GOODWILL AND INTANGIBLE ASSETS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2015

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]

Goodwill

The following table sets forth the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill:



	Year Ended December 31,
	2015			2014
	(In thousands)
Beginning balance January 1	$	1,735,440		$	1,734,391
Foreign currency exchange rate changes	(113,719		)	(61,347		)
Additions to goodwill for acquisitions	59,941			62,396
Ending balance December 31	$	1,681,662		$	1,735,440

WESCO has never recorded an impairment loss related to goodwill.

Intangible Assets

The components of intangible assets are as follows:



	December 31, 2015								December 31, 2014
	Life	Gross Carrying Amount ⁽¹⁾		Accumulated Amortization ⁽¹⁾			Net Carrying Amount		Gross Carrying Amount ⁽¹⁾		Accumulated Amortization ⁽¹⁾			Net Carrying Amount
	(In thousands)
Intangible assets:
Trademarks	Indefinite	$	91,945	$	—		$	91,945	$	104,532	$	—		$	104,532
Trademarks	4-15	22,793		(1,581		)	21,212		5,085		(594		)	4,491
Non-compete agreements	2-7	429		(201		)	228		295		(95		)	200
Customer relationships	2-20	339,820		(95,634		)	244,186		342,224		(76,267		)	265,957
Distribution agreements	10-19	38,726		(16,595		)	22,131		40,222		(14,340		)	25,882
Patents	10	48,310		(24,363		)	23,947		48,310		(19,532		)	28,778
		$	542,023	$	(138,374	)	$	403,649	$	540,668	$	(110,828	)	$	429,840


⁽¹⁾	Excludes the original cost and accumulated amortization of fully-amortized intangible assets.

Amortization expense related to intangible assets totaled $36.9 million, $39.0 million and $38.6 million for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively.

The following table sets forth the estimated amortization expense for intangibles for the next five years:



	Estimated
	Amortization
	Expense
For the year ended December 31,	(In thousands)
2016	$	36,795
2017	35,970
2018	34,539
2019	33,341
2020	30,291

WESCO has never recorded an impairment loss related to intangible assets.

- 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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