Illinois Tool Works (ITW)
Makes industrial equipment for automotive, food-service, testing, welding, construction, and specialty markets.
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Illinois Tool Works is not one tool company but a cabinet of industrial businesses selling parts, machines, supplies, and upkeep. Car parts, testing gear, and food equipment are the largest steady blocks; welding and electronics-production gear are now pulling growth forward. The model depends on solving narrow customer problems, then selling replacement materials, parts, and service around the equipment.
Item facts: FY2025 · year ended Dec 31, 2025, from filings, earnings calls and company pages.
Judgment weights, not filed revenue
The band summarizes business focus and direction. ~ marks estimates.
7 in detail · 11 more below
Test & Measurement and Electronics
Machines that test materials and assemble or inspect electronics. Sales grew about 10% in the second quarter of 2026, led by electronics; watch whether chip-factory spending keeps orders moving into shipments.
Competes with AllroundLine testing machines (ZwickRoell) · SIPLACE and DEK systems (ASMPT)
In plain English
Before a bridge part, car panel, or electronic board can be trusted, someone has to bend it, weigh it, inspect it, or place tiny parts in exactly the right spot. ITW sells the machines and supplies that do those jobs, through names such as Instron, MTS, MPM, Camalot, and Electrovert.
Laboratories and manufacturers pay for the equipment when they add capacity or tighten quality checks, then return for supplies and support. Chip factories and companies that assemble circuit boards are driving the latest lift, so this business rises and falls with customers' willingness to spend on production lines.
Specialty Products
A mixed shelf of beverage packaging, product-marking gear, medical parts, and airport equipment. Sales fell 1.5% in the first half of 2026; watch whether improving medical, aerospace, and packaging demand outweighs delayed deliveries.
Competes with KeelClip (Graphic Packaging International) · Ground-support equipment (TLD)
In plain English
This is ITW's odds-and-ends workshop: rings and machines that bundle drink cans, equipment that prints codes on packages, seals for resealable bags, small medical components, and machines that serve aircraft on the ground. The common thread is a narrow job where reliability matters more than mass-market scale.
Beverage packers, medical-device makers, airlines, and airports buy different products on different schedules. That variety can soften a slump in one corner, but it also means no single market pulls the whole segment. Money arrives from equipment, the pieces used with it, and repeat orders tied to customers' production lines or fleets.
Welding
Welding machines, wire, electrodes, accessories, and safety gear led by Miller and Hobart. Sales jumped about 14% in the second quarter of 2026; watch the pace of large construction and industrial projects, especially in North America.
Competes with Power Wave and APEX (Lincoln Electric) · Aristo with WeldCloud (ESAB)
In plain English
Think of a heavy-duty sewing machine for steel: the machine joins the pieces, while wire or rods are steadily used up as the seam is made. ITW sells both sides of that job, along with protective gear and controls that help factories repeat the same weld.
Fabricators and contractors buy machines for projects in infrastructure, energy, aerospace, defense, and data-center construction. Each installed machine can keep pulling through fresh wire, replacement parts, and upgrades. Demand is strongest when projects are plentiful and skilled welders are scarce enough to make faster or more automated equipment worth buying.
Construction Products
Fasteners, anchors, job-site tools, and equipment and software for making roof frames. Second-quarter 2026 sales grew 2%, the first positive quarter in about four years; watch whether the construction recovery broadens.
Competes with DX and GX systems (Hilti) · Strong-Drive and Quik Drive (Simpson Strong-Tie)
In plain English
The small things holding a building together can be a business of their own. Paslode, Ramset, Tapcon, GRK, Buildex, and Alpine sell nails, screws, anchors, powered tools, and systems that help factories design and make wooden roof frames.
Contractors, builders, and do-it-yourself shoppers pay when they start, repair, or remodel a project. A tool sale also creates repeat demand for the fasteners that fit it, much as a stapler keeps needing staples. Housing and commercial building set the pace, while labor shortages can make quicker fastening tools more attractive.
Automotive OEM
Fasteners and specially designed parts built into cars and light trucks. Sales slipped 0.4% in the second quarter of 2026; watch vehicle production in North America and Europe against rising content in China and electric vehicles.
Competes with Automotive fastening systems (ARaymond) · RIVKLE and FLEXITOL (Bollhoff)
In plain English
A modern vehicle needs thousands of quiet helpers: clips that hold panels, fasteners that join the body, and shaped parts that route or secure other components. ITW designs these pieces into a vehicle before mass production begins.
Carmakers and the large suppliers that serve them agree to use a part for a model program, then pay as each shipment reaches the assembly line. That makes winning a place on the vehicle valuable, but it does not guarantee sales by itself—the factory must keep building cars. No single customer dominates ITW, so the bigger dependency is vehicle production across whole regions.
Food Equipment
Commercial dishwashers, ovens, refrigerators, food-processing systems, and their upkeep. Sales fell 1.3% in the first half of 2026; watch whether growing service work can steady softer demand for new machines.
Competes with M-iQ dishwashing systems (MEIKO) · iCombi Pro (RATIONAL)
In plain English
Behind a restaurant meal or supermarket counter sits a small factory: dishes must be washed, food cooked, ingredients chilled, and batches prepared over and over. Hobart, Vulcan, Traulsen, and Baxter supply the sturdy machines built for that daily punishment.
Restaurants, schools, hospitals, supermarkets, and food processors pay when they open, remodel, or replace worn equipment. The relationship continues after installation because machines need repairs and routine care; some customers buy yearly service plans. That repeat work cushions weak equipment orders, though it cannot fully replace a broad slowdown in customers' spending on kitchens and processing lines.
Polymers & Fluids
Glues, sealants, coatings, maintenance liquids, cleaners, and car-care products for factories and shoppers. Sales grew 7.3% in the second quarter of 2026; watch chemical costs, store inventories, and whether industrial and car-care demand holds.
Competes with LOCTITE (Henkel) · Armor All (Energizer Holdings)
In plain English
The unglamorous liquids that keep things stuck, sealed, clean, moving, or protected add up. Devcon, Plexus, Permatex, LPS, Rocol, Rain-X, Black Magic, Slime, and Wynn's package chemical recipes for factory assembly, repair shops, maintenance crews, stores, and home garages.
Customers pay for a particular result—a bond that holds, a machine that runs smoothly, or a windshield that sheds water—then buy again when the tube or bottle runs out. That repeat use makes the shelf broader than a single equipment cycle. Profits still depend on buying chemicals and packaging at manageable costs and passing increases along without losing orders.
Test & Measurement and ElectronicsMachines that test materials and assemble or inspect electronics. Sales grew about 10% in the second quarter of 2026, led by electronics; watch whether chip-factory spending keeps orders moving into shipments.Machines that test materials and assemble or inspect electronics. Sales grew about 10% in the second quarter of 2026, led by electronics; watch whether chip-factory spending keeps orders moving into shipments.
In plain English
Before a bridge part, car panel, or electronic board can be trusted, someone has to bend it, weigh it, inspect it, or place tiny parts in exactly the right spot. ITW sells the machines and supplies that do those jobs, through names such as Instron, MTS, MPM, Camalot, and Electrovert.
Laboratories and manufacturers pay for the equipment when they add capacity or tighten quality checks, then return for supplies and support. Chip factories and companies that assemble circuit boards are driving the latest lift, so this business rises and falls with customers' willingness to spend on production lines.
Competes with AllroundLine testing machines (ZwickRoell) · SIPLACE and DEK systems (ASMPT)
Specialty ProductsA mixed shelf of beverage packaging, product-marking gear, medical parts, and airport equipment. Sales fell 1.5% in the first half of 2026; watch whether improving medical, aerospace, and packaging demand outweighs delayed deliveries.A mixed shelf of beverage packaging, product-marking gear, medical parts, and airport equipment. Sales fell 1.5% in the first half of 2026; watch whether improving medical, aerospace, and packaging demand outweighs delayed deliveries.
