Compounds were used in a variety of industries and unfortunately asbestos was one of the main ingredients of these mixtures. This product was of two types: a dry mix that needed liquid for it to be applied, or a ready-mix, found usually in paste form.
The toxicity of the environment got dangerously high as the workers mixed the compound in dry powder form due to the asbestos particles that were spread around them. Another way for the workers to be unknowingly exposed to asbestos was sanding the newly applied layer of compound. You could have been exposed if: