Kadant Receives $3.2 Million Order From Whiteboard Producer in China
ACTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 1, 2004--Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI) has received an order for approximately $3.2 million in stock-preparation equipment from a major producer in China of recycled coated whiteboard, a high-quality printable packaging material. The company's Kadant Black Clawson Inc. subsidiary will supply advanced pulping, screening, and de-inking technologies to remove contaminants from recycled pulp and prepare usable fiber for entry into the paper machine.
"Increased paper consumption in China - an offshoot of its rapid economic growth - continues to drive sales of our systems that are used for the production of recycled packaging materials, both brown and white grades," said William A. Rainville, chairman and chief executive officer of Kadant. "Our goal is to leverage our leadership in China to become the primary supplier of stock-preparation equipment throughout Asia. We plan to achieve this by expanding our local presence with the new plant we are establishing near Beijing, continuing to develop technologies that improve papermaking productivity and quality, and providing ongoing support for our customers by offering additional aftermarket products and services."
Kadant Black Clawson Inc., based in Mason, Ohio, is a leading fiberline process equipment supplier that designs, manufactures, and services equipment used in paper recycling, chemical pulping, and paper machine approach-flow systems.
Kadant Inc. is a leading supplier of a range of products for the global papermaking and paper recycling industries, including stock-preparation equipment, water-management systems, and paper machine accessories. We also develop and manufacture composite building materials produced from recycled fiber and plastic. Kadant, based in Acton, Massachusetts, had approximately $204 million in revenues in 2003 and 1,000 employees worldwide. For more information, please visit www.kadant.com.
The following constitutes a "Safe Harbor" statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including forward-looking statements regarding our business and goals in China and Asia. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such statements are set forth under the heading "Risk Factors" in Kadant's year-end report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 3, 2004. These include risks and uncertainties relating to our dependence on the pulp and paper industry; international sales and operations; competition; ability to manufacture and distribute composite building products, and the seasonality in sales and the long-term performance of such products; availability of raw materials and exposure to commodity price fluctuations related to the manufacture of composite and fiber-based products; acquisition strategy; protection of patents and proprietary rights; fluctuations in quarterly operating results; and anti-takeover provisions. We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
CONTACT: Investor contact:
Kadant Inc.
Thomas M. O'Brien, 978-776-2000
or
Media contact:
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SOURCE: Kadant Inc.