Koller Craft LLC Fenton, Missouri — Asbestos Exposure in Phenolic Resin Manufacturing

Source note: Products, equipment, and companies identified in this article are drawn from public asbestos litigation records, court filings, EPA and OSHA regulatory databases, and publicly available industry records. Product identifications and company references reflect what has been alleged or documented in publicly filed litigation. This article does not constitute a finding of liability against any company.

If you worked at Koller Craft LLC in Fenton, Missouri — or if a family member did — and you have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, you may have legal claims that experienced asbestos attorneys have successfully pursued for other former workers at this facility. Missouri law gives you five years from the date of your medical diagnosis to file under Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.120. Contact a mesothelioma lawyer Missouri before that window closes.

What Was Koller Craft LLC?

Koller Craft LLC is a plastics manufacturing company founded in 1941 by A.J. Koller Sr. in the Fenton, Missouri area of St. Louis County — making it one of the oldest custom plastics molding operations in the Midwest. The company has operated as a third-generation, family-owned business for more than eight decades.

Fenton facility: 1400 S Old Highway 141, Fenton, MO 63026 — a 132,000-square-foot manufacturing plant operating 22 injection presses ranging from 88 to 2,200 tons of clamping force.

The critical asbestos period spans Koller Craft’s founding through the late 1970s. The company’s original operations were built around thermoset plastics molding — specifically phenolic resin compounds, the Bakelite-type materials that were the dominant industrial plastic of the mid-twentieth century. Thermoset operations shifted toward thermoplastic injection molding beginning in the 1960s and 1970s, but the phenolic era left its mark on workers who processed these materials throughout those decades.

The Phenolic Resin Exposure Pathway

What Is Phenolic Resin — and Why Does It Matter for Asbestos Claims?

Phenolic resin (commonly called Bakelite after its trade name) is a thermoset plastic produced from phenol and formaldehyde under heat and pressure. From the 1930s through the late 1970s, asbestos fiber was reportedly blended directly into phenolic molding compound as a filler and reinforcing agent — typically chrysotile (white asbestos), and in some formulations amosite (brown asbestos) for high-temperature applications.

Asbestos served several functions in these compounds:

Prevented shrinkage as hot-molded parts cooled in the press
Provided heat resistance for electrical components, automotive parts, and industrial applications
Improved mechanical strength and resistance to moisture and chemicals
Reduced material cost

The military specification MIL-M-14 — “Molding Plastics and Molded Plastic Parts, Thermosetting” — codified asbestos-filled phenolic compounds as the standard for defense procurement. Of the twenty types listed, twelve were mineral-filled, the majority incorporating asbestos. Plants processing phenolic compound for commercial and defense customers were allegedly handling asbestos-containing raw material with every production run.

Who Supplied the Asbestos-Filled Compound?

Phenolic molding compound arrived at fabricating shops like Koller Craft as a granular or pelletized raw material from major chemical manufacturers. Suppliers of asbestos-containing phenolic molding compounds during the relevant period include:

Union Carbide Corporation — Bakelite™ brand phenolic resin; approximately 40% of UCC’s phenolic production contained asbestos as of 1969
Durez Plastics and Chemicals, Inc. (acquired by Hooker Chemical in 1955, later Occidental Chemical) — Durite™ brand; used asbestos through 1978; facilities in North Tonawanda, New York and Kenton, Ohio
Monsanto Chemical Corporation — Resinox™ brand phenolic molding compound; headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri — a regional supplier connection for Missouri molding operations
Rogers Corporation — asbestos phenolic compounds including RX462 (used at Koller Craft specifically for carburetor cap production) and RX466. Rogers’ own Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS), Section II, for RX462 expressly states that grinding and machining of RX462 releases asbestos fibers. Occupational sampling at Rogers facilities found fiber concentrations measured at up to 140 times the then-current OSHA Permissible Exposure Limit. Rogers sold its phenolic compound business and customer lists to Fiberite Corporation (Winona, Minnesota) in approximately 1968–1969; subpoenas served on Fiberite’s successors in asbestos litigation have sought those customer records to trace Rogers compound to specific Midwest facilities including Koller Craft.

Each of these manufacturers has been a defendant in publicly filed asbestos litigation arising from exposure to their molding compounds.

Crocidolite at Koller Craft: The Blue Asbestos Connection

Not all phenolic compound formulations contained the same asbestos fiber type. Crocidolite (blue asbestos) — the amphibole fiber type most strongly associated with pleural mesothelioma — was incorporated into certain compound formulations during the relevant era. Both Rogers Corporation and Durez Plastics and Chemicals purchased crocidolite from North American Asbestos Corporation (NAAC) for use in specific compound grades. Plenco compound 558 has been documented in asbestos litigation testimony as containing crocidolite.

Workers at Koller Craft who processed compound formulations containing crocidolite — whether from Rogers, Durez, or other suppliers — may have inhaled the fiber type most potently linked to mesothelioma without any warning that blue asbestos was allegedly present in the granular material they loaded into the press hopper every shift.

