National Gypsum Company & Asbestos

The National Gypsum Company was formed in 1925 and is based out of Charlotte, North Carolina. NGC is known for manufacturing and selling a variety of construction materials.

Starting in 1933, however, NGC began using asbestos in some of the building materials and products they manufactured. Exposure to asbestos can cause serious health problems like mesothelioma, a rare and aggressive cancer.

Although many NGC products contained asbestos, National Gypsum is perhaps most known for their Gold Bond brand of construction products. NGC sold various asbestos-containing products under the National Gypsum Gold Bond label and under various other trade names.

With asbestos litigation against the company growing, National Gypsum quit using asbestos in their products entirely in 1981 — but the damage had already been done. Countless workers, consumers and families across the country had been exposed.

Because asbestos has natural strength, electrical resistance and fireproof properties, many asbestos manufacturers used the toxic mineral in various construction and building materials.

National Gypsum manufactured and sold a variety of asbestos-containing products, including:

• Acoustical plaster
• Perforated panels
• Spray texture
• Wallboard materials
• National Gypsum joint compound

In the 1970s, National Gypsum began removing asbestos from some of their building materials, and in 1981, they stopped using asbestos in the rest of their products.

However, the company’s asbestos-containing construction materials may still be in some settings (like older buildings constructed before NGC stopped using asbestos).

In addition to those who worked at National Gypsum, a number of different roles may have come in contact with the company’s asbestos-containing products and building materials since they were used in commercial, residential and industrial settings.

The following occupations may have been exposed to NGC asbestos products:

• Acoustics workers
• Building maintenance workers
• Carpenters
• Cement workers
• Construction workers
• Drywallers
• Factory workers
• Insulators
• Lathers
• Painters
• Phone company workers
• Pipefitters
• Plasterers
• Sheetrock installers
• Warehouse workers

Unfortunately, workers in these positions may have unknowingly brought asbestos fibers home with them, exposing their loved ones as well.