Fighting for UW-Milwaukee Physical Plant

About University of Wisconsin

The University and Its Infrastructure

UW-Milwaukee was established as a distinct university within the University of Wisconsin System in 1956, though predecessor institutions — Milwaukee State Teachers College and the University of Wisconsin Extension Division — had operated on portions of the same grounds for decades before that. By the 1960s and 1970s, the university had expanded rapidly, constructing dormitories, academic buildings, a library complex, research facilities, a student union, athletic facilities, and the underground utility tunnels and mechanical systems that served all of them.

That expansion happened during the peak era of asbestos use in American construction — the same decades when major Milwaukee industrial employers such as Allen-Bradley, Allis-Chalmers in West Allis, Falk Corporation, and A.O. Smith were also reportedly using asbestos-containing materials extensively, making Milwaukee-area tradespeople among the most heavily exposed workers in the state.

What the Physical Plant Does

The Physical Plant — also called Facilities Management or Facilities Services — is responsible for:

• Building maintenance and repair: plumbing, HVAC, electrical systems, roofing, and structural systems
• Utility systems operation: campus steam heating, chilled water systems, and electrical distribution
• Capital construction and renovation: work performed by in-house crews and contracted tradespeople
• Mechanical and boiler rooms, utility tunnels: spaces where asbestos-containing materials were reportedly concentrated in dense configurations
• Environmental compliance: asbestos abatement and management under EPA and Wisconsin DNR regulations

For decades, the Physical Plant employed journeymen and apprentice tradespeople across multiple crafts. Many of these workers are alleged to have worked regularly in proximity to asbestos-containing materials without adequate protective equipment or any meaningful warning of the risks. Workers at UW-Milwaukee may also have accumulated asbestos exposure at other Milwaukee-area industrial and institutional worksites during the same period — a pattern routinely documented in mesothelioma cases litigated in Milwaukee County Circuit Court, and one that can significantly increase the total compensation available.

Filing deadline reminder: Whether your exposure occurred at UW-Milwaukee alone or across multiple Milwaukee-area worksites, Wisconsin’s three-year deadline under Wis. Stat. § 893.54 runs from your diagnosis date. Multi-site exposure histories often strengthen a case and increase recoverable compensation — but only if your attorney is contacted before the deadline expires.

The Steam Plant and Central Utility Systems

UW-Milwaukee reportedly operated a central steam heating system that distributed high-pressure steam through underground utility tunnels and above-ground pipe chases to buildings across campus — a standard configuration for large institutional campuses built during this era. That system is alleged to have been heavily insulated with asbestos-containing materials consistent with universal industry practice for high-temperature steam infrastructure throughout the mid-twentieth century.

Steam systems were among the most asbestos-intensive work environments in Wisconsin industry, as established repeatedly in mesothelioma cases litigated throughout Milwaukee County over the past three decades. Pipes, valves, flanges, expansion joints, boilers, and associated equipment were routinely insulated with asbestos-containing products. Workers who maintained or operated these systems regularly entered utility tunnels, boiler rooms, and mechanical equipment rooms — enclosed spaces where asbestos-containing insulation covered virtually every pipe and fitting overhead and underfoot, and where fiber concentrations during disturbance work could be extraordinarily high.

Workers potentially affected:

• Operating engineers and stationary engineers who may have been exposed while running steam systems
• Pipefitters and plumbers — including members of Pipefitters Local 601 — who may have handled asbestos-containing insulation and gaskets during steam distribution maintenance
• Insulators — including members of Heat and Frost Insulators Local 19 — who applied and removed asbestos-containing insulation on high-temperature pipes
• Boilermakers — including members of Boilermakers Local 107 — who may have been exposed to asbestos-containing materials during boiler maintenance and repair
• General maintenance workers and helpers who assisted with steam system work and may have disturbed asbestos-containing materials without realizing it