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Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2011
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include currency on hand and demand deposits with financial institutions. The Company considers all highly liquid investments with an original maturity of three months or less to be cash equivalents. The Company maintains cash and cash equivalents on deposit in amounts in excess of federally insured limits. The Company has not experienced any losses in such accounts and does not believe it is exposed to any significant risk.

Accounts Receivable

The Company grants credit to its customers and generally does not require collateral. Accounts receivable are reported at net realizable value and do not accrue interest. Management uses judgmental factors such as a customer’s payment history and the general economic climate, as well as considering the age of and past due status of invoices in assessing collectability and establishing allowances for doubtful accounts. Accounts receivable are written off after all collection efforts have been exhausted.

Estimated losses for bad debts are provided for in the consolidated financial statements through a charge to expense of approximately $23,000, $31,000 and $36,000 for 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively. The net charge-off of bad debts was approximately $1,300, $113,000 and $0 for 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively.

Inventories

Inventories are stated at the lower of cost or market value using the FIFO method and are categorized as raw materials, work-in-progress or finished goods.

The Company records reserves for estimated obsolescence or unmarketable inventory equal to the difference between the actual cost of inventory and the estimated market value based upon assumptions about future demand and market conditions and management’s review of existing inventory. If actual demand and market conditions are less favorable than those projected by management, additional inventory reserves resulting in a charge to expense would be required.

Property, Plant and Equipment

Property, plant and equipment are stated at historical cost. Depreciation is computed by the straight-line and declining-balance methods for financial reporting purposes and by accelerated methods for income tax purposes. Estimated useful lives for financial reporting purposes are 20 to 40 years for buildings and 3 to 12 years for machinery and equipment. Leasehold improvements are amortized over the shorter of the life of the building or the lease term. Expenditures for repairs and maintenance are expensed as incurred. Gains and losses resulting from the sale or disposal of property and equipment are included in other income.

 

Long-lived assets, including intangible assets, are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amounts of those assets may not be recoverable in accordance with appropriate guidance. The Company uses undiscounted cash flows to determine whether impairment exists and measures any impairment loss using discounted cash flows. The Company recorded no asset impairment charges related to property, plant and equipment in 2011, 2010 or 2009.

Depreciation expense was $671,009 in 2011, of which $600,702 was included in cost of products sold, and $70,307 was included in selling, administrative and general expenses. Depreciation expense was $336,037 in 2010, of which $251,933 was included in cost of products sold, and $84,104 was included in selling, administrative and general expenses. Depreciation expense was $337,507 in 2009, of which $207,308 was included in cost of products sold, and $130,199 was included in selling, administrative and general expenses.

Pensions and Postretirement Benefits

The Company has two defined benefit plans which recognize a net liability or asset and an offsetting adjustment to accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) to report the funded status of the plans. The plan assets and obligations are measured at their year-end balance sheet date. Refer to Note 10 “Pensions and Other Postretirement Benefits” for further detail on the plans.

Revenue Recognition

The Company recognizes revenue upon passage of title and when risks and rewards have passed to customers, which occurs at the time of shipment to the customer. The Company derived approximately 16.9%, 19.4% and 25.0% of its revenue in 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively, from sales to distributors. These distributors do not have a right to return unsold products; however, returns may be permitted in specific situations. Historically, returns have not had a significant impact on the Company’s results of operations. Revenues are reported net of discounts and returns and net of sales tax.

For concession operations, the Company recognizes revenue when receipts are collected. Revenue is recognized for the Company’s proportional share of receipts with the remaining amounts collected recorded as an accrued liability until they are remitted to the concession contract counterparty.

Shipping and Handling Costs

Shipping and handling costs are expensed as incurred and are included in selling, administrative and general expenses in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations. These costs were approximately $696,000, $579,000 and $412,000 during 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively.

Advertising Expense

The cost of advertising is generally expensed as incurred. The cost of catalogs and brochures are recorded as a prepaid cost and are expensed over their useful lives, generally one year. The Company incurred approximately $149,000, $134,000 and $150,000 in advertising costs during 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively.

Income Taxes

The Company and its domestic subsidiaries file a consolidated U.S. income tax return. Canadian operations file income tax returns in Canada. Hong Kong operations file income tax returns in Hong Kong. The Company accounts for income taxes using the liability method in accordance with appropriate accounting guidance. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to be applied to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. A valuation allowance is recorded to reduce the Company’s deferred tax assets to the amount that is more likely than not to be realized.

 

Pursuant to appropriate accounting guidance when establishing a valuation allowance, the Company considers future sources of taxable income such as “future reversals of existing taxable temporary differences, future taxable income exclusive of reversing temporary differences and carryforwards” and “tax planning strategies.” Appropriate accounting guidance defines a tax planning strategy as “an action that: is prudent and feasible; an enterprise ordinarily might not take, but would take to prevent an operating loss or tax credit carryforward from expiring unused; and would result in realization of deferred tax assets.” In the event the Company determines that the deferred tax assets will not be realized in the future, the valuation adjustment to the deferred tax assets is charged to earnings in the period in which the Company makes such a determination. If it is later determined that it is more likely than not that the deferred tax assets will be realized, the Company will release the valuation allowance to current earnings.

The amount of income taxes the Company pays is subject to ongoing audits by federal, state and foreign tax authorities. The Company’s estimate of the potential outcome of any uncertain tax issue is subject to management’s assessment of relevant risks, facts and circumstances existing at that time, pursuant to appropriate accounting guidance. Appropriate accounting guidance requires a more-likely-than-not threshold for financial statement recognition and measurement of tax positions taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. The Company records a liability for the difference between the benefit recognized and measured pursuant to appropriate accounting guidance and tax position taken or expected to be taken on the tax return. To the extent that the Company’s assessment of such tax positions changes, the change in estimate is recorded in the period in which the determination is made. The Company reports tax-related interest and penalties as a component of income tax expense.

Research and Development

The Company engages in research and development activities relating to new and improved products. It expended approximately $77,000, $108,000 and $140,000 in 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively, for such activity in its continuing businesses. Research and development costs are included in selling, administrative and general expenses.

Earnings Per Share

The Company reports earnings per share in accordance with appropriate accounting guidance. Under appropriate accounting guidance basic earnings per share excludes any dilutive effects of stock options, whereas diluted earnings per share assumes exercise of stock options, when dilutive, resulting in an increase in outstanding shares. Please refer to Note 13 for further information.

Foreign Currency

In accordance with appropriate accounting guidance the Company translates the financial statements of the Canadian and Hong Kong subsidiaries from its functional currency into the U.S. dollar. Assets and liabilities are translated into U.S. dollars using exchange rates in effect at the balance sheet date. Income statement amounts are translated using the average exchange rate for the year. All translation gains and losses resulting from the changes in exchange rates from year to year have been reported in other comprehensive income. Foreign currency gains and losses resulting from current year exchange rate transactions are insignificant for all years presented.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The carrying amounts of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable, accrued liabilities and long-term debt approximate fair value.

 

Stock-Based Compensation

On January 1, 2006, the Company adopted the modified-prospective-transition method. Under this method, the Company’s prior periods do not reflect any restated amounts. The Company recognized no compensation expense related to stock options during the year ended December 31, 2006, as a result of the adoption of appropriate accounting guidance. Prior to January 1, 2006, the Company had applied the intrinsic value method. Accordingly, the compensation expense of any employee stock options granted was the excess, if any, of the quoted market price of the Company’s common stock at the grant date over the amount the employee must pay to acquire the stock. Net income for 2011, 2010 and 2009 include pretax stock option expense of $0, $0 and $4,795, respectively. These expenses were included in selling, administrative and general expense.

Comprehensive Income

Comprehensive income consists of net income, foreign currency translation and minimum pension liability adjustments and is reported in the consolidated statements of stockholders’ equity.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting periods. Significant estimates include allowance for doubtful accounts, inventory obsolescence, product returns, pension, post-retirement benefits, contingencies, and deferred tax asset valuation allowance. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

New Accounting Pronouncements

In June 2011, the FASB issued amendments to guidance regarding the presentation of comprehensive income. The amendments eliminate the option to present components of other comprehensive income as part of the statement of changes in stockholders’ equity. The amendments require that comprehensive income be presented in either a single continuous statement or in two separate but consecutive statements. In a single continuous statement, the entity would present the components of net income and total net income, the components of other comprehensive income and a total of other comprehensive income, along with the total of comprehensive income in that statement. In the two-statement approach, the entity would present components of net income and total net income in the statement of net income and a statement of other comprehensive income would immediately follow the statement of net income and include the components of other comprehensive income and a total for other comprehensive income, along with a total for comprehensive income. The amendments also require the entity to present on the face of the financial statements any reclassification adjustments for items that are reclassified from other comprehensive income to net income in the statement(s) where the components of net income and the components of other comprehensive income are presented. The amendments do not change the items that must be reported in other comprehensive income, when an item of other comprehensive income must be re-classed to net income or the option to present components of other comprehensive income either net of related tax effects or before related tax effects. The amendments, excluding the specific requirement to present on the face of the financial statements any reclassification adjustments for items that are reclassified from other comprehensive income to net income in the statement(s) where the components of net income and the components of other comprehensive income are presented which was deferred by the FASB in December 2011, are effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2011 and are to be applied retrospectively. The Company is evaluating its presentation options under ASU No. 2011-05; however, it does not expect adoption of this guidance to impact the Company’s consolidated financial statements other than the change in presentation.

In September 2011, the FASB issued amendments to simplify how entities test goodwill for impairment. Under the updated guidance, an entity now has the option to first assess qualitative factors to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount as a basis for determining whether it is necessary to perform the two-step goodwill impairment test. If the assessment of qualitative factors leads to a determination that is not more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, then performing the two-step impairment test is unnecessary. However, if an entity concludes otherwise, then the entity is required to perform the first step of the two-step impairment test by calculating the fair value of the reporting unit and comparing it against its carrying amount. If the carrying amount of a reporting unit exceeds its fair value, then the entity is required to perform the second step of the goodwill impairment test to measure the amount of impairment loss, if any. Under the new guidance, an entity can elect to bypass the qualitative assessment for any reporting unit in any period and proceed directly to performing the first step of the two-step goodwill impairment. The amendments are effective for annual and interim goodwill impairment tests performed for fiscal years beginnings after December 15, 2011. Early adoption is permitted, however the Company did not early adopt this amendment.