In 1934, the American Molded Products Company was founded by Frank G. Brotz in Chicago, Illinois, as a manufacturer of phenolic plastic molding compounds. A few months after the company was established, it moved to Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and it was renamed Plastics Engineering Company (Plenco). During its early years, Plenco molded products using molding compounds produced by other companies. Because of a shortage of plastic molding compounds after World War II, the company began to manufacture its own line of plastic molding compounds. In subsequent years, Plenco’s molding compounds were manufactured for sale to outside companies. From the end of World War II until the 1990s, Plenco grew steadily, adding another factory in Sheboygan, as well as in various locations around the United States. Plastics Engineering Company is still a privately-held company headquartered in Sheboygan, and it manufactures plastic molding compounds, resins and molded products under the trade name Plenco.

Up until the early 1980s, Plenco incorporated asbestos into some of its phenolic molding compounds. Asbestos posed a high health-risk danger to mold shop workers who molded plastic parts from asbestos-containing plastic molding compounds, as well as to mold shop workers who transformed asbestos-containing molding compounds into finished products. When asbestos-containing molded plastic products are manipulated, drilled or sanded, asbestos dust and fibers can easily become airborne and inhaled or ingested. Exposure to dust and fibers emitted from asbestos-containing materials can cause mesothelioma or lung cancer. Even workers who did not have direct contact with asbestos-containing plastic molding compounds, but worked in an area where it was manufactured or molded, are at risk for developing mesothelioma or lung cancer.

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with mesothelioma or lung cancer because you worked with asbestos-containing plastic molding compounds, please contact us regarding your legal rights.