Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 27, 2018

Use of Estimates, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Use of Estimates

The preparation of the Company's financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to use estimates and assumptions. The results of these estimates form the basis for making judgments that may affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, including the impacts of contingent assets and liabilities, and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period.

Management may make significant judgments when assessing estimated amounts of variable consideration and related constraints, the number of options likely to be exercised, and the standalone selling prices of the Company’s products and services. The Company also estimates the cost of satisfying the performance obligations in its contracts and options that may extend over many years. Cost estimates reflect currently available information and the impact of any changes to cost estimates, based upon the facts and circumstances, are recorded in the period in which they become known.

The transaction price for a contract reflects the consideration the Company expects to receive for fully satisfying the performance obligations in the contract. The Company’s contracts with customers are typically for products and services to be provided at fixed stated prices but may also include variable consideration. Variable consideration may include, but is not limited to, unpriced contract modifications, cost sharing provisions, incentives and awards, non-warranty claims and assertions, provisions for non-conformance and rights to return, or other payments to, or receipts from, customers and suppliers. The Company estimates the variable consideration using the expected value or the most likely amount based upon the facts and circumstances, available data and trends and the history of resolving variability with specific customers and suppliers.

The Company regularly commences work and incorporates customer-directed changes prior to negotiating pricing terms for engineering work, product modifications, and other statements of work. The Company's contractual terms typically provide for price negotiations after certain customer-directed changes have been accepted by the Company. Prices are estimated until they are contractually agreed upon with the customer. When a contract is modified, the Company evaluates whether additional distinct products and services have been promised and whether allocation of consideration is necessary. If not, the modification is treated as a change to the performance obligations within the existing contract, or otherwise accounted for as a new contract prospectively.

The Company allocates the consideration for a