Kayden Industries has always known what they do well, solids control. And they also knew that diversification was necessary to bring them continued success. Kayden Industries LP launched in 1995 as a decanter centrifuge manufacturer supporting the energy sector. In 2015, Kayden diversified to offer solids-liquid separation products to clients in civil construction, lagoon dredging, municipal work, agriculture, and industrial water. The company further expanded to fabricate and custom build a variety of solids removal skids, septage receiving systems, pumps, tanks, and other equipment. Today, the company continues to manufacture, sell, operate, and service one of the largest, most reliable and most effective decanting centrifuges in the oil, gas and environmental dredging industries.

President Brent Morrice explains what a centrifuge is, and its significance, “While drilling oil and gas wells, drilling fluids are used to lubricate the downhole tools, eliminate damage to the drill strings and mitigate formation damage. When you drill a well, small cuttings are created, and they need to be removed or problems will occur. We have manufactured a large bowl centrifuge that spins at a high rate which creates G-force to remove solids from fluid, making the drilling fluid reusable, saving our clients a considerable amount of money while mitigating the environmental impact of their drilling operations.”

Kayden is visionary as well as innovative. Morrice explains, “During the downturn in 2015, our management team understood that diversification to other industries would strengthen our company. We knew that many other sectors required solid separation expertise. Working with private equity support from TriWest Capital Partners, we strategically moved a portion of our focus to solving desludging challenges in a variety of sectors by adapting our centrifuges. With support from ATB, we also invested in a fleet of electric and diesel dredges. Now, we are currently the only centrifuge manufacturer in North America that offers dredging and desludging services.”

The centrifuges built by Kayden are incredibly durable – so much so that they are relied on in Canada’s far north, in the sands of the Middle East, and in the outback of Australia.

“The first Kayden centrifuge built 25 years ago still operates today and is a testament to Kayden centrifuge's design and quality,” adds Morrice. “We're proud that our centrifuges operate on five continents.”

As with all operators in the energy sector, Kayden faces industry challenges, but they are happy to move forward in confidence, knowing adaptation helps build a better province.

“The world needs oil and gas, but we also recognize that there is a growing focus on cleaner air and cleaner water,” says Morrice. “We are part of that movement, and we are very proud of the fact that we are successfully helping clients right here in Alberta and across North America manage their produced water and appropriately deal with wastewater to minimize the environmental impact of their operations on the local environment.”

Kayden continues to innovate across all sectors. Morrice notes, “We have designed and custom built receiving systems for municipal clients to track the amount and type of waste being received by municipal waste ponds, ensuring no pollutants harmful to the environment are dumped into municipal lagoons. We have also recently developed and manufactured in-house H2S mitigation equipment for certain environmental lagoon applications. Kayden is currently focusing on remote monitoring and automation on drilling rigs while teaming up with other companies to ensure more beneficial reuse options are made available for the waste we recover from dredging and desludging ponds.”

Kayden is proud to rely on ATB as a financial partner.

“We chose ATB because ATB understands what Albertan's face each day,” says Morrice. “ATB understands why we think and how we think as we move into alternative verticals to ensure we continue to grow our company right here in Alberta and around the globe.

Morrice champions ATB as a partner for progressive Alberta entrepreneurs of all sizes.

“ATB understands Albertans’ business challenges and works collaboratively to find solutions. ATB has been our lender since 2013 and the best word to describe Kayden’s relationship with ATB is ‘partnership.’ During the downturn of 2015/16, ATB provided us the flexibility to navigate our business through some very challenging times. I am not convinced other lenders would have been as supportive. Coming out of that, we saw growth in our oil and gas business in 2017 thru 2019. ATB was there for us. We were able to expand our fleet of centrifuges to the largest size in our 25-year history to keep up with customer demand, as well as invest in a fleet of dredges with ATB providing necessary equipment financing options to help us grow.”

Morrice’s advice for companies seeking success in transformative times is, “Look for opportunities to satisfy a need or requirement that is not currently being met. Continue to search for opportunities that you know your company can compete at and demonstrate leadership in.”

He concludes, “Working with ATB, we made the pivots required to be successful in both oil and gas extraction and many types of environmental pond reclamation. The oil and gas industry in Alberta has many years of prosperity to come, but we must always be looking for alternatives to energize our company and this province.”

From the April 2021 edition of Business in Calgary, and Business in Edmonton. Shared with permission.