In plain English
This is ITW's odds-and-ends workshop: rings and machines that bundle drink cans, equipment that prints codes on packages, seals for resealable bags, small medical components, and machines that serve aircraft on the ground. The common thread is a narrow job where reliability matters more than mass-market scale.
Beverage packers, medical-device makers, airlines, and airports buy different products on different schedules. That variety can soften a slump in one corner, but it also means no single market pulls the whole segment. Money arrives from equipment, the pieces used with it, and repeat orders tied to customers' production lines or fleets.
Competes with KeelClip (Graphic Packaging International) · Ground-support equipment (TLD)
WeldingWelding machines, wire, electrodes, accessories, and safety gear led by Miller and Hobart. Sales jumped about 14% in the second quarter of 2026; watch the pace of large construction and industrial projects, especially in North America.Welding machines, wire, electrodes, accessories, and safety gear led by Miller and Hobart. Sales jumped about 14% in the second quarter of 2026; watch the pace of large construction and industrial projects, especially in North America.
In plain English
Think of a heavy-duty sewing machine for steel: the machine joins the pieces, while wire or rods are steadily used up as the seam is made. ITW sells both sides of that job, along with protective gear and controls that help factories repeat the same weld.
Fabricators and contractors buy machines for projects in infrastructure, energy, aerospace, defense, and data-center construction. Each installed machine can keep pulling through fresh wire, replacement parts, and upgrades. Demand is strongest when projects are plentiful and skilled welders are scarce enough to make faster or more automated equipment worth buying.
Competes with Power Wave and APEX (Lincoln Electric) · Aristo with WeldCloud (ESAB)
Construction ProductsFasteners, anchors, job-site tools, and equipment and software for making roof frames. Second-quarter 2026 sales grew 2%, the first positive quarter in about four years; watch whether the construction recovery broadens.Fasteners, anchors, job-site tools, and equipment and software for making roof frames. Second-quarter 2026 sales grew 2%, the first positive quarter in about four years; watch whether the construction recovery broadens.
In plain English
The small things holding a building together can be a business of their own. Paslode, Ramset, Tapcon, GRK, Buildex, and Alpine sell nails, screws, anchors, powered tools, and systems that help factories design and make wooden roof frames.
Contractors, builders, and do-it-yourself shoppers pay when they start, repair, or remodel a project. A tool sale also creates repeat demand for the fasteners that fit it, much as a stapler keeps needing staples. Housing and commercial building set the pace, while labor shortages can make quicker fastening tools more attractive.
Competes with DX and GX systems (Hilti) · Strong-Drive and Quik Drive (Simpson Strong-Tie)
Automotive OEMFasteners and specially designed parts built into cars and light trucks. Sales slipped 0.4% in the second quarter of 2026; watch vehicle production in North America and Europe against rising content in China and electric vehicles.Fasteners and specially designed parts built into cars and light trucks. Sales slipped 0.4% in the second quarter of 2026; watch vehicle production in North America and Europe against rising content in China and electric vehicles.
In plain English
A modern vehicle needs thousands of quiet helpers: clips that hold panels, fasteners that join the body, and shaped parts that route or secure other components. ITW designs these pieces into a vehicle before mass production begins.
Carmakers and the large suppliers that serve them agree to use a part for a model program, then pay as each shipment reaches the assembly line. That makes winning a place on the vehicle valuable, but it does not guarantee sales by itself—the factory must keep building cars. No single customer dominates ITW, so the bigger dependency is vehicle production across whole regions.
Competes with Automotive fastening systems (ARaymond) · RIVKLE and FLEXITOL (Bollhoff)
Food EquipmentCommercial dishwashers, ovens, refrigerators, food-processing systems, and their upkeep. Sales fell 1.3% in the first half of 2026; watch whether growing service work can steady softer demand for new machines.Commercial dishwashers, ovens, refrigerators, food-processing systems, and their upkeep. Sales fell 1.3% in the first half of 2026; watch whether growing service work can steady softer demand for new machines.
