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NATURE OF BUSINESS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Policies)
12 Months Ended
Dec. 28, 2013
NATURE OF BUSINESS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES  
PRINCIPLES OF CONSOLIDATION

PRINCIPLES OF CONSOLIDATION

 

The consolidated financial statements include Continental Materials Corporation and all of its subsidiaries (the Company). Intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated. All subsidiaries of the Company are wholly-owned.

RECENTLY ISSUED ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS

RECENTLY ISSUED ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS

 

Currently there are no significant prospective accounting pronouncements that are expected to have a material effect on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

USE OF ESTIMATES IN THE PREPARATION OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

USE OF ESTIMATES IN THE PREPARATION OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

 

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities as of December 28, 2013 and December 29, 2012 and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during both of the two years in the period ended December 28, 2013. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

 

The Company considers all highly-liquid debt instruments purchased with a maturity of three months or less to be cash equivalents. The carrying amount of cash and cash equivalents approximates fair value. The Company has reclassified bank overdrafts to Accounts Payable.

FAIR VALUE OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

FAIR VALUE OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

 

Fair value of the Company’s debt is estimated based on the borrowing rates currently available to the Company for bank loans with similar terms, maturities and credit risks. The carrying amount of long-term debt represents a reasonable estimate of the corresponding fair value as the Company’s debt is held at variable interest rates.

 

Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. Fair value measurements must maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs. There is a hierarchy of three levels of inputs that may be used to measure fair value:

 

Level 1        Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

 

Level 2        Observable inputs other than Level 1 prices, such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities; quoted prices in markets that are not active; or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities.

 

Level 3        Unobservable inputs supported by little or no market activity and are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities. Unobservable inputs reflect the assumptions that market participants would use when pricing the asset or liability including assumptions about risk.

 

The following methods were used to estimate the fair value of all other financial instruments recognized in the accompanying balance sheet.

 

Cash and Cash Equivalents: The carrying amount approximates fair value and was valued as Level 1.

 

Notes Receivables with Related Parties: It was not practical to estimate the fair value of long-term receivables and payables with related parties. Also see discussion under Real Estate Held for Resale and Related Note Receivable — Related Party below.

 

Notes Payable and Long-term Debt: Fair value is estimated based on the borrowing rates currently available to the Company for bank loans with similar terms and maturities and determined through the use of a discounted cash flow model. The carrying amount of long-term debt represents a reasonable estimate of the corresponding fair value as the Company’s debt is held at variable interest rates and was valued as Level 2.

INVENTORIES

INVENTORIES

 

Inventories are valued at the lower of cost or market and are reviewed periodically for excess or obsolete stock with a provision recorded, where appropriate. Cost for inventory in the HVAC industry group is determined using the last-in, first-out (LIFO) method. These inventories represent approximately 74% at December 28, 2013 and 75% of total inventories at December 29, 2012. The cost of all other inventory is determined by the first-in, first-out (FIFO) or average cost methods. Some commodity prices such as copper, steel, cement and diesel fuel have experienced significant fluctuations in recent years. Cement and diesel fuel prices are principally relevant to the CACS segment while steel prices and copper prices are principally relevant to our two HVAC businesses. The general effect of using LIFO is that the higher steel and copper prices are not reflected in the inventory carrying value. Those higher current costs are principally reflected in the cost of sales. Cement and fuel are relevant to our construction materials business. The inventories of the businesses using either FIFO or an average costing method for valuing inventories turn over frequently and at any point in time the amount of cement or fuel inventory is not significant. Due to these circumstances, the commodity fluctuations have primarily affected the cost of sales with little effect on the valuation of inventory. Due to the nature of our products, obsolescence is not typically a significant exposure, however our HVAC businesses will from time to time contend with some slow-moving inventories or parts that are no longer used due to engineering changes. We believe that our inventory valuation reserves are not material. At December 28, 2013, inventory reserves were approximately 2.5% of the total FIFO inventory value. The recorded reserves are intended for such items.

REAL ESTATE HELD FOR RESALE AND RELATED NOTE RECEIVABLE - RELATED PARTY

REAL ESTATE HELD FOR RESALE AND RELATED NOTE RECEIVABLE — RELATED PARTY

 

The Company purchased the residence of and made a loan of $352,000 to an executive of one of the Company’s subsidiaries in connection with his relocation to head up WEI. The carrying value of the residence was written down by $73,000 during 2012 based upon an appraisal commissioned in December 2012. The residence, classified as real estate held for resale on the 2012 balance sheet was sold during 2013. The loan was fully reserved as of December 28, 2013.

PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

 

Property, plant and equipment are carried at cost. Depreciation is provided over the estimated useful lives of the related assets using the straight-line method as follows:

 

Land improvements

 

5 to 31 years

Buildings and improvements

 

10 to 31 years

Leasehold improvements

 

Shorter of the term of the lease or useful life

Machinery and equipment

 

3 to 20 years

 

Depletion of rock and sand deposits and amortization of deferred development costs are computed by the units-of-production method based upon estimated recoverable quantities of rock and sand. The estimated recoverable quantities are periodically reassessed.

 

The cost of property sold or retired and the related accumulated depreciation, depletion and amortization are removed from the accounts and the resulting gain or loss is reflected in operating income. Maintenance and repairs are charged to expense as incurred. Major renewals and betterments are capitalized and depreciated over their estimated useful lives.

OTHER ASSETS

OTHER ASSETS

 

As of December 28, 2013, the Company has recorded $7,229,000 of goodwill consisting of $6,229,000 related to the Concrete, Aggregates and Construction Supplies segment and $1,000,000 related to the Door segment. The Company annually assesses goodwill for potential impairment at the end of each year. In addition, the Company will reassess the recorded goodwill to determine if impairment has occurred if events arise or circumstances change in the relevant reporting segments or in their industries. No goodwill impairment was recognized for any of the periods presented.

 

Amortizable intangible assets consist of a restrictive land covenant and customer relationships related to the Company’s acquisition of the assets of a ready mix concrete business in 2006. The restrictive land covenant is being amortized on a straight-line basis over its estimated life of ten years. The customer relationships amount is being amortized over its estimated life of ten years using the sum-of-the-years digits method.

 

The Company is party to three aggregate property leases which require royalty payments. One of the leases calls for minimum annual royalty payments. Prepaid royalties relate to payments made for aggregate materials not yet extracted.

RETIREMENT PLANS

RETIREMENT PLANS

 

The Company and certain subsidiaries have various contributory profit sharing retirement plans for specific employees. The plans allow qualified employees to make tax deferred contributions pursuant to Internal Revenue Code Section 401(k). The Company may make annual contributions, at its discretion, based primarily on profitability. In addition, any individuals whose compensation is in excess of the amount eligible for the Company matching contribution to the 401(k) plan as established by Section 401 of the Internal Revenue Code, participate in an unfunded Supplemental Profit Sharing Plan. This plan accrues an amount equal to the difference between the amount the person would have received as Company contributions to his account under the 401(k) plan had there been no limitations and the amount the person will receive under the 401(k) plan giving effect to the limitations. Costs under the plans are charged to operations as incurred. As of December 28, 2013 and December 29, 2012, the unfunded liabilities related to the Supplemental Profit Sharing Plan were $1,096,000 and $872 000, respectively.

RESERVE FOR SELF-INSURED AND INSURED LOSSES

RESERVE FOR SELF-INSURED AND INSURED LOSSES

 

The Company’s risk management program provides for certain levels of loss retention for workers’ compensation, automobile liability, healthcare plan coverage and general and product liability claims. The components of the reserve for self-insured losses have been recorded in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) requirements that an estimated loss from a loss contingency shall be accrued if information available prior to issuance of the financial statements indicates that it is probable that a liability has been incurred at the date of the financial statements and the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated. The recorded reserve represents management’s best estimate of the future liability related to these claims up to the associated deductible.

 

GAAP also requires an entity to accrue the gross amount of a loss even if the entity has purchased insurance to cover the loss. Therefore the Company has recorded losses for workers’ compensation, automobile liability, medical plan coverage and general and product liability claims in excess of the deductible amounts, i.e., amounts covered by insurance contracts, in “Liability for unpaid claims covered by insurance” with a corresponding “Receivable for insured losses” on the balance sheet. The components of the liability represent both unpaid settlements and management’s best estimate of the future liability related to open claims. Management has evaluated the creditworthiness of our insurance carriers and determined that recovery of the recorded losses is probable and, therefore, the receivable from insurance has been recorded for the full amount of the insured losses.

