Kadant Inc. KAI

What this company does

Kadant develops, manufactures and services a range of products and equipment used in process industries such as paper, packaging and tissue, wood products, mining, metals, food processing, and recycling and waste management. As of January 3, 2026, the company had approximately 3,900 full-time employees worldwide, of whom approximately 50% were in North America, 30% were in Europe and 15% were in Asia. It reports its financial results by combining operating entities into three reportable segments: Flow Control, Industrial Processing, and Material Handling. Through its Flow Control segment, the company provides custom-engineered products, systems and technologies that control the flow of fluids used in industrial and commercial applications in the packaging, paper and tissue, food, energy, defense and other industrial sectors. Through its Industrial Processing segment, it provides equipment, machinery and technologies used to recycle paper and paperboard, process timber and optimize industrial steam boiler efficiency for the packaging, paper, tissue, wood products, and food processing industries. Through its Material Handling segment, it provides products and engineered systems used to handle bulk and discrete materials for secondary processing or transport in the aggregates, mining, food, and waste management industries. Some of the company's businesses or their predecessor companies have been in operation for more than 100 years.

Written from the business description in KADANT INC's annual report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, filed 3 March 2026. Every sentence was checked against that document before publication.