Contingent Liabilities

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2011

Contingent Liabilities [Abstract]

Contingent Liabilities

15. Contingent Liabilities

Employment Contracts

The Company has employment arrangements with certain key executives that provide for continuity of management. These arrangements include payments of multiples of annual salary, certain incentives, and continuation of benefits upon the occurrence of specified events in a manner that is believed to be consistent with comparable companies.

Unconditional Purchase Orders

Noncancellable purchase order commitments for capital expenditures made in the ordinary course of business were $38,948 and $27,756 at December 31, 2010 and 2011, respectively.

Legal and Other Claims

The Company is periodically involved in claims, litigation, and various legal matters that arise in the ordinary course of business. Each of these matters is subject to various uncertainties, and some of these matters may be resolved unfavorably with respect to the Company. If appropriate, the Company establishes a reserve estimate for each matter and updates such estimate as additional information becomes available. Based on the information currently known to the Company, they do not believe that the ultimate resolution of any of these matters will have a material adverse effect on their financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows.

Environmental

The Company is subject to a broad range of federal, state, and local environmental and occupational safety and health laws and regulations in the United States and other countries, including regulations governing: emissions to air, discharges to water, noise and odor emissions; the generation, handling, storage, transportation, treatment, and disposal of waste materials; the cleanup of contaminated properties; and human health and safety. The Company may incur substantial costs associated with hazardous substance contamination or exposure, including cleanup costs, fines, and civil or criminal sanctions, third party property or natural resource damage, personal injury claims, or costs to upgrade or replace existing equipment as a result of violations of or liabilities under environmental laws or the failure to maintain or comply with environmental permits required at their locations. In addition, many of the Company's current and former facilities are located on properties with long histories of industrial or commercial operations and some of these properties have been subject to certain environmental investigations and remediation activities. The Company maintains environmental reserves for certain of these sites. As of December 31, 2011, the Company has $10,040 reserved in other liabilities on the consolidated balance sheet on an undiscounted basis, which they believe are adequate. Because some environmental laws (such as the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act and analogous state laws) can impose liability retroactively and regardless of fault on potentially responsible parties for the entire cost of cleanup at currently or formerly owned or operated facilities, as well as sites at which such parties disposed or arranged for disposal of hazardous waste, the Company could become liable for investigating or remediating contamination at their current or former properties or other properties (including offsite waste disposal locations). The Company may not always be in complete compliance with all applicable requirements of environmental laws or regulations, and the Company may receive notices of violation or become subject to enforcement actions or incur material costs or liabilities in connection with such requirements. In addition, new environmental requirements or changes to interpretations of existing requirements, or in their enforcement, could have a material adverse effect on the Company's businesses, results of operations, and financial condition. For example, while the Company is not large emitters of greenhouse gases, laws, regulations and certain regional initiatives under consideration by the U.S. Congress, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and various states, and in effect in certain foreign jurisdictions, could result in increased operating costs to control and monitor such emissions. The Company has made and will continue to make expenditures to comply with environmental requirements. While the Company's costs to defend and settle claims arising under environmental laws in the past have not been material, such costs may be material in the future.