16.

Commitments and Contingencies

Operating lease commitments

Net rental expense under operating leases follows:


In thousands	2011			2010			2009
Gross rental expense	$	39,808		$	32,662		$	32,799
Sublease rental income		(455	)		(225	)		(74	)

Net rental expense	$	39,353		$	32,437		$	32,725

Future minimum lease commitments under non-cancelable operating leases, principally related to facilities, vehicles, and machinery and equipment are as follows:


In thousands	2012			2013			2014			2015			2016			Thereafter			Total
Minimum lease payments	$	25,961		$	19,343		$	15,944		$	12,689		$	10,331		$	16,794		$	101,062
Minimum sublease rentals		(280	)		(283	)		(285	)		(118	)		(103	)		(103	)		(1,172	)

Net future minimum lease commitments	$	25,681		$	19,060		$	15,659		$	12,571		$	10,228		$	16,691		$	99,890

Environmental

We have been named as defendants, targets, or PRPs in a small number of environmental clean-ups, in which our current or former business units have generally been given de minimis status. To date, none of these claims have resulted in clean-up costs, fines, penalties, or damages in an amount material to our financial position or results of operations. We have disposed of a number of businesses in the past and in certain cases, such as the disposition of the Cross Pointe Paper Corporation uncoated paper business in 1995, the disposition of the Federal Cartridge Company ammunition business in 1997, the disposition of Lincoln Industrial in 2001 and the disposition of the Tools Group in 2004, we have retained responsibility and potential liability for certain environmental obligations. We have received claims for indemnification from purchasers of these businesses and have established what we believe to be adequate accruals for potential liabilities arising out of retained responsibilities. We settled some of the claims in prior years; to date our recorded accruals have been adequate.

In addition, there are ongoing environmental issues at a limited number of sites, including one site acquired in the acquisition of Essef Corporation in 1999, which relates to operations no longer carried out at the sites. We have established what we believe to be adequate accruals for remediation costs at these sites. We do not believe that projected response costs will result in a material liability.

We may be named as a PRP at other sites in the future, for both divested and acquired businesses. When the outcome of the matter is probable and it is possible to provide reasonable estimates of our liability with respect to environmental sites, provisions have been made in accordance with GAAP. As of December 31, 2011 and 2010, our undiscounted reserves for such environmental liabilities were approximately $1.5 million and $1.3 million, respectively. We cannot ensure that environmental requirements will not change or become more stringent over time or that our eventual environmental clean-up costs and liabilities will not exceed the amount of our current reserves.

Litigation

We have been made parties to a number of actions filed or have been given notice of potential claims relating to the conduct of our business, including those pertaining to commercial disputes, product liability, environmental, safety and health, patent infringement and employment matters.

We record liabilities for an estimated loss from a loss contingency where the outcome of the matter is probable and can be reasonably estimated. Factors that are considered when determining whether the conditions for accrual have been met include the (a) nature of the litigation, claim, or assessment, (b) progress of the case, including progress after the date of the financial statements but before the issuance date of the financial statements, (c) opinions of legal counsel and (d) management’s intended response to the litigation, claim, or assessment. Where the reasonable estimate of the probable loss is a range, we record the most likely estimate of the loss. When no amount within the range is a better estimate than any other amount, however, the minimum amount in the range is accrued. Gain contingencies are not recorded until realized.

While we believe that a material impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations, or cash flows from any such future charges is unlikely, given the inherent uncertainty of litigation, a remote possibility exists that a future adverse ruling or unfavorable development could result in future charges that could have a material impact. We do and will continue to periodically reexamine our estimates of probable liabilities and any associated expenses and receivables and make appropriate adjustments to such estimates based on experience and developments in litigation. As a result, the current estimates of the potential impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations and cash flows for the proceedings and claims could change in the future.

Product liability claims

We are subject to various product liability lawsuits and personal injury claims. A substantial number of these lawsuits and claims are insured and accrued for by Penwald, our captive insurance subsidiary. Penwald records a liability for these claims based on actuarial projections of ultimate losses. For all other claims, accruals covering the claims are recorded, on an undiscounted basis, when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of the liability can be reasonably estimated based on existing information. The accruals are adjusted periodically as additional information becomes available. In 2004, we disposed of the Tools Group and we retained responsibility for certain product claims. We have not experienced significant unfavorable trends in either the severity or frequency of product liability lawsuits or personal injury claims.

Warranties and guarantees

In connection with the disposition of our businesses or product lines, we may agree to indemnify purchasers for various potential liabilities relating to the sold business, such as pre-closing tax, product liability, warranty, environmental, or other obligations. The subject matter, amounts and duration of any such indemnification obligations vary for each type of liability indemnified and may vary widely from transaction to transaction. Generally, the maximum obligation under such indemnifications is not explicitly stated and as a result, the overall amount of these obligations cannot be reasonably estimated. Historically, we have not made significant payments for these indemnifications. We believe that if we were to incur a loss in any of these matters, the loss would not have a material effect on our financial condition or results of operations.

We recognize, at the inception of a guarantee, a liability for the fair value of the obligation undertaken in issuing the guarantee.

We provide service and warranty policies on our products. Liability under service and warranty policies is based upon a review of historical warranty and service claim experience. Adjustments are made to accruals as claim data and historical experience warrant.

The changes in the carrying amount of service and product warranties for the years ended December 31, 2011 and 2010 were as follows:


In thousands	2011			2010
Balance at beginning of the year	$	30,050		$	24,288
Service and product warranty provision		50,096			56,553
Payments		(53,937	)		(50,729	)
Acquired		3,575			—
Translation		(429	)		(62	)

Balance at end of the period	$	29,355		$	30,050

Stand-by letters of credit and bonds

In the ordinary course of business, we are required to commit to bonds that require payments to our customers for any non-performance. The outstanding face value of the bonds fluctuates with the value of our projects in process and in our backlog. In addition, we issue financial stand-by letters of credit primarily to secure our performance to third parties under self-insurance programs. As of December 31, 2011 and December 31, 2010, the outstanding value of these instruments totaled $136.2 million and $116.5 million, respectively.