Revenue Recognition Revenue from Contract Customers (Notes)

9 Months Ended

May 31, 2020

Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]

Revenue from Contract with Customer [Text Block]

Note 2. Revenue Recognition

Nature of Goods and Services

The Company generates its revenue under two principal activities, which are discussed below:

Product Sales: Sales of tools, heavy-lifting solutions, and rope and cable solutions are recorded when control is transferred to the customer (i.e., performance obligation has been satisfied). For the majority of the Company’s product sales, revenue is recognized at a point in time when control of the product is transferred to the customer, which generally occurs when the product is shipped from the Company to the customer. For certain other products that are highly customized and have a limited alternative use, and for which the Company has an enforceable right of reimbursement for performance completed to date, revenue is recognized over time. We consider the input measure (efforts-expended or cost-to-cost) or output measure as a fair measure of progress for the recognition of over time revenue associated with these custom products. For a majority of the Company’s custom products, machine hours and labor hours (efforts-expended measurement) are used as a measure of progress.

Service & Rental Sales: Service contracts consist of providing highly trained technicians to perform bolting, technical services, machining and joint integrity work for our customers. These revenues are recognized over time as our customers simultaneously receive and consume the benefits provided by the Company. We consider the input measure (efforts-expended or cost-to-cost) or output measure as a fair measure of progress for the recognition of over time revenue associated with service contracts. For a majority of the Company’s service contracts, labor hours (efforts-expended measurement) is used as the measure of progress when it is determined to be a better depiction of the transfer of control to the customer due to the timing and pattern of labor hours incurred. Revenue from rental contracts (less than a year and non-customized products) is generally recognized ratably over the contract term, depicting the customer’s consumption of the benefit related to the rental equipment.

Disaggregated Revenue and Performance Obligations

The Company disaggregates revenue from contracts with customers by reportable segment and product line and by the timing of when goods and services are transferred. See Note 13, "Segment Information" for information regarding our revenue disaggregation by reportable segment and product line.

The following table presents information regarding revenues disaggregated by the timing of when goods and services are transferred (in thousands):

	Three Months Ended May 31,				Nine Months Ended May 31,
	2020		2019		2020		2019
Revenues recognized at point in time	$	73,412	$	117,175	$	275,413	$	335,314
Revenues recognized over time	28,467		60,920		106,526		161,121
Total	$	101,879	$	178,095	$	381,939	$	496,435

Contract Balances

The Company's contract assets and liabilities are as follows (in thousands):

	May 31, 2020		August 31, 2019
Receivables, which are included in accounts receivable, net	$	93,796	$	125,883
Contract assets, which are included in other current assets	4,563		3,747
Contract liabilities, which are included in other current liabilities	2,233		3,707

Receivables: The Company performs its obligations under a contract with a customer by transferring goods or services in exchange for consideration from the customer. The Company typically invoices its customers as soon as control of an asset is transferred and a receivable for the Company is established.

Contract Assets: Contract assets relate to the Company’s rights to consideration for work completed but not billed as of the reporting date on contracts with customers. The contract assets are transferred to receivables when the rights become unconditional. The Company has contract assets on contracts that are generally long-term and have revenues that are recognized over time.

Contract Liabilities: As of May 31, 2020, the Company had certain contracts where there were unsatisfied performance obligations and the Company had received cash consideration from customers before the performance obligations were satisfied. The majority of these contracts relate to long-term customer contracts (project durations of greater than three months) and are recognized over time. The Company estimates that the $2.2 million will be recognized in net sales from satisfying those performance obligations within the next twelve months.

Significant Judgments

Timing of Performance Obligations Satisfied at a Point in Time: The Company evaluates when the customer obtains control of the product based on shipping terms, as control will transfer, depending upon such terms, at different points between the Company's manufacturing facility or warehouse and the customer’s location. The Company considers control to have transferred upon shipment or delivery because i) the Company has a present right to payment at that time; ii) the legal title has been transferred to the customer; iii) the Company has transferred physical possession of the product to the customer; and iv) the customer has significant risks and rewards of ownership of the product.

Variable Consideration: The Company estimates whether it will be subject to variable consideration under the terms of the contract and includes its estimate of variable consideration in the transaction price based on the expected value method when it is deemed probable of being realized based on historical experience and trends. Types of variable consideration may include rebates, incentives and discounts, among others, which are recorded as a reduction to net sales at the time when control of a performance obligation is transferred to the customer.

Practical Expedients & Exemptions: The Company elected to expense the incremental cost of obtaining a contract when the amortization period for such contracts would be one year or less. The Company does not disclose the value of unperformed obligations for contracts with an original expected length of one year or less and contracts for which it recognizes revenue at the amount to which it has the right to invoice for services performed.