How Exposure Occurred at Phenolic Molding Plants

The asbestos exposure at a phenolic resin molding shop is fundamentally different from the pipe insulation or boiler gasket exposure common at power plants. The asbestos was the raw material itself — blended into every batch of compound — and every production step disturbed it:

Loading and compounding: Workers poured granular asbestos-filled molding compound from bags or drums into press hoppers. The granules were dusty, and loading operations stirred visible fiber clouds. Workers who filled hoppers throughout a shift may have inhaled these fibers continuously.

Compression and transfer molding: Heat and pressure in the mold caused the compound to flow and cure. Mold release and flash migration around the die faces brought compound — and its embedded asbestos — to the surface.

Flash trimming: Every molded part came out of the press with a thin film of excess material (“flash”) around its edges. Workers trimmed this flash by hand or with power tools — cutting, grinding, and filing operations that released asbestos fibers from the cured plastic matrix. NIOSH research documented 8-hour time-weighted averages of 0.006 to 0.08 fibers per cubic centimeter for machining operations on historical phenolic molding materials.

Tumbling and deflashing: Molded parts were placed in rotating tumbling machines to remove imperfections and smooth surfaces. After tumbling, workers used compressed air hoses to blow residual dust from parts and from the tumbling drums. This was among the highest-exposure operations in phenolic molding — airborne fiber clouds were allegedly visible and sustained. Neighboring workers on the production floor shared that exposure without performing the task themselves.

Sanding and polishing: Final surface finishing of molded parts by hand sanding or power sanding released additional fibers from the plastic matrix.

Building-wide secondary exposure: Workers throughout the plant — not only those directly operating presses — may have accumulated exposure as asbestos dust settled on surfaces and was disturbed by foot traffic, HVAC airflow, and routine cleaning operations.

Trades and Occupations at Risk

Koller Craft production workers who mixed, loaded, pressed, trimmed, tumbled, and finished phenolic parts faced the most direct and concentrated exposure. Additional trades at risk include:

Maintenance mechanics who serviced presses, tumbling equipment, and conveyors — maintenance work on asbestos-contaminated machinery disturbed settled fiber
Electricians who maintained switchgear, panels, and wiring throughout the facility — electrical components throughout the plant frequently contained asbestos
Pipefitters and insulators who maintained steam and process piping — pipe insulation in mid-century industrial buildings routinely incorporated asbestos
Millwrights who installed and repositioned heavy equipment — floor and wall disturbance in older facilities releases settled asbestos contamination

Asbestos-containing phenolic molding compound causes the same diseases as any other asbestos exposure:

Mesothelioma — an aggressive, uniformly fatal cancer of the pleural lining (lungs) or peritoneal lining (abdomen), caused exclusively by asbestos exposure. Median survival without aggressive treatment is measured in months.
Asbestosis — progressive, irreversible pulmonary fibrosis with no cure, producing worsening breathlessness and reduced lung capacity
Lung cancer — asbestos exposure substantially elevates risk, compounding further with any smoking history
Pleural plaques and pleural thickening — structural changes to the lung lining indicating significant prior asbestos burden

These diseases typically take 20 to 50 years to appear after first exposure. Workers who processed phenolic molding compound at Koller Craft during the 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s are receiving diagnoses right now.

Litigation History

Documented asbestos cases brought by former Koller Craft workers include reported settlements in the range of $2.3 million and $1 million for individual mesothelioma claims. These cases are consistent with the broader litigation track against phenolic molding compound manufacturers — including a 2024 Connecticut verdict of $22.5 million against General Electric for a worker exposed to asbestos from GE’s phenolic molding compound operations.

The responsible defendants in Koller Craft-related claims are typically the manufacturers of the asbestos-containing molding compounds — Union Carbide, Durez, Monsanto Resinox, and others — rather than (or in addition to) Koller Craft itself. More than 60 asbestos manufacturers have established bankruptcy trust funds, collectively holding billions of dollars available to compensate workers. Filing claims against these trusts can proceed simultaneously with active litigation.

Missouri’s Filing Deadline

Missouri Revised Statutes §516.120 gives you five years from the date of your medical diagnosis to file an asbestos personal injury lawsuit. Not from first exposure. Not from first symptoms. From the day a physician confirms your diagnosis.

If you miss that deadline, Missouri courts will dismiss your case permanently. No judge has discretion to allow a late filing.

Every month of delay is a month that witnesses age, employment records disappear, and your options narrow. Contact a Missouri asbestos attorney now.

Missouri DNR Asbestos Notification Records

No NESHAP asbestos abatement records have been located in Missouri Department of Natural Resources public records specifically naming Koller Craft LLC at the Fenton address. The absence of a regulatory notification record does not indicate the absence of asbestos — NESHAP abatement filings are triggered only by qualifying renovation or demolition activities, not by routine production-related asbestos exposure.

Former workers seeking regulatory documentation or wishing to verify the presence of asbestos at this facility should contact the Missouri Department of Natural Resources directly:

Missouri DNR, Air Pollution Control Program PO Box 176, Jefferson City, MO 65102 (573) 751-4817

Source: Missouri Department of Natural Resources, NESHAP Asbestos Abatement & Demolition/Renovation Notification Program — public regulatory records.