Note 15 - Commitments and Contingencies

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Notes to Financial Statements

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

15

— COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

 

Environmental Compliance and Remediation Liabilities

 

The Company's operations and products are subject to a variety of environmental laws and regulations in the jurisdictions in which the Company operates and sells products governing, among other things, air emissions, wastewater discharges, the use, handling and disposal of hazardous materials, soil and groundwater contamination, employee health and safety, and product content, performance and packaging. Certain environmental laws

may

impose the entire cost or a portion of the cost of investigating and cleaning up a contaminated site, regardless of fault, upon any

one

or more of a number of parties, including the current or previous owners or operators of the site. These environmental laws also impose liability on any person who arranges for the disposal or treatment of hazardous substances at a contaminated site. Third parties

may

also make claims against owners or operators of sites and users of disposal sites for personal injuries and property damage associated with releases of hazardous substances from those sites. 

Warranty Liability

 

The Company warrants its products for terms that range from

one

to

five

years. In certain contracts, the Company has recourse provisions for items that would enable recovery from

third

parties for amounts paid to customers under warranty provisions. As of

September 30, 2020

and

2019

, estimated product warranty liability was

$42

and

$183,

respectively, and is recorded within accrued liabilities in the Company's condensed consolidated balance sheets. 

The changes in the carrying amount of the Company's total product warranty liability for the

nine

months ended

September 30, 2020

and

2019

were as follows: 

	For the Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2020			2019
Balance, beginning of period	$	163		$	226
Reduction of warranty reserve		(96	)		(11	)
Warranty claims		(6	)		(22	)
Other adjustments		(19	)		(10	)
Balance, end of period	$	42		$	183

Allowance for Doubtful Accounts

 

Based upon past experience and judgment, the Company establishes an allowance for doubtful accounts with respect to accounts receivable. The Company's standard allowance estimation methodology considers a number of factors that, based on its collections experience, the Company believes will have an impact on its credit risk and the collectability of its accounts receivable. These factors include individual customer circumstances, history with the Company, the length of the time period during which the account receivable has been past due and other relevant criteria. 

The Company monitors its collections and write-off experience to assess whether or

not

adjustments to its allowance estimates are necessary. Changes in trends in any of the factors that the Company believes

may

impact the collectability of its accounts receivable, as noted above, or modifications to its credit standards, collection practices and other related policies

may

impact the Company's allowance for doubtful accounts and its financial results. The activity in the accounts receivable allowance liability for the

nine

months ended

September 30, 2020

and

2019

consisted of the following: 

	For the Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2020			2019
Balance at beginning of period	$	127		$	190
Bad debt expense		130			(30	)
Write-offs		(47	)		—
Other adjustments		(36	)		—
Balance at end of period	$	174		$	160

Collateral

 

In select instances, the Company has pledged specific inventory and machinery and equipment assets to serve as collateral on related payable or financing obligations. 

Liquidated Damages

 

In certain customer contracts, the Company has agreed to pay liquidated damages in the event of qualifying delivery or production delays. These damages are typically limited to a specific percentage of the value of the product in question and/or are dependent on actual losses sustained by the customer. The Company does

not

believe that this potential exposure will have a material adverse effect on the Company's consolidated financial position or results of operations. There was

no

reserve for liquidated damages as of 

September 30, 2020

or

December 31, 2019