Building group James Hardie, which left NSW taxpayers to pick up the bill last year for funding shortfalls to its asbestos victims, has found enough cash to start marketing and advertising its products in Australia after "going dark" for a decade amid the scandal.
Its Asia Pacific marketing head, George O'Neil, told Mumbrella that he is guiding the 127-year-old company back to public prominence via social media.
More National News Videos
- Video duration
- 00:00
Asbestos exposure a risk during renovation
Asbestos exposure a risk during renovation
Margaret Hunt from Slater and Gordon explains that renovations to older houses mean a risk of asbestos exposure and more potential litigants.
Up Next
Dear ScoMo, it's a matter of trust.
- Video duration
- 00:22
- Video duration
- 00:22
Dear ScoMo, it's a matter of trust.
Dear ScoMo, it's a matter of trust.
Cartoonist Matt Davidson examines Scott Morrison's credibility problem ahead of the 2017 budget.
Up Next
Infrastructure fund 'as dodgy as Lehman Brothers'
- Video duration
- 02:03
- Video duration
- 02:03
Infrastructure fund 'as dodgy as Lehman ...
Infrastructure fund 'as dodgy as Lehman Brothers'
Wayne Swan alleges that the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility "risks becoming little more than a publicly-funded slush fund for the Liberals".
Up Next
Cyclone Debbie's power 'extraordinary'
- Video duration
- 01:46
- Video duration
- 01:46
Cyclone Debbie's power 'extraordinary'
Cyclone Debbie's power 'extraordinary'
Survivors of Cyclone Debbie count the cost and relive the devastation but claim that it "didn't beat us".
Up Next
That question is contemptible: PM
- Video duration
- 01:53
- Video duration
- 01:53
That question is contemptible: PM
That question is contemptible: PM
Malcolm Turnbull gives Adam Bandt a spray during question time, telling the Greens MP he's using the Queensland cyclone disaster for political gain.
Up Next
The return of Peter Slipper
- Video duration
- 02:40
- Video duration
- 02:40
The return of Peter Slipper
The return of Peter Slipper
The former speaker has made his first appearance at Parliament House since losing his seat in 2013, reflecting on his mental health issues and legal battles.
Up Next
Cyclone Debbie and the damage done
- Video duration
- 00:53
- Video duration
- 00:53
Cyclone Debbie and the damage done
Cyclone Debbie and the damage done
The tropical cyclone uprooted trees, washed boats ashore and even blew a grounded plane onto its roof. With vision by ABC News 24.
Up Next
MP's open-mic howler
- Video duration
- 00:19
- Video duration
- 00:19
MP's open-mic howler
MP's open-mic howler
Labor's Brendan O'Connor asks a most unexpected question during question time.
Asbestos exposure a risk during renovation
Margaret Hunt from Slater and Gordon explains that renovations to older houses mean a risk of asbestos exposure and more potential litigants.
"We are not sitting there with hundreds of millions of dollars of media budget; we are lean," he told Mumbrella. It would also target the company at a younger demographic who would not so readily associate the company with its asbestos-tainted history.
"The younger people are, the less there is that stronger emotion, unless they are directly affected by it," said Mr O'Neil.
A quick search of a couple big social media sites reveals a James Hardie offical twitter account run out of its American operation and a very similar Facebook page for America and another in New Zealand.
The scandal of its asbestos legacy was compounded in 2001 when the company moved its operation offshore and set up what it claimed was a fully funded victim compensation fund.
The fund ended up being short funded to the tune of $1.5 billion.
Last year James Hardie washed its hands of any responsibility for a shortfall in compensation payments to asbestos victims as it reported robust profit growth and rewarded shareholders with a $US98 million special dividend on top of its second-half dividend of $US120.3 million.
#SandstoneBeige is a warm neutral that is sophisticated & inviting. Explore all colors here: https://t.co/cYQehhQk8w pic.twitter.com/jfYkJuGLkL
— James Hardie (@James_Hardie) May 4, 2016
Just months before, Andrew Constance, who was then NSW Treasurer, agreed to increase the state's loan facility to the Asbestos Injuries Compensation Fund (AICF) by more than $100 million after a blowout in expensive mesothelioma claims threatened to leave the fund short of cash for future claims.
Mr O'Neil said that its market research provided surprising results about how popular its products are with the Australian public.
"We were surprised when we started doing focus groups, there is actually a huge amount of love out there for the brand and for the products we make," he said.