Commitments and Contingent Liabilities

Operating lease commitments. As of March 4, 2017, the Company was obligated under non-cancelable operating leases for buildings and equipment. Certain leases provide for increased rentals based upon increases in real estate taxes or operating costs. As part of our acquisition of Sotawall, we acquired leases to two properties which hold Sotawall's current principal facilities. The lessor under these leases is a company owned by the President of Sotawall. Future minimum rental payments under non-cancelable operating leases are:



(In thousands)	2018		2019		2020		2021		2022		Thereafter		Total
Total minimum payments	$	11,419	$	10,796	$	9,286	$	6,342	$	5,605	$	9,002	$	52,450

Total rental expense, including operating leases and short-term equipment rentals, was $16.9 million, $15.5 million and $18.7 million in fiscal 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

At March 4, 2017, we had one sale and leaseback agreement for equipment that provides an option to purchase the equipment at projected future fair market value upon expiration of the lease in 2021. The lease is classified as an operating lease in accordance with applicable financial accounting standards. The Company has a deferred gain of $1.8 million under the sale and leaseback transaction, which is included in the balance sheet as other current and non-current liabilities. The average annual lease payment over the remaining life of the lease is $1.0 million.

Bond commitments. In the ordinary course of business, predominantly in the Company’s Architectural Services segment, the Company is required to provide surety or performance bonds that commit payments to its customers for any non-performance. At March 4, 2017, $96.2 million of the Company’s backlog was bonded by performance bonds with a face value of $343.7 million. Performance bonds do not have stated expiration dates, as the Company is released from the bonds upon completion of the contract. The Company has never been required to make any payments related to these performance-based bonds with respect to any of its current portfolio of businesses.

Warranties. We reserve estimated exposures on known claims, as well as on a portion of anticipated claims for product warranty and rework costs based on historical product liability claims as a ratio of sales. Claims are deducted from the accrual when paid. Factors that could have an impact on the warranty accrual in any given period include the following: changes in manufacturing quality, shifts in product mix and any significant changes in sales volume. A warranty rollforward follows:



(In thousands)	2017			2016
Balance at beginning of period	$	16,340		$	11,275
Additional accruals	11,499			8,214
Claims paid	(5,906		)	(3,149		)
Balance at end of period	$	21,933		$	16,340

Letters of credit. At March 4, 2017, we had ongoing letters of credit related to construction contracts and certain industrial revenue bonds. The total value of letters of credit under which we were obligated as of March 4, 2017 was approximately $23.5 million, all of which have been issued under our credit facility. Our total availability under our $175.0 million credit facility is reduced by borrowings under the credit facility and also by letters of credit issued under the credit facility.

Purchase obligations. Purchase obligations for raw material commitments and capital expenditures totaled $115.8 million as of March 4, 2017.

Environmental liability. In fiscal 2008, we acquired one manufacturing facility which has certain historical environmental conditions. We are working to remediate these conditions; remediation has been conducted without significant disruption to our operations. Our liability for these remediation activities was $1.4 million and $1.6 million at March 4, 2017 and February 27, 2016, respectively.

New Markets Tax Credit transactions. In June 2016, we entered into a transaction with a subsidiary of Wells Fargo (WF) under a qualified New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program related to an investment in plant and equipment within our Architectural Glass segment. Previously, in fiscal 2014, we entered into a NMTC transaction with JP Morgan Chase (JPM) related to a separate investment in plant and equipment within the Architectural Glass segment. Each NMTC transaction is subject to 100 percent tax credit recapture for a period of seven years. Therefore, proceeds received in exchange for the transfer of the tax credits will be recognized as earnings in fiscal 2021 and 2024, if the expected tax benefits are delivered without risk of recapture to each bank and our performance obligations are relieved.

In exchange for substantially all the benefits derived from tax credits, WF contributed $6.0 million and JPM contributed $10.7 million into each respective project. These amounts are included within other non-current liabilities on our consolidated balance sheets. Direct and incremental costs incurred in structuring these arrangements have been deferred and will be recognized in proportion to the recognition of the related profits. These costs amounted to $4.5 million and are included in other non-current assets on our consolidated balance sheets. Variable-interest entities were created as a result of the structure of these transactions, which have been included within our consolidated financial statements as the banks do not have a material interest in the underlying economics of the projects.

Litigation. The Company is a party to various legal proceedings incidental to its normal operating activities. In particular, like others in the construction supply and services industry, the Company’s construction supply and services businesses are routinely involved in various disputes and claims arising out of construction projects, sometimes involving significant monetary damages or product replacement. The Company is subject to litigation arising out of general liability, employment practices, workers' compensation and automobile claims. Although it is very difficult to accurately predict the outcome of such proceedings, facts currently available indicate that no such claims will result in losses that would have a material adverse effect on the results of operations, cash flows or financial condition of the Company.