COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

6 Months Ended

Apr. 30, 2011

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Text Block]

13.      COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Guarantees

The Company has arranged for a standby letter of credit for $1.5 million to meet the security requirement of its insurance company for potential workers’ compensation claims, which is supported by the Company’s revolving credit facility.

Product Warranty

Changes in the Company’s product warranty liability for the six months ended April 30, 2011 and 2010, respectively, are as follows:

	Six months ended April 30,
	2011			2010
Balances as of beginning of fiscal year	$	1,636,000		$	1,022,000
Accruals for warranties		602,000			850,000
Warranty claims settled		(414,000	)		(570,000	)
Acquired warranty liabilities		—			80,000
Balances as of April 30	$	1,824,000		$	1,382,000

Additional Contingent Purchase Consideration

As part of the agreement to acquire a subsidiary by the ETG in fiscal 2007, the Company may be obligated to pay additional purchase consideration of up to 73 million Canadian dollars in fiscal 2012, which translates to approximately $77 million U.S. dollars based on the April 30, 2011 exchange rate, should the subsidiary meet certain earnings objectives through June 2012.

As part of the agreement to acquire a subsidiary by the ETG in fiscal 2009, the Company may be obligated to pay additional purchase consideration of up to approximately $10.1 million in fiscal 2012 should the subsidiary meet certain earnings objectives during the third year following the acquisition.

As part of the agreement to acquire a subsidiary by the ETG in fiscal 2009, the Company may be obligated to pay additional purchase consideration of up to approximately $7.6 million in fiscal 2012 should the subsidiary meet certain earnings objectives during the second year following the acquisition.

The above referenced additional contingent purchase consideration will be accrued when the earnings objectives are met.  Such additional contingent purchase consideration is based on a multiple of earnings above a threshold (subject to a cap in certain cases) and is not contingent upon the former shareholders of the acquired entities remaining employed by the Company or providing future services to the Company.  Accordingly, such consideration will be recorded as an additional cost of the respective acquired entity when paid.  The aggregate maximum amount of such contingent purchase consideration that the Company could be required to pay is approximately $95 million payable in fiscal 2012.  Assuming the subsidiaries perform over their respective future measurement periods at the same earnings levels they have performed in the comparable historical measurement periods, the aggregate amount of such contingent purchase consideration that the Company would be required to pay is approximately $14 million.  The actual contingent purchase consideration will likely be different.

Litigation

The Company is involved in various legal actions arising in the normal course of business.  Based upon the Company’s and its legal counsel’s evaluations of any claims or assessments, management is of the opinion that the outcome of these matters will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations, financial position or cash flows.