Commitments And Contingent Liabilities

9 Months Ended

Sep. 25, 2011

Commitments And Contingent Liabilities [Abstract]

Commitments And Contingent Liabilities

Note 13 — Commitments and contingent liabilities

Product warranty liability: The Company warrants to the original purchasers of certain of its products that it will, at its option, repair or replace such products, without charge, if they fail due to a manufacturing defect. Warranty periods vary by product. The Company has recourse provisions for certain products that would enable recovery from third parties for amounts paid under the warranty. The Company accrues for product warranties when, based on available information, it is probable that customers will make claims under warranties relating to products that have been sold, and a reasonable estimate of the costs (based on historical claims experience relative to sales) can be made. The following table provides information regarding changes in the Company's product warranty liability accruals for the nine months ended September 25, 2011 (dollars in thousands):

Balance at beginning of year	$	10,877
Accruals for warranties issued in 2011		64
Settlements (cash and in kind)		(102	)
Accruals related to pre-existing warranties		(16	)
Dispositions		(2,281	)
Transfers to liabilities held for sale		(4,587	)
Effect of translation		4
Balance at end of period	$	3,959

Operating leases: The Company uses various leased facilities and equipment in its operations. The terms for these leased assets vary depending on the lease agreement. In connection with these operating leases, the Company had residual value guarantees in the amount of approximately $1.9 million at September 25, 2011. The Company's future payments under the operating leases cannot exceed the minimum rent obligation plus the residual value guarantee amount. The residual value guarantee amounts are based upon the unamortized lease values of the assets under lease, and are payable by the Company if the Company declines to renew the leases or to exercise its purchase option with respect to the leased assets. At September 25, 2011, the Company had no liabilities recorded for these obligations. Any residual value guarantee amounts paid to the lessor may be recovered by the Company from the sale of the assets to a third party.

Environmental: The Company is subject to contingencies as a result of environmental laws and regulations that in the future may require the Company to take further action to correct the effects on the environment of prior disposal practices or releases of chemical or petroleum substances by the Company or other parties. Much of this liability results from the U.S. Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act ("CERCLA"), often referred to as Superfund, the U.S. Resource Conservation and Recovery Act ("RCRA") and similar state laws. These laws require the Company to undertake certain investigative and remedial activities at sites where the Company conducts or once conducted operations or at sites where Company-generated waste was disposed.

Remediation activities vary substantially in duration and cost from site to site. The nature of these activities, and their associated costs, depend on the mix of unique site characteristics, evolving remediation technologies, the regulatory agencies involved and enforcement policies, as well as the presence or absence of other potentially responsible parties. At September 25, 2011, the Company's condensed consolidated balance sheet included an accrued liability of approximately $7.6 million relating to these matters. Considerable uncertainty exists with respect to these costs and, if adverse changes in circumstances occur, the ultimate liability may exceed the amount accrued as of September 25, 2011. The time frame over which the accrued amounts may be paid out, based on past history, is estimated to be 15-20 years.

Regulatory matters: On October 11, 2007, the Company's subsidiary, Arrow International, Inc. ("Arrow"), received a corporate warning letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), expressing concerns with Arrow's quality systems and advising that Arrow's corporate-wide program to evaluate, correct and prevent quality system issues had been deficient. The Company developed and implemented a comprehensive plan to correct the issues raised in the letter and further improve overall quality systems. The FDA reinspected the Arrow facilities covered by the corporate warning letter, and in the third quarter of 2010, removed the limitations previously imposed on Arrow with respect to certificates of foreign governments. In June 2011, the Company received formal notification from the FDA that all issues raised by the corporate warning letter have been addressed.

Litigation: The Company is a party to various lawsuits and claims arising in the normal course of business. These lawsuits and claims include actions involving product liability, intellectual property, employment and environmental matters. Based on information currently available, advice of counsel, established reserves and other resources, the Company does not believe that any such actions are likely to be, individually or in the aggregate, material to its business, financial condition, results of operations or liquidity. However, in the event of unexpected developments, it is possible that the ultimate resolution of these matters, or other similar matters, if unfavorable, may be materially adverse to the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations or liquidity. Legal costs such as outside counsel fees and expenses are charged to expense in the period incurred. See Note 16, "Divestiture-related activities," for a discussion of the reserves associated with retained liabilities related to businesses that have been divested.

Tax audits and examinations: The Company and its subsidiaries are routinely subject to tax examinations by various taxing authorities. As of September 25, 2011, the most significant tax examinations in process are in Canada, Czech Republic and Germany. In conjunction with these examinations and as a regular and routine practice, the Company may determine a need to establish certain reserves or to adjust existing reserves with respect to uncertain tax positions. Accordingly, developments occurring with respect to these examinations, including resolution of uncertain tax positions, could result in increases or decreases to our recorded tax liabilities, which could impact our financial results.

Other: The Company has various purchase commitments for materials, supplies and items of permanent investment incident to the ordinary conduct of business. On average, such commitments are not at prices in excess of current market.