In plain English
Behind a restaurant meal or supermarket counter sits a small factory: dishes must be washed, food cooked, ingredients chilled, and batches prepared over and over. Hobart, Vulcan, Traulsen, and Baxter supply the sturdy machines built for that daily punishment.
Restaurants, schools, hospitals, supermarkets, and food processors pay when they open, remodel, or replace worn equipment. The relationship continues after installation because machines need repairs and routine care; some customers buy yearly service plans. That repeat work cushions weak equipment orders, though it cannot fully replace a broad slowdown in customers' spending on kitchens and processing lines.
Competes with M-iQ dishwashing systems (MEIKO) · iCombi Pro (RATIONAL)
Polymers & FluidsGlues, sealants, coatings, maintenance liquids, cleaners, and car-care products for factories and shoppers. Sales grew 7.3% in the second quarter of 2026; watch chemical costs, store inventories, and whether industrial and car-care demand holds.Glues, sealants, coatings, maintenance liquids, cleaners, and car-care products for factories and shoppers. Sales grew 7.3% in the second quarter of 2026; watch chemical costs, store inventories, and whether industrial and car-care demand holds.
In plain English
The unglamorous liquids that keep things stuck, sealed, clean, moving, or protected add up. Devcon, Plexus, Permatex, LPS, Rocol, Rain-X, Black Magic, Slime, and Wynn's package chemical recipes for factory assembly, repair shops, maintenance crews, stores, and home garages.
Customers pay for a particular result—a bond that holds, a machine that runs smoothly, or a windshield that sheds water—then buy again when the tube or bottle runs out. That repeat use makes the shelf broader than a single equipment cycle. Profits still depend on buying chemicals and packaging at manageable costs and passing increases along without losing orders.
Competes with LOCTITE (Henkel) · Armor All (Energizer Holdings)
Named in filings, launches and programs
- DeltarBrandVehicle fasteners and specially shaped components designed into car and light-truck programs.
- Hobart Food EquipmentBrandCommercial dishwashing and food-preparation machines backed by repair and service work.
- InstronBrandMachines that pull, press, and otherwise test materials and structures before customers trust them.
- MTS Test & SimulationBrandTesting and simulation systems folded into ITW's measurement business after a late-2021 purchase.
- Miller Deltaweld and Auto DeltaweldProduct line · RampingHeavy industrial welding systems expanded in July 2026 with a higher-powered model.
- Miller CopilotProduct line · RampingA robot-assisted welding system expanded for larger metal pieces and aluminum work.
- Rain-XBrandGlass treatments, cleaners, and appearance products sold for vehicle care.
- Paslode Universal Heavy-Duty Stapling ProgramProduct line · RampingFive manual fastening tools sharing one staple size, launched through home centers and online stores.
- AlpineBrandSoftware and factory equipment used to design and make wooden roof frames.
- Hi-ConeBrandPlastic ring systems and related machines that bundle beverage cans into multipacks.
- ITW GSEBrandGround-power and other support equipment used around aircraft at airports.
DeltarBrand
Vehicle fasteners and specially shaped components designed into car and light-truck programs.
Hobart Food EquipmentBrand
Commercial dishwashing and food-preparation machines backed by repair and service work.
InstronBrand
Machines that pull, press, and otherwise test materials and structures before customers trust them.
MTS Test & SimulationBrand
Testing and simulation systems folded into ITW's measurement business after a late-2021 purchase.
Miller Deltaweld and Auto DeltaweldProduct line · Ramping
Heavy industrial welding systems expanded in July 2026 with a higher-powered model.
Miller CopilotProduct line · Ramping
A robot-assisted welding system expanded for larger metal pieces and aluminum work.
Rain-XBrand
Glass treatments, cleaners, and appearance products sold for vehicle care.
Paslode Universal Heavy-Duty Stapling ProgramProduct line · Ramping
Five manual fastening tools sharing one staple size, launched through home centers and online stores.
AlpineBrand
Software and factory equipment used to design and make wooden roof frames.
Hi-ConeBrand
Plastic ring systems and related machines that bundle beverage cans into multipacks.
ITW GSEBrand
Ground-power and other support equipment used around aircraft at airports.