of Sunds Defibrator refiners and pressurized headboxes, and asbestos-block lagging applied to the motor-side housing and adjacent steam lines, released as airborne fiber when refiner operators and mill millwrights repacked shafts and tore off motor-side lagging during scheduled shutdowns and turnarounds. Workers allegedly exposed around this product included Refiner operators, Paper machine tenders, Paper mill millwrights, and Pulp mill mechanics. Asbestos claims are brought against the companies that made the products. If you worked with or around Sunds Defibrator refiner and pressurized headbox asbestos-fabric packing and asbestos-block motor-side lagging in U.S. kraft and thermomechanical pulp mills and were later diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or another asbestos-related disease, you may have a legal claim against the manufacturer. This is educational information from an independent publisher — not a law firm — and is not legal advice.
Product Description
Sunds Defibrator, the U.S. arm of the Swedish pulp-technology supplier, provided high-consistency refiners, thermomechanical pulping (TMP) refiners, and pressurized headboxes to U.S. kraft, TMP, and newsprint mills from the 1950s onward. Plaintiffs alleged in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation that Sunds Defibrator refiners and pressurized headboxes were supplied and serviced with chrysotile asbestos-fabric packing in the shaft stuffing boxes to seal the pressurized, high-temperature stock service, and that the motor-side housing and adjacent steam lines were insulated with asbestos-block lagging to retain refining heat.
According to publicly filed allegations, this asbestos configuration was carried forward across Sunds Defibrator’s refiner and headbox product lines from the 1950s through the early 1980s and appeared in kraft, TMP, and newsprint mills throughout the U.S. Southeast and Pacific Northwest.
Workers Exposed
Publicly filed asbestos complaints have allegedly identified the following trades as exposed to Sunds Defibrator refiner and headbox materials:
- Refiner operators aligning plates and running-in shaft packing
- Paper machine tenders working around pressurized headboxes
- Paper mill millwrights repacking refiner and headbox shaft stuffing boxes
- Pulp mill mechanics tearing off and rewrapping motor-side asbestos-block lagging
- Paper mill electricians pulling motor leads on refiner drives
- Insulators and pipe coverers applying asbestos-block lagging on refiner housings