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Employee Benefit Plans
 3 Months Ended
Apr. 04, 2015
Compensation and Retirement Disclosure [Abstract]  
Employee Benefit Plans
7.    Employee Benefit Plans

The Company sponsors a noncontributory defined benefit retirement plan for the benefit of eligible employees at its Kadant Solutions division and its corporate office (included in the table below in "Pension Benefits"). The Company also sponsors a restoration plan for the benefit of certain executive officers who also participate in the noncontributory defined benefit retirement plan (included in the table below in "Other Benefits"). In addition, employees at certain of the Company's subsidiaries participate in defined benefit retirement and post-retirement welfare benefit plans (included in the table below in "Other Benefits").

The components of the net periodic benefit cost for the pension benefits and other benefits plans are as follows:
 
 
Three Months Ended April 4, 2015
 
Three Months Ended March 29, 2014
(In thousands)
 
Pension
Benefits
 
Other
Benefits
 
Pension
Benefits
 
Other
Benefits
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Components of Net Periodic Benefit Cost:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Service cost
 
$
211

 
$
57

 
$
213

 
$
69

Interest cost
 
307

 
65

 
321

 
72

Expected return on plan assets
 
(356
)
 
(11
)
 
(370
)
 
(12
)
Recognized net actuarial loss
 
127

 
17

 
79

 
9

Amortization of prior service cost
 
14

 
22

 
14

 
21

Net periodic benefit cost
 
$
303

 
$
150

 
$
257

 
$
159

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The weighted average assumptions used to determine net periodic benefit cost are as follows:
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Discount rate
 
3.87
%
 
3.76
%
 
4.79
%
 
4.23
%
Expected long-term return on plan assets
 
5.25
%
 
—

 
5.75
%
 
—

Rate of compensation increase
 
3.00
%
 
2.99
%
 
3.50
%
 
3.19
%

The Company made cash contributions of $270,000 to its Kadant Solutions division's noncontributory defined benefit retirement plan in the first three months of 2015 and expects to make cash contributions of $810,000 over the remainder of 2015. For the remaining pension and post-retirement welfare benefits plans, the Company does not expect to make cash contributions other than to fund current benefit payments.