Knowledge of Asbestos Hazards by Companies in the Asbestos Industry.

(These four companies are a small representation.)

Owens-Corning | W.R. Grace & Co.
Bendix Corp. | The Gypsum Association

THE GYPSUM ASSOCIATION
In the 1960s and early 1970s, the Gypsum Association was a group of companies that included Celotex Corp., Georgia Pacific, National Gypsum Company, Flintkote and United States Gypsum Company. These companies manufactured products such as joint compound, a product used in buildings and homes to seal and smooth cracks in drywall.

In 1973, the association tested the level of asbestos released during the mixing and sanding of its members’ joint and drywall compounds and found that the asbestos dust levels greatly exceeded the federal standards. In spite of this testing, many of the group’s members decided not to put asbestos warnings on their products. Neither did they replace the products with non-asbestos joint compounds which worked just as well. Several manufacturers continued selling asbestos joint compounds until the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission banned the use of asbestos in these products in 1978.