RECLAMATION

RECLAMATION

 

In connection with permits to mine properties in Colorado, the Company is obligated to reclaim the mined areas whether the property is owned or leased. The Company records a reserve for future reclamation work to be performed at its various aggregate operations based upon an estimate of the total expense that would be paid to a third party to reclaim the disturbed areas. Reclamation expense is determined during the interim periods using the units-of-production method. The adequacy of the recorded reserve is assessed quarterly. At each fiscal year-end, a more formal and complete analysis is performed and the expense and reserve is adjusted to reflect the estimated cost to reclaim the then disturbed and unreclaimed areas. The assessment of the reclamation liability may be done more frequently if events or circumstances arise that may indicate a change in estimated costs, recoverable material or period of mining activity. As part of the year-end analysis, the Company engages an independent specialist to assist in reevaluating the estimates of both the quantities of recoverable material and the cost of reclamation. Most of the reclamation on any mining property is generally performed soon after each section of the deposit is mined. The Company’s reserve for reclamation activities was $1,355,000 at December 28, 2013 and $1,150,000 at December 29, 2012. The Company classifies a portion of the reserve as a current liability, $271,000 at December 28, 2013 and $230,000 at December 29, 2012 based upon historical expenditures.

REVENUE RECOGNITION

REVENUE RECOGNITION

 

The Company recognizes revenue as products are shipped to customers. Sales are recorded net of applicable provisions for discounts, volume incentives, returns and allowances. At the time of revenue recognition, the Company also provides an estimate of potential bad debt and warranty expense as well as an amount anticipated to be granted to customers under cooperative advertising programs based upon current program terms and historical experience. In addition, the revenues received for shipping and handling are included in sales while the costs associated with shipping and handling are reported as cost of sales.

 

The Company is responsible for warranty related to the manufacture of its HVAC products. The Company does not perform installation services except for installation of electronic access and security systems in the Door segment, nor are maintenance or service contracts offered. Changes in the aggregated product warranty liability for the fiscal years 2013 and 2012 were as follows (amounts in thousands):

 

 

 

2013

 

2012

 

Beginning balance

 

$

127

 

$

134

 

Warranty related expenditures

 

(259

)

(215

)

Warranty expense accrued

 

188

 

208

 

Ending balance

 

$

56

 

$

127

 

INCOME TAXES

INCOME TAXES

 

Income taxes are accounted for under the asset and liability method that requires deferred income taxes to reflect the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the tax and financial reporting bases of assets and liabilities. Deferred tax assets and liabilities recognized are based on the tax rates in effect in the year in which differences are expected to reverse. Deferred tax assets are reduced by a valuation allowance when, based on available positive and negative evidence, it is “more likely than not” (greater than a 50% likelihood) that some or all of the net deferred tax assets will not be realized.

 

Income tax returns are subject to audit by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and state tax authorities. The amounts recorded for income taxes reflect our tax positions based on research and interpretations of complex laws and regulations. We accrue liabilities related to uncertain tax positions taken or expected to be taken in our tax returns.

CONCENTRATIONS

CONCENTRATIONS

 

Financial instruments, which potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk, consist principally of trade receivables and temporary cash investments. The Company may invest its excess cash in commercial paper of companies with strong credit ratings. The Company has not experienced any losses on these investments.

 

The Company performs ongoing credit evaluations of its customers and generally does not require collateral. In many instances in the Concrete, Aggregates and Construction Supplies segment and in the Heating and Cooling segment (as it relates to the fan coil product line), the Company retains lien rights on the properties served until the receivable is collected. The Company writes off accounts when all efforts to collect the receivable have been exhausted. The Company maintains allowances for potential credit losses based upon the aging of accounts receivable and historical experience and such losses have been within management’s expectations. See Note 16 for a description of the Company’s customer base.

 

All long-lived assets are in the United States. No customer accounted for 10% or more of total sales of the Company in fiscal 2013 or 2012.

 

Substantially all of the Heating and Cooling Segment’s factory employees are covered by a collective bargaining agreement through the Carpenters Local 721 Union under a contract that expires on December 31, 2018.

IMPAIRMENT OF LONG-LIVED ASSETS

IMPAIRMENT OF LONG-LIVED ASSETS

 

In the event that facts and circumstances indicate that the cost of any long-lived assets may be impaired, an evaluation of recoverability would be performed. If an evaluation were required, the estimated future undiscounted cash flows associated with the asset would be compared to the asset’s carrying amount to determine if a write-down to market value or discounted cash flow value is required. The Company has determined that there was no impairment of such long-lived assets in 2013.

FISCAL YEAR END

FISCAL YEAR END

 

The Company’s fiscal year end is the Saturday nearest December 31. Fiscal 2013 and 2012 each consisted of 52 weeks.