Goodwill and Intangible Assets (Notes)

3 Months Ended

Oct. 27, 2012

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]

The Company's goodwill balance was $174.8 million as of October 27, 2012 and July 28, 2012. There were no changes in the carrying amount of goodwill for the three months ended October 27, 2012. The Company’s intangible assets consist of the following:



	Weighted Average Remaining Useful Lives	October 27, 2012		July 28, 2012
	(Years)	(Dollars in thousands)
Carrying amount:
Customer relationships	9.2	$	89,145	$	89,145
UtiliQuest trade name	—	4,700		4,700
Trade names	7.9	2,860		2,860
Non-compete agreements	3.2	150		150
		96,855		96,855
Accumulated amortization:
Customer relationships		47,379		45,852
Trade names		1,238		1,182
Non-compete agreements		56		48
Net Intangible Assets		$	48,182	$	49,773

The Company’s goodwill resides in multiple reporting units. The reporting units and related indefinite-lived intangible assets are tested annually during the fourth fiscal quarter of each year in accordance with ASC Topic 350, Intangibles - Goodwill and Other, in order to determine whether their carrying value exceeds their fair value. The inputs used for fair value measurements of the reporting units and related indefinite-lived intangible assets are the lowest level (Level 3) inputs.

Amortization expense for finite-lived intangible assets for the three months ended October 27, 2012 and October 29, 2011 was $1.6 million and $1.7 million, respectively. Amortization of the Company’s customer relationships is recognized on an accelerated basis related to the expected economic benefit of the intangible asset, while amortization of other finite-lived intangibles is recognized on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life.

The profitability of individual reporting units may periodically suffer from downturns in customer demand and other factors resulting from the cyclical nature of the Company’s business, the high level of competition existing within the Company’s industry, the concentration of the Company’s revenues from a limited number of customers, and the level of overall economic activity. During times of slowing economic conditions, the Company’s customers may reduce capital expenditures and defer or cancel pending projects. Individual reporting units may be relatively more impacted by these factors than the Company as a whole. As a result, demand for the services of one or more of the Company’s reporting units could decline resulting in an impairment of goodwill or intangible assets.

As a result of the fiscal 2012 annual impairment analysis, the Company concluded that no impairment of goodwill or the indefinite-lived intangible asset was indicated at any reporting unit. However, the UtiliQuest reporting unit, having a goodwill balance of approximately $35.6 million and an indefinite-lived trade name of $4.7 million, has recently been at lower operating levels as compared to historical levels. During the fiscal 2012 annual impairment analysis, the estimated fair value of the UtiliQuest reporting unit exceeded its carrying value but the margin of excess had declined to less than 30%. The UtiliQuest reporting unit provides services to a broad range of customers including utilities and telecommunication providers. These services are required prior to underground excavation and are influenced by overall economic activity, including construction activity. The goodwill balance of this reporting unit may have an increased likelihood of impairment if a downturn in customer demand were to occur, or if the reporting unit were not able to execute against customer opportunities, and the long-term outlook for their cash flows were adversely impacted. Furthermore, changes in the long-term outlook may result in changes to other valuation assumptions. As of October 27, 2012, the Company believes the goodwill is recoverable for all of the reporting units; however, there can be no assurances that the goodwill will not be impaired in future periods.

Certain of the Company’s reporting units also have other intangible assets including customer relationships, trade names, and non-compete intangibles. As of October 27, 2012, management believes that the carrying amounts of the intangible assets are recoverable. However, if adverse events were to occur or circumstances were to change indicating that the carrying amount of such assets may not be fully recoverable, the assets would be reviewed for impairment and the assets could be impaired.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the aggregate amount of goodwill and a description of intangible assets, which may include (a) for amortizable intangible assets (also referred to as finite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, the amount of any significant residual value, and the weighted-average amortization period, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization (also referred to as indefinite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, and (c) the amount of research and development assets acquired and written off in the period, including the line item in the income statement in which the amounts written off are aggregated, if not readily apparent from the income statement. Also discloses (a) for amortizable intangibles assets in total and by major class, the gross carrying amount and accumulated amortization, the total amortization expense for the period, and the estimated aggregate amortization expense for each of the five succeeding fiscal years, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization the carrying amount in total and by major class, and (c) for goodwill, in total and for each reportable segment, the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill during the period (including the aggregate amount of goodwill acquired, the aggregate amount of impairment losses recognized, and the amount of goodwill included in the gain (loss) on disposal of a reporting unit). If any part of goodwill has not been allocated to a reportable segment, discloses the unallocated amount and the reasons for not allocating. For each impairment loss recognized related to an intangible asset (excluding goodwill), discloses: (a) a description of the impaired intangible asset and the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method for determining fair value, (c) the caption in the income statement or the statement of activities in which the impairment loss is aggregated, and (d) the segment in which the impaired intangible asset is reported. For each goodwill impairment loss recognized, discloses: (a) a description of the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method of determining the fair value of the associated reporting unit, and (c) if a recognized impairment loss is an estimate not finalized and the reasons why the estimate is not final. May also disclose the nature and amount of any significant adjustments made to a previous estimate of an impairment loss.

+ References+ Details