# Raybestos
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{{short description|Manufacturer of automotive brakes}}
{{More citations needed|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Raybestos
| logo = Logo raybestos.gif
| type = [Private](/source/Private_company)
| key_people =
| industry = Auto parts
| products = [Brake](/source/Brake)s
| revenue =
| operating_income =
| net_income =
| num_employees =
| parent = [First Brands Group](/source/First_Brands_Group)[{{cite web|url=https://firstbrandsgroup.com/our-brands/|title=First Brands Group - Our Brands|accessdate=2023-11-19}}]
| subsidiaries =
| website = {{url|raybestos.com}}
| footnotes =
| founded = 1902
| hq_location_city = [McHenry, Illinois](/source/McHenry%2C_Illinois)
| hq_location_country = United States
}}
'''Raybestos''' is a brand of [automotive brakes](/source/automotive_brakes) established in 1902 by Arthur H. Raymond and Arthur F. Law of [Bridgeport, Connecticut](/source/Bridgeport%2C_Connecticut).
==History==
thumbnail|right|300px|Mac's Spring & Brake Service shop, with Raybestos brakes (ca. 1930-1945).
In 1906, Raymond and Law invented the [woven](/source/woven_brake_lining) [brake lining](/source/brake_lining), an important innovation in automotive brakes. From 1919 to 1989 Raybestos brand was manufactured by Raymark Industries, Inc, of [Stratford, Connecticut](/source/Stratford%2C_Connecticut).
Raymark Industries filed for [Chapter 11 bankruptcy](/source/Chapter_11%2C_Title_11%2C_United_States_Code) in 1998.[{{Cite web| title=RAYMOND GEORGE, et al., v. RAYMARK INDUSTRIES., INC | url=http://www.paeb.uscourts.gov/sites/paeb/files/opinions/raymark.15.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205173829/http://www.paeb.uscourts.gov/sites/paeb/files/opinions/raymark.15.pdf | archive-date=2015-02-05}}]
The brand is currently distributed by Brake Parts Inc based in [McHenry, Illinois](/source/McHenry%2C_Illinois).[{{cite web |url=http://raybestos.com/ |title=Raybestos - The Best in Brakes|accessdate=2009-10-25}}] In August 2020, [First Brands Group](/source/First_Brands_Group) ([Trico](/source/Trico)) acquired Brake Parts Inc.[{{Cite news|url=https://www.catmag.co.uk/trico-group-renames-as-first-brands-group|title=Trico Group renames as First Brands Group|website=catmag.co.uk|date=2020-08-18|access-date=2020-10-19|archive-date=2020-10-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023101719/https://www.catmag.co.uk/trico-group-renames-as-first-brands-group|url-status=dead}}] In September 2025, Raybestos' current parent company, First Brands Group, filed for [Chapter 11 bankruptcy](/source/Chapter_11_bankruptcy) after substantial losses in revenue, listing assets between $5 billion and $10 billion and liabilities between $10 billion and $50 billion.[{{Cite web|url= https://www.ft.com/content/095a60a4-9bde-4f40-bb20-95c02c95727b |title= First Brands files for bankruptcy, threatening multibillion-dollar losses |first1=Robert|last1=Smith|first2=Ortenca|last2=Allaj|first3=Amelia|last3=Pollard |first4=Eric|last4=Platt |date=September 29, 2025|access-date=September 29, 2025|website=Financial Times|language=en}}]
On January 26, 2026, First Brands announced that it would be winding down its Autolite, Brake Parts, Inc., and Cardone subsidiaries after being unable to secure funding and complete a sale for the three companies.[{{Cite web|url= https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260126446855/en/First-Brands-Group-Commences-Wind-Down-of-North-American-Brake-Parts-Inc.-Cardone-and-Autolite-Business-Units|title= First Brands Group Commences Wind Down of North American Brake Parts Inc., Cardone, and Autolite Business Units|date=2026-01-26|access-date=2026-01-29|website=Business Wire|language=en}}]
==Superfund site cleanup==
The Stratford, Connecticut factory site is a designated [Superfund site](/source/Superfund_site). The Federal [Environmental Protection Agency](/source/United_States_Environmental_Protection_Agency) reported:
{{blockquote|The Raymark facility operated at (the Stratford) location from 1919 until 1989, manufacturing [asbestos](/source/asbestos) brake linings and other automotive asbestos products. The facility operated as a hazardous waste generator and land disposal facility. Raymark Industries, Inc. is a RCRA subtitle C regulated facility which is currently subject to bankruptcy proceedings.
Hazardous waste produced on site includes lead-asbestos dust, metals and solvents. From 1919 to July 1984, Raymark used a system of lagoons to capture waste lead and asbestos dust produced by its manufacturing process. Dredged materials from the lagoons were landfilled at numerous other locations in the town of Stratford, Connecticut.["NPL Site Narrative for Raymark Industries, Inc." [https://web.archive.org/web/19991008123619/http://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/npl/nar1408.htm]]}}
thumb|250px|left|Raybestos brakes in stock
==See also==
* [Connecticut Brakettes](/source/Connecticut_Brakettes) — ''women's fastpitch softball team founded in 1947 at Raybestos.''
{{Commons category|position=left}}
==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
{{clr}}
Category:Auto parts suppliers of the United States
Category:Brakes
Category:Manufacturing companies based in Illinois
Category:Companies based in McHenry County, Illinois
Category:Manufacturing companies established in 1902
Category:1902 establishments in Connecticut
Category:Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1998
Category:Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2025
Category:Stratford, Connecticut
Category:Superfund sites in Connecticut
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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Raybestos](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raybestos) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raybestos?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.