Olin Mathieson Chemical Corporation-asbestos-Niagara Falls

Founded by Franklin Olin in 1892, Olin Industries began as a blasting powder company, which supplied powder to Midwestern coal fields. Olin’s success allowed for the company’s expansion into small arms ammunition and the formation of the Western Cartridge Company in 1898. By the 1950s Olin Industries product line included brass and other nonferrous alloys, arms and ammunition, explosives, cellophane, cigarette and fine papers and forest products.

Mathieson Chemical Corporation was originally founded in 1892 by Thomas Mathieson, a British engineer. Mathieson’s original company was financially backed by a consortium of seven U.S. businessmen, which allowed Mathieson to design and build a plant to produce soda ash from the deposits of salt, coal and limestone in Saltville, Virginia. In 1897, the Mathesion Chemical Corporation established a hydroelectric plant in Niagara Falls, New York, in order to manufacture chlor-alkali products, including chlorine and caustic soda ash. The Olin Mathieson Chemical Corporation was established in August 1954, through the merger of Olin Industries and Mathieson Chemical Corporation. The area of Niagara Falls where Olin Mathieson’s plant was located was known as Model City, New York. The company is known today as the Olin Corporation, and its Niagara Falls manufacturing facility is located on Buffalo Avenue.

Up until the late 1970s, asbestos-containing pipe covering, insulating cement, block insulation, packing material and gaskets were utilized throughout the manufacturing buildings at Olin Mathieson Chemical Corporation. Workers who applied, removed or manipulated asbestos-containing materials, or individuals who were in the vicinity of where this work took place, are at risk for developing mesothelioma or lung cancer.

At Olin Mathieson’s Niagara Falls plant, pipes, valves, pumps, and boilers transported steam and chemicals used during the manufacturing processes of soda ash and chlorine. Asbestos-containing insulation was applied to pipes and other equipment in order to contain corrosive materials and to maintain a stable internal temperature within the steam and chemical pipe systems. Workers removed asbestos insulation in order to access equipment during maintenance procedures. After repairs were completed, new asbestos insulation was applied. Removing and applying asbestos-containing materials, such as pipe covering, insulating cement and block insulation, emitted asbestos dust and fibers, which workers inhaled.

In the process of representing workers and their families, we have gathered a vast amount of information regarding the type and variety of asbestos-containing products to which our clients were exposed. Our clients understand the importance of securing legal representation as soon as possible after a diagnosis of mesothelioma or lung cancer. If you or a loved one were once employed at Olin Mathieson Chemical Corporation and have been diagnosed with mesothelioma or lung cancer, we urge you to contact us regarding your legal rights.