Accounts Receivable

12 Months Ended

Jan. 31, 2012

Accounts Receivable [Abstract]

ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE

NOTE 8 – ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE

Amounts retained by project owners under construction contracts and included in accounts receivable at January 31, 2012 and 2011 were approximately $9.8 million and $3.9 million, respectively. Such retainages represent amounts withheld by construction project owners until a defined phase of a contract or project has been completed and accepted by the customer. The lengths of retention periods may vary, but for material amounts they typically range between nine months and two years.

The Company conducts business and may extend credit to customers based on an evaluation of the customers’ financial condition, generally without requiring collateral. Exposure to losses on accounts receivable is expected to differ by customer due to the varying financial condition of each customer. The Company monitors its exposure to credit losses and maintains allowances for anticipated losses considered necessary under the circumstances based on historical experience with uncollected accounts and a review of its currently outstanding accounts receivable. The amount of the allowance for doubtful accounts was $5.5 million at January 31, 2012 and 2011 which fully covers the remaining amount owed by the owner of an uncompleted construction project and equal to the amount of the net proceeds remaining from a public auction of the facility. The amount of the Company’s share of the auction proceeds, if any, is not known at this time. The amounts of the provision for accounts receivable losses for the years ended January 31, 2012 and 2011 were not material.