Document re0e7DqbjYp3dVp4rZq9ELq3J

FILE NAME Synkaloid SYN DATE April 11 1985 DOC SYN031 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION 1985 Legal - Deposition summary for A Hunter Golladay Deposition Summary of A. Hunter Golladay taken April 11 1985 Deposition Summary of A. Hunter Golladay taken April 11 1985 Summary DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR ROSENTHAL FOR PLAINTIFFS A. Hunter Golladay lives at 3733 Northaven Road Business address is 8900 Sovereign Road Dallas Tx Employed by Welco Manufacturing Company of Texas he is the president and has a partner Never had a deposition taken before He understands that the plaintiff in this case Eloy Marin claims to have contracted mesothelioma cancer this is where he first heard of it 10 Prior to the filing of this case he understood that exposure to asbestos can cause cancer first heard in 1970 1971. Also first heard of asbestosis in 1971 11 Heard about asbestosis through OSHA EPA and his insurance company Carriers was his worker's compensation carrier 12 He set the company up at the present time they have 35 employees There is also Welco Manufacturing Company Inc. in Kansas City Missouri 13 The other company was set up in 1947 made form breakers for aluminum casting and things of that nature roof coatings then they entered the drywall manufacturing field in the late 1950's Also there is a Welco Manufacturing Company of Virginia 14 The others are separate corporations but they are owned by the same shareholders Kansas City and Virginia companies still manufacture drywall products 15 Earl E. Stover is the president of the Kansas City Plant and is Chairman of the Board of all three corporations Welco of Virginia was incorporated in 1972 privately held 16 Mr. Stover owns shares in all three companies He is a partner with mr Stover in the Welco Manufacturing Company of Texas Deponent owns 40 of the stock in Texas Education two years of college at Oklahoma University in 1935. Attended public high school in Oklahoma City 17 18 19-6 19-6 19-6 20-22 21-14 22-19 23-4 24 25-18 Then went to work Oklahoma City for the Army for Grand Paint 11 years until and 1943 Paper Company in when he went into He was a city salesman with Grand Paint and Paper Co. After he got out of the service he went to work for Florman Manufacturing Co. paint manufacturer in Pueblo Colorado in 1946 worked there until 1948 was a territory salesman Then he went to work for American Marietta Company in the subsidiary of Sewall Paint and Varnish in Kansas City was a sales promotion manager Worked for Sewall Paint until 1951 then went to work for the Synkoloid Company in Dallas until 1963. He was Vice President General Manager of the eastern half of the United States Synkoloid manufactured joint compounds textures patching medias He has had previous experience with drywall products In 1939 he sold on the first job Oklahoma City of USG on a house when employed by Grand Paint and Paper The trade name of Synkoloid was Synko His job duties there were production sales There were 125 employees under him The drywall products that were manufactured by Synkoloid contained asbestos In 1963 he set up his own company Welco manufacturing Company of Texas He had three friends in the Kansas City Plant they found out he was leaving Synkoloid and asked him if he wanted to get involved in setting something up in the Dallas Market He left the Synkoloid Company because they merged with Clute Corporation a Denver Company and he did not like the situation Synkoloid still continued to manufacture drywall products after the merger Today they are basically in the paint business operating out of Los Angeles In 1963 Welco produced joint compounds texture paints floor underlayments patching mediums tile graphs casein paint latex interior wall paint and exterior masonry paint Since Welco has cut out all paint 80 of Welco sales was in drywall products during the 1963 to 1970 era When they set up they used some of the Kansas City formulas then some of his He has a good knowledge of formulation from the Synkoloid Company Cote is their trade name 26 They also make a product called Cote Ready Mix They made a dry powder called Cote All Purpose Joint Compound The Ready Mix product was formulated in 1964 and sold in 1965. Joint compound powder contained calcium carbonate mica asbestos and preservatives and the powder contained casein 27 The asbestos was used to form the body to give it the thick tropic nature to help retain the body and help prevent shrinkage It had nothing to do with the heat resistant qualities He is familiar with answers to interrogatories provided to attorneys 28 The joint compound powder contained % asbestos then it was reduced after 1970 29 Difference between Ready and Joint Compound Powder Ready Mix was bound with a PVA where the powders were either bound with starch or casein The PVA is an adhesive liquid polyvinyl acetate 30 The Ready Mix was mixed and sold in paste form Same percentage of asbestos in it Texture products were also a big selling item texture paints acoustical type textures and hand applied textures Commercial texture and Acousti and the spray surfacer 31 The Acousti was the largest seller contained aggregate made in fine medium and coarse used to simulate acoustical type texture no acoustical value about it The only purpose of the acoustical was for decoration sold in 25 pound bags powder to be mixed with water applied with a spray gun 32 Asbestos content of the Acousti was 3 to 4 percent asbestos to give it body After 1970 they deleted the asbestos content but continued to sell it In 1972 they deleted it from all textures and products with the exception of joint compounds 33 Commercial texture is a smooth type texture very similar in appearance to All Purpose Powder Joint Compound there was no asbestos in it after 1972 Prior to that time it contained 3 to 4 percent asbestos The function of that texture was mixed with water brushed on a wall or rolled Would look like a sand finish 34 Its sole function was decoration The Acousti was strictly a spray material gave a pebbly looking finish 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 The commercial texture was a smooth texture and had no aggregate in it whatsoever had to pull whatever texture finish one wanted Spray surfacer was very similar to the Acousti in appearance manufactured in smooth fine medium and coarse It had an extremely hard finish due to the lime content had a perlite aggregate rather than vermiculite It was also purely for decorative purposes The harder finish would not scar up as bad would paint or if unpainted sold 60 Acousti would hold up to washing 35 spray surface and % commercial Started producing the spray surfacer 1963 quit in 1970 hold They in Discontinued the spray surfacer because they were unable to get the graded perlite From 1963 to 1970 the spray surfacer had 3 to 4 percent asbestos Welco coat Joint Compound they thought they had a formula on that product that would be very good However the coat turned out to be not too stable of a product so 1967. It was they only made a powder form it for about contained % one year in asbestos It was more expensive and the applicators would not pay the price Welco block filler was an inert material that contained asbestos mixed with paint to produce a block filler Used to fill the pores in cement blocks building blocks The Masonry Cote had low content asbestos lower than % cement product depends on mechanical bond for it adhesion The block filler was % asbestos Those two products are manufactured by Welco today but asbestos free 1972. All Purpose Joint Compound Mixed since and Duo- Cote commercial were the only joint compounds they made From 1963 to 1970 the Ready sales Cote was % of sales and 40 in Mixed was 60 50 of the in powder The Ready and the All Purpose continued to contain asbestos after 1971. There was a progressive drop that only were in the asbestos content of those products so by 1974 the last year the joint compounds had half of one percent asbestos The contractors complaining that the asbestos products were inferior 43 44 45 46 47 48 49-18 50 51 52 53 54 They knew that the government was going to make it illegal to use asbestos so they started dropping the asbestos content in their products Welco was the first asbestos company to his knowledge Prior to 1971 Welco products were not packaged warning labels After they placed labels that This product contains asbestos with said OSHA instructed them to put that statement on the containers of asbestos containing products The label did not say anything about wearing respirators or protective equipment After label sales they eliminated the asbestos they changed the to reflect that The change did not effect the that much He feels that most of the contractors that he sold to were already aware of the hazards of asbestos The All Purpose Joint Compound was 1.75 a bag at the distributor cost They used to make good money with the drywall business but the don't anymore Sale of drywall materials to distributors is a very competitive business Welco's main competitors in New Mexico from 1963 to 1972 were USG Proko Texas Textures Twelve Star Sterling Synkoloid until 1965 Georgia Hamilton Drywall Texas Texture Co. is located in Farmer's Branch Texas Sterling Paint is in Little Rock Arkansas Those companies did not manufacture drywall products without asbestos during 1963 to 1972 All Purpose Ready joint compound started selling for 3.85 an by 1972 sold for 4.35 Currently costs 6.35 The 62 pound replaced the gallon pail Welco Acousti from 1963 to 1972 sold for two and a half to three dollars Today the Welco Acousti sells for 3.60 at truckload prices 25 pound bag sold Commercial texture from 1963 to 1972 was 1.75 to 2.25 for a 25 pound bag today it is 3.40 a bag At the top of the Welco brochure it says All Cote Products Asbestos Free price list that became effective on July 15 1983 When they first began manufacturing the plant building contained 26,000 produced in that plant drywall products feet all products 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 During that early period there were 30 employees working in the plant In the years of 1978 to 1979 they had 40 employees including 4 office personnel No employee of Welco has ever filed a worker's comp claim pertaining to an asbestos related disease or lung disease He has men checked every five years for lung problems That company policy started in 1975 used Primary Medical Center chest rays They did not do it specifically for asbestos they did it for dust of any kind Starting in 1963 employees wore dust masks any time it was dusty It was a mask approved by U.S. Bureau of Mines had a strap covered nose and mouth had a filter They were worn when the men were unloading boxcars of asbestos or boxcars of Calcium Carbonate or mica Masks also worn when men were batching on the machines He never fired an employee for not wearing a mask The policy about wearing masks has continued until today They did not single out asbestos as a kind of dust to be protected from They conducted tests for performance not for health hazards Performance tests were done in a laboratory to see if they had the correct adhesion shrinkage every batch was tested They never performed tests to see if the drywall products were hazardous to people They knew what materials they were getting and what to expect from the manufacturer No one at Welco did any independent research on the potential health hazards of asbestos They had no knowledge of any health hazards of asbestos ' prior to 1970 He did research on the preservatives because as far as he knew that was the only product that was hazardous Cosan the manufacturer of the preservative gave them all the safety data but he did not do any independent research They purchased the asbestos from Carey asbestos Canadian up until 1970 then Union Carbide from 1970 until they discontinued it Chrysolite fiber was purchased 7TF8 There were other types of fibers also but they did not purchase them The others were 12 14 6 7TF's Their designations had to do with the length of the fiber 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 They had asbestos no way of ascertaining whether or they bought was pure chrysolite not the Welco has carried worker's compensation insurance from 1963 to the present He has heard that asbestosis was named as a compensable occupational disease by the Texas Legislature in the worker's compensation statutes in the state of Texas in 1947 he heard that in 1970 The worker's compensation carrier advised him of that Welco of Texas exchanged information with Welco of Kansas City from time to time Mr. Stover came down to Texas about 12 years ago but they converse over the phone regularly Texas and Kansas City are equal as far as volume Welco Texas sells to New Mexico Texas Oklahoma southern Arkansas Welco Texas Alabama and Cote All state also sells the panhandle Purpose Joint to Louisiana Mississippi of Florida Tennessee Compound was mixed to a heavy When finishing a joint you would bed the joint with this material mash tape into the initial fill coat over it Next day come in and put a second coat to finish the joint when dry final float coat It was mixed with water You put two gallons of water in gallon pail gradually pour bag of material into it put a mixer on it reduce it further with water takes about fifteen minutes Creation of dust depends on the applicator Even the ones that were careful and poured in slowly would create some dust residue the material Drywall process going to apply tape to the joint . between two wallboards They put a coat of mud in there with a broad then they mash the tape in then go over it with a light coat of mud let that dry come back in the morning and put a fill coat in then come in and do the final float coat to cover the joint entirely If it is to be a smooth wall then it creates dust The Purpose in basically the same fashion they need to sand Ready is used Same fashion but they don't have to do the mixing However it still needs to be sanded sometimes The Acousti is mixed in the same way as the All Purpose Joint Compound 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 Commercial texture can be applied with a trowel generally it is put on with a brush or a roller but Attapulgite type clay was used as the substitute the asbestos with modifications in the formula for The sales did not drop for textures Attapulgite clay was also used to replace asbestos in the joint compound products There was also no when the asbestos documents to this drop in sales was replaced deposition as for the He has best he joint compound brought certain could He has brought with him correspondence letter and documents which indicate of discuss sales of asbestos containing products made by Welco to Home Lumber Co. of Clovis New Mexico Williams of Clovis New Mexico Aucutt paint store of Clovis New Mexico However they never sold to Home Lumber and House of Color He also has additions specific to the accounts mentioned in the request First information given contains all sales made in New Mexico from 1963 to 1983 At the top of stack of invoices there is an adding machine tape that indicates his effort to total up all sales to Williams Company The documents are the best records he has on the sales of drywall materials to Clovis New Mexico Exhibit 4 is collection of invoices assembled reflecting sales of products by Welco to Aucutt Paint store in Clovis New Mexico Anything that was contain asbestos sold after March 5th 1975 did not Welco would sell to distributors who would turn around and sell to other dealers He has also supplied a products information bulletin which has a picture of the products Counsel is given a sheet which lists the composition of texture and drywall products from January 1 1976 He did not bring with him any documents which reflect what the products were composed of prior to January 1 1976 when the products contained asbestos The old information is not in existence Counsel is supplied with that he wrote arise with an the brochure and deponent tells him a book about field problems that might applicator and the remedies for it 87 The book dated April 1 1965 is still given to any contractor who wishes to read it 88 Exhibit 6 is a Cote drywall finishing compounds brochure edited up to January of 1985 depicts various Welco products they do not contain asbestos 89 They have made very little changes in the packaging even after they took the asbestos out He has no documents about asbestos prior to 1979 90 Carey Canadian put out a document about asbestos sometime in the 1970's and he read about it in the newspapers and heard about it on the news 91 Welco never received any documents from OSHA describing regulations placed on sale or manufacture of containing products or written documents that told him that asbestos was not hazardous and was never cited by any federal or state agency for violation of regulations governing the working conditions related to asbestos EXAMINATION BY MR SIMMONS FOR PROKO INDUSTRIES 92 He first started dealing with drywall products in 1951 personally He first started developing a personal knowledge of drywall products in 1939 93-7 First worked with them in 1939 for Grand Paint in Oklahoma City He first went to work for Synkoloid in 1951 was in charge of sales in Eastern Region He left Synkoloid in 1963 94 From 1954 on Proko was a fairly large factor in the Clovis market USG was also 95-3 Synkoloid was also in the market as well as Texas Texture and Twelve Star Sterling 96 He has been to the Gypsum Drywall Contractors International Convention but he only went a few times and was not impressed EXAMINATION BY MR COMPANY OF TEXAS PHARRIS FOR WELCO MANUFACTURING 97 Georgia was also in Clovis and Celotex might have been Hamilton was a West Coast Company they did not come into Clovis only Albuquerque 98 Hamilton sold joint compounds and texture 99-3 100 101 102-3 103-8 104 105 106 106 107 108 109 110 Lath & Plaster and Sherwin Williams were the New Mexico state distributors for Synkoloid products The only way he checked the asbestos material coming was by visual means no microscopic analysis The asbestos came in 50 pound bags the labels indicated the manufacturers name particular specifications 7TF8 Later when they got the product from Union Carbide it came the same way Chrysotile is a type of asbestos They got the same type of asbestos as they did from Carey Canadian from Union Carbide He had dealt with Carey Canadian while he worked for Synkoloid so he used them with Welco They made three different kinds of asbestos The type they ordered worked best in the joint compounds they were manufacturing Synkoloid had used the chrysotile so he used it at Welco He did not know that there was a provision in the worker's compensation law about asbestosis EXAMINATION BY MR FARMER FOR GYPSUM They also sold to Johnson wholesale in the Clovis area Those documents were records of US Gypsum not listed He has in the Clovis area no sales He only has records of his own company in the Clovis area FURTHER EXAMINATION BY MR ROSENTHAL FOR PLAINTIFFS He does not know the two other types of asbestos It was brought to his attention that some of the other companies were using the 7RF9 length of asbestos it was also chrysotile just a different length He does not know which type of fiber poses a larger health risk First year that Johnson bought from Welco was and they still buy today three times as much Williams 1968 as Counsel asks for the gross income of Welco for purposes of determining punitive damages not granted 111 112 113 14 115 116 FURTHER EXAMINATION BY MR SIMMONS FOR PROKO The jobber in Dallas where he purchased the asbestos from Carey Canadian was Thompson Hayward Company they are still in business He does not know any of the personnel anymore Had but a personal friend there at one time F.W. he has been gone from there for 10 years Rufi FURTHER EXAMINATION BY MR ROSENTHAL FOR PLAINTIFFS They keep correspondence files of brochures memorandum concerning product information and They do not keep everything have any documents depicting products that is why they do containing not He only recalls receiving the document from Carey Canadian and reading it and then discarding it He discarded it because he did not feel it was of significant importance to keep in company files END PROCEEDINGS