Air Compressor Maker Awarded Summary Judgment in Miss. Silica Case

PORT GIBSON, Miss. - The manufacturer of an air compressor does not have a duty to warn of silica-related hazards associated with using the product for sandblasting, a Mississippi state court judge has ruled. Doss v. Clark Sand Co., et al., No. 2002-346 (Miss. Cir. Ct., Claiborne Cty.).

Judge Lamar Pickard of the Claiborne County Circuit Court said in a Dec. 27 order that, as a matter of law, defendant Ingersoll Rand should not be required to place warnings on its air compressors alerting users of potential dangers posed by using the devices in conjunction with another manufacturer's product.