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What is an Auto Parts Manufacturer?
Auto parts manufacturers work in parts and assembly plants of automobile manufacturers. They work with the smallest part to the completed vehicle. They assemble a variety of motor vehicles, such as cars, trucks and buses, often on an assembly line. They often complete repetitive tasks according to specifications.
Auto parts manufacturers are often assigned a specific job as part of the assembly process and are responsible for the tasks associated with this position. For example, they may only work with the engine or trim.
These workers may complete a variety of tasks depending on their position, including:
- Positioning and fastening body assemblies
- Fastening together parts to form subassemblies like instrument control panels, doors and seats
- Installing mechanical and electrical components and systems
- Adjusting doors, hoods and trunk lids
- Using a caulking gun to seal joints and seams
- Filling vehicles with necessary fluids
- Applying vinyl tops and pads to vehicle roofs
- Inspecting for any defects
- Operating machinery
- Using hand tools, power tools and welding equipment
How Can an Auto Parts Manufacturer Get Mesothelioma by Occupational Exposure to Asbestos?
Asbestos was commonly used for to construct a variety of automotive parts before the 1970s. Asbestos is resistant to heat and durable, making it seemingly ideal for a number of applications for automotive parts. Many automotive parts confront high friction or intense heat from the vehicle’s engine. Asbestos helped the vehicle prevent catching fire.
Auto parts manufacturers worked directly with components that contained asbestos. When these parts were damaged or sustained wear and tear, asbestos could become disturbed. This could result in asbestos fibers becoming airborne.
A variety of jobs in assembly plants subjected workers to possible asbestos exposure. Workers often cut and trimmed pieces of asbestos insulation to fit the vehicle, which potentially disturbed asbestos fibers.
Individuals responsible for installing brakes were also at risk for being exposed to asbestos because this dangerous material was often included in various brake components.
Workers may also use vacuum cleaners and fans that disturb asbestos fibers. When asbestos fibers become airborne, they can be inhaled or ingested by those in close proximity. Once these fibers enter the body, they can become lodged in the lungs’ linings, abdomen or heart. This can eventually lead to mesothelioma.
While asbestos was more prevalent in vehicle components before the 1970s, some manufacturers continue to produce products that contain this dangerous material. Automobile Shop Asbestos
Additionally, auto parts manufacturers can be exposed to asbestos dust that clings to their clothes. When they go home after work, their family members could be exposed to asbestos dust, possibly suffering from secondary exposure.
Locations in the United States for the Highest Employment Rates for Auto Parts Manufacturers
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the states with the highest employment level of motor vehicle parts manufacturing are:
Similar Occupations as Auto Parts Manufacturers
Similar occupations as auto parts manufacturers include the following:
- Assemblers
- Automotive repair and maintenance workers
- Automobile dealers
- Automotive body and glass repairers
- Fabricators
Lawsuits and Settlements Involving Auto Parts Manufacturers and Mesothelioma
There have been a few notable cases involving auto parts manufacturers who sued the company that exposed them to these parts, including the following cases:
- The Supreme Court of New York delivered a $75 million verdict in 2017 in favor of a woman who developed secondhand exposure to asbestos through her husband’s automotive work.
- A 2017 historic verdict was made against Genuine Parts of $81.5 million in Washington in favor of the estate of a man who used the manufacturers’ friction products on personal vehicles throughout the late 1970s and 1980s.
- A New York jury in 2017 awarded $75 million to a husband and wife who worked in the automotive industry for more than 20 years after finding manufacturers responsible for their asbestos exposure.
- The widow of a North Carolina man who worked in a tire factory for 20 years received a verdict of nearly $33 million on the basis of negligence and failure to warn about the dangers of the manufacturer’s products.
Studies Related to Auto Parts Manufacturers and Asbestos
A number of studies have been conducted into the relationship between asbestos and the risk of mesothelioma for workers in the automotive industry, especially mechanics. Some of these studies include:
- Exposure to Brake Dust and Malignant Mesothelioma: A Study of 10 Cases with Mineral Fiber Analyses is a 2003 study that examined ten cases of brake mechanics with malignant mesothelioma whose only exposure to asbestos was brake dust.
- https://academic.oup.com/annweh/article/47/4/325/160137
- Characterization of asbestos exposure among automotive mechanics servicing and handling asbestos-containing materials combatted claims that automotive mechanics were at an increased risk of asbestos exposure for these workers.
- https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/56d2/94360e15050d6e26b90c23d319986f12dd8e.pdf
- Cumulative asbestos exposure for US automobile mechanics involved in brake repair (circa 1950s to 2000) was a 2007 study published in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology and explored the cumulative effect of years of exposure to asbestos on automotive mechanics.
- https://www.nature.com/articles/7500553
- Mortality of auto mechanics: A ten-year follow-up was an early 1989 study that investigated the mortality rate for automotive mechanics.
- https://www.jstor.org/stable/40965621
Types of Asbestos Products Used by Auto Parts Manufacturers
Auto parts manufacturers may have worked in plants that built parts that contained asbestos, such as:
- Air hoses
- Automatic and manual transmissions
- Body parts
- Brake pads, shoes, drums and discs
- Clutch facings and linings
- Engine components
- Engine hood linings
- Firewalls
- Gaskets
- Heat seals
- Insulation
- Mufflers
- Paints, sealants and glues
- Radiator and heater hoses
- Valves
Manufacturers of Asbestos Products Used by Auto Parts Manufacturers
Workers who worked in automotive assembly plants could have been exposed to asbestos from a variety of products manufactured by companies such as:
- Austin Auto Parts Inc.
- Canton Auto Parts, Inc.
- Federal Mogul
- Fisher Auto Parts, Inc.
- Forest CITY Auto Parts Company, Inc.
- G & T Auto Parts of Mid Orange, Inc.
- Genuine Parts Company
- Globe Foreign Auto Parts, Inc.
- LAS Replacement Parts, Inc.
- L M Scanlon, Inc.
- Potsdam Auto Parts, Inc.
- Raymark Industries
- Ren Auto Parts
- Scanlonos Auto Parts, Inc.
