Basis of presentation	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2018
Basis of presentation
Description of business and basis of presentation	1. Description of business and basis of presentation Douglas Dynamics, Inc. (the “Company,”) is a premier manufacturer and upfitter of commercial vehicle attachments and equipment. The Company’s portfolio includes snow and ice management attachments sold under the BLIZZARD®, FISHER®, HENDERSON®, SNOWEX® and WESTERN® brands, turf care equipment under the TURFEX® brand, and industrial maintenance equipment under the SWEEPEX® brand. On July 15, 2016, the Company acquired substantially all of the assets of Dejana Truck & Utility Equipment Company, Inc. and certain entities directly or indirectly owned by Peter Paul Dejana Family Trust Dated 12/31/98 (such assets “Dejana”). The Company is headquartered in Milwaukee, WI and currently owns manufacturing and upfit facilities in Milwaukee, WI, Manchester Iowa, Rockland, ME, Madison Heights, MI and Huntley, IL. The Company also leases fifteen manufacturing and upfit facilities located in Iowa, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. Additionally, the Company operates a sourcing office in China. The Company conducts business in two segments: Work Truck Attachments and Work Truck Solutions. The Work Truck Solutions segment was established as a result of the acquisition of Dejana. The Company’s Work Truck Attachments segment consists of operations that, prior to the acquisition of Dejana, were the Company’s single operating segment, consisting of the manufacture and sale of snow and ice control products. Financial information regarding these segments is in Note 16 to the Consolidated Financial Statements. Recently adopted accounting standards Certain reclassifications have been made to the prior period financial statements to conform to the 2017 presentation. In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2014-09, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers,” amending revenue recognition guidance and requiring more detailed disclosures to enable users of financial statements to understand the nature, amount, timing, and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from contracts with customers. The amended guidance, herein referred to as Topic 606, is effective for annual and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017. The Company adopted Topic 606, effective January 1, 2018, using the modified retrospective transition method. The Company recognized the cumulative effect of applying the new revenue standard as an adjustment to the opening balance of retained earnings at the beginning of 2018. The comparative information has not been restated and continues to be reported under the accounting standards in effect for the period presented. See Note 3 for additional information. In March 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-07, “Compensation-Retirement Benefits (Topic 715), Improving the Presentation of Net Periodic Pension Cost and Net Periodic Postretirement Benefit Cost.” The standard requires that an employer report the service cost component in the same line items as other compensation costs arising from services rendered by the pertinent employees during the period. The other components of net benefit cost are required to be presented in the income statement separately from the service cost component and outside of operating profit. The standard is effective for public companies for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2017, including interim periods within those annual periods. Prior periods are required to be recast. The Company adopted this standard on January 1, 2018. The impact of this standard was a reclassification of $717 and $690 of other components of net periodic benefit cost from Selling, general, and administrative expense to Other expense, net on the Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The Company utilized a practical expedient included in the ASU which allowed the Company to use amounts previously disclosed in its pension and other postretirement benefits note for the prior period as the estimation basis for applying the required retrospective presentation requirements. In February 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-02, “Income Statement – Reporting Comprehensive Income (Topic 220), Reclassification of Certain Tax Effects from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income.” This ASU provides financial statement preparers with an option to reclassify stranded tax effects within AOCI to retained earnings in each period in which the effect of the change in the U.S. federal corporate income tax rate in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is recorded. ASU 2018-02 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, and interim periods within those fiscal years with early adoption permitted. The Company early adopted this standard as of December 31, 2018. The adoption resulted in a reclassification of $1,129 from accumulated other comprehensive loss to retained earnings in 2018. See Note 21 for a summary of recent accounting pronouncements not yet adopted and the Company’s evaluation of their impact on the financial statements.

1. Description of business and basis of presentation

Douglas Dynamics, Inc. (the “Company,”) is a premier manufacturer and upfitter of commercial vehicle attachments and equipment. The Company’s portfolio includes snow and ice management attachments sold under the BLIZZARD®, FISHER®, HENDERSON®, SNOWEX® and WESTERN® brands, turf care equipment under the TURFEX® brand, and industrial maintenance equipment under the SWEEPEX® brand. On July 15, 2016, the Company acquired substantially all of the assets of Dejana Truck & Utility Equipment Company, Inc. and certain entities directly or indirectly owned by Peter Paul Dejana Family Trust Dated 12/31/98 (such assets “Dejana”). The Company is headquartered in Milwaukee, WI and currently owns manufacturing and upfit facilities in Milwaukee, WI, Manchester Iowa, Rockland, ME, Madison Heights, MI and Huntley, IL. The Company also leases fifteen manufacturing and upfit facilities located in Iowa, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. Additionally, the Company operates a sourcing office in China.

The Company conducts business in two segments: Work Truck Attachments and Work Truck Solutions. The Work Truck Solutions segment was established as a result of the acquisition of Dejana. The Company’s Work Truck Attachments segment consists of operations that, prior to the acquisition of Dejana, were the Company’s single operating segment, consisting of the manufacture and sale of snow and ice control products. Financial information regarding these segments is in Note 16 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Recently adopted accounting standards

Certain reclassifications have been made to the prior period financial statements to conform to the 2017 presentation. In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2014-09, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers,” amending revenue recognition guidance and requiring more detailed disclosures to enable users of financial statements to understand the nature, amount, timing, and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from contracts with customers. The amended guidance, herein referred to as Topic 606, is effective for annual and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017. The Company adopted Topic 606, effective January 1, 2018, using the modified retrospective transition method. The Company recognized the cumulative effect of applying the new revenue standard as an adjustment to the opening balance of retained earnings at the beginning of 2018. The comparative information has not been restated and continues to be reported under the accounting standards in effect for the period presented. See Note 3 for additional information.

In March 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-07, “Compensation-Retirement Benefits (Topic 715), Improving the Presentation of Net Periodic Pension Cost and Net Periodic Postretirement Benefit Cost.” The standard requires that an employer report the service cost component in the same line items as other compensation costs arising from services rendered by the pertinent employees during the period. The other components of net benefit cost are required to be presented in the income statement separately from the service cost component and outside of operating profit. The standard is effective for public companies for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2017, including interim periods within those annual periods. Prior periods are required to be recast. The Company adopted this standard on January 1, 2018. The impact of this standard was a reclassification of $717 and $690 of other components of net periodic benefit cost from Selling, general, and administrative expense to Other expense, net on the Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The Company utilized a practical expedient included in the ASU which allowed the Company to use amounts previously disclosed in its pension and other postretirement benefits note for the prior period as the estimation basis for applying the required retrospective presentation requirements.

In February 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-02, “Income Statement – Reporting Comprehensive Income (Topic 220), Reclassification of Certain Tax Effects from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income.” This ASU provides financial statement preparers with an option to reclassify stranded tax effects within AOCI to retained earnings in each period in which the effect of the change in the U.S. federal corporate income tax rate in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is recorded. ASU 2018-02 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, and interim periods within those fiscal years with early adoption permitted. The Company early adopted this standard as of December 31, 2018. The adoption resulted in a reclassification of $1,129 from accumulated other comprehensive loss to retained earnings in 2018.

See Note 21 for a summary of recent accounting pronouncements not yet adopted and the Company’s evaluation of their impact on the financial statements.