Business Segments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2011

Business Segments [Abstract]

Business Segments

Note 2.

Business Segments

L.B. Foster Company is organized and evaluated by product group, which is the basis for identifying reportable segments.

The Company is engaged in the manufacture, fabrication and distribution of rail, construction and tubular products.

The Company's Rail segment provides a full line of new and used rail, trackwork and accessories to railroads, mines and industry.  The Rail segment also designs and produces concrete railroad ties, insulated rail joints, power rail, track fasteners, coverboards and special accessories for mass transit and other rail systems.  The Company also engineers, manufactures and assembles friction management products and railway wayside data collection and management systems.

The Company's Construction segment sells and rents steel sheet piling, H-bearing pile, and other piling products for foundation and earth retention requirements.  In addition, the Company's Fabricated Products division sells bridge decking, bridge railing, structural steel fabrications, expansion joints and other products for highway construction and repair.  The Buildings division produces precast concrete buildings.

The Company's Tubular segment supplies pipe coatings for natural gas pipelines and utilities.  Additionally, this segment produces threaded pipe products for industrial water well and irrigation markets.

The Company markets its products directly in all major industrial areas of the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, primarily through an internal sales force.

The following table illustrates net sales, profits, assets, depreciation/amortization and expenditures for long-lived assets of the Company by segment.  Segment profit is the earnings before income taxes and includes internal cost of capital charges for assets used in the segment at a rate of, generally 1% per month.  The accounting policies of the reportable segments are the same as those described in the summary of significant accounting policies except that the Company accounts for inventory on a First-In, First-Out (FIFO) basis at the segment level compared to a Last-In, First-Out (LIFO) basis at the consolidated level.

	2011
										Expenditures
	Net		Segment			Segment		Depreciation/		for Long-Lived
	Sales		Profit			Assets		Amortization		Assets
	In thousands
Rail Products	$	323,475	$	19,798		$	193,170	$	8,994	$	5,970
Construction Products		234,981		16,326			92,354		2,068		1,179
Tubular Products		32,470		6,810			11,758		453		3,995
Total	$	590,926	$	42,934		$	297,282	$	11,515	$	11,144
	2010
										Expenditures
	Net		Segment			Segment		Depreciation/		for Long-Lived
	Sales		Profit			Assets		Amortization		Assets
	In thousands
Rail Products	$	212,240	$	11,904		$	208,446	$	6,177	$	3,094
Construction Products		235,591		20,600			91,019		1,738		1,638
Tubular Products		27,219		3,949			6,207		765		543
Total	$	475,050	$	36,453		$	305,672	$	8,680	$	5,275
	2009
										Expenditures
	Net		Segment			Segment		Depreciation/		for Long-Lived
	Sales		(Loss)/Profit			Assets		Amortization		Assets
	In thousands
Rail Products	$	186,401	$	(281	)	$	86,591	$	6,310	$	1,197
Construction Products		196,480		13,714			104,506		1,392		2,142
Tubular Products		21,139		(1,086	)		9,777		498		1,906
Total	$	404,020	$	12,347		$	200,874	$	8,200	$	5,245

In 2011 and 2009, one customer accounted for approximately 10.0% and 10.3%, respectively, of consolidated net sales.  Sales to this customer were recorded in the Rail and Construction segments and were approximately $58,715,000 and $39,370,000 during 2011 and 2009, respectively.  During 2010 no single customer accounted for more than 10% of the Company's consolidated net sales.  Sales between segments are immaterial.

Reconciliations of reportable segment net sales, profits, assets, depreciation/amortization, and expenditures for long-lived assets to the Company's consolidated totals are illustrated as follows:

	2011			2010			2009
	In thousands
Net Sales from Continuing Operations:
Total for reportable segments	$	590,926		$	475,050		$	404,020
Other net sales		0			0			0
Total	$	590,926		$	475,050		$	404,020
Income from Continuing Operations:
Total for reportable segments	$	42,934		$	36,453		$	12,347
Adjustment of inventory to LIFO		(2,183	)		2,276			11,039
Unallocated interest income		321			403			789
Unallocated equity in income/(losses) of nonconsolidated investments		708			(213	)		0
Unallocated acquisition costs		0			(2,413	)		(8	)
Unallocated gain on sale of marketable securities		0			1,364			1,194
Other unallocated amounts		(7,841	)		(5,128	)		122
Income before income taxes	$	33,939		$	32,742		$	25,483
Assets:
Total for reportable segments	$	297,282		$	305,672		$	200,874
Unallocated corporate assets		86,226			74,882			135,651
LIFO and corporate inventory reserves		(9,743	)		(8,226	)		(10,677	)
Unallocated property, plant and equipment		6,129			6,074			5,746
Total assets	$	379,894		$	378,402		$	331,594
Depreciation/Amortization:
Total for reportable segments	$	11,515		$	8,680		$	8,200
Other		845			809			520
Total	$	12,360		$	9,489		$	8,720
Expenditures for Long-Lived Assets:
Total for reportable segments	$	11,144		$	5,275		$	5,245
Expenditures financed under capital leases		0			199			0
Other expenditures		795			686			862
Total	$	11,939		$	6,160		$	6,107

The following table summarizes the Company's sales by major geographic region in which the Company has operations:

	2011		2010		2009
	In thousands
United States	$	499,478	$	451,393	$	390,792
Canada		41,252		10,008		4,853
United Kingdom		14,728		627		0
Other		35,468		13,022		8,375
Total	$	590,926	$	475,050	$	404,020

The following table summarizes the Company's long-lived assets by geographic region:

	2011		2010		2009
	In thousands
United States	$	38,199	$	35,942	$	37,407
Canada		9,374		9,785		0
United Kingdom		545		489		0
Total	$	48,118	$	46,216	$	37,407

For the years ended December 31, 2011, 2010 and 2009, sales of the Company's piling products totaled approximately $162,641,000, $146,703,000 and $124,103,000, respectively.  For the years ended December 31, 2011, 2010 and 2009, sales of the Company's rail distribution products totaled approximately $115,777,000, $102,155,000 and $102,632,000, respectively.  For the years ended December 31, 2011, 2010 and 2009, sales of the Company's CXT concrete tie products totaled approximately $48,968,000, $53,518,000 and $41,760,000.  For the year ended December 31, 2011, Portec product sales totaled approximately $106,117,000.