Asbestos brake linings

The brake system has a consumable surface that gets subjected to constant friction and heat, called brake lining. To prevent a major disaster, asbestos was seen as a viable solution until the late 1990s. The asbestos fibers helped strengthen overall the final product, but with a cost.

Being a part of an automotive consumable product, every time the mechanics would interact with a heavily used brake system, the asbestos-contaminated brake lining would pose a major threat for them. As the brakes needed to be cleaned off first, the asbestos dust gathered would usually be air-hosed, a process that spread the poisonous particles into the atmosphere. You could have been exposed if:

• You have worked directly with automotive braking systems
• You have found yourself in auto shops where brake replacement has occurred
• You entered in contact with the clothes or the gear covered in the asbestos dust
• You tried to perform maintenance work on your own car