Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]

8. Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

The change in the net carrying amount of goodwill for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 by segment is as follows (in thousands):


	Steel Mills			Steel Products			Raw Materials			Total

Balance, December 31, 2015		$	590,634		$	691,067		$	729,577		$	2,011,278
Acquisitions			29,522			—			—			29,522
Translation			—			11,928			—			11,928

Balance, December 31, 2016			620,156			702,995			729,577			2,052,728
Acquisitions			125,328			7,004			—			132,332
Translation			—			10,998			—			10,998

Balance, December 31, 2017		$	745,484		$	720,997		$	729,577		$	2,196,058

The majority of goodwill is not tax deductible.

Intangible assets with estimated useful lives of 5 to 22 years are amortized on a straight-line or accelerated basis and are comprised of the following (in thousands):


	December 31, 2017				December 31, 2016
	Gross Amount		Accumulated Amortization		Gross Amount		Accumulated Amortization
Customer relationships	$	1,420,224	$	641,089	$	1,295,803	$	566,884
Trademarks and trade names		176,471		77,208		161,851		66,494
Other		62,805		26,557		62,807		20,248

	$	1,659,500	$	744,854	$	1,520,461	$	653,626

During the third quarter of 2016, Nucor acquired the remaining ownership interest in a former joint venture entity that Nucor previously accounted for as an equity method investment. As a result of the transaction, Nucor obtained control and began to consolidate that entity. That entity’s intangible assets, the majority of which are patents, are included in other intangible assets, net in the consolidated balance sheets at December 31, 2017 and 2016. The gross amount and related accumulated amortization of these assets were $36.3 million and $6.2 million, respectively, at December 31, 2017 ($36.3 million and $2.1 million, respectively, at December 31, 2016).

Intangible asset amortization expense was $91.2 million in 2017 ($73.9 million in 2016 and $74.3 million in 2015). Annual amortization expense is estimated to be $89.6 million in 2018, $86.7 million in 2019, $84.4 million in 2020, $83.1 million in 2021 and $80.8 million in 2022.

The Company completed its annual goodwill impairment testing as of the first day of the fourth quarters of 2017, 2016 and 2015 and concluded that as of such dates there was no impairment of goodwill for any of its reporting units. We do not believe there are any reporting units at significant risk of goodwill impairment in the next 12 months. However, assumptions in estimating reporting unit fair values are subject to a high degree of judgment and complexity. Changes in assumptions and estimates may affect the estimated reporting unit fair values and could result in impairment charges in future periods.

There are no significant historical accumulated impairment charges, by segment or in the aggregate, related to goodwill.

- 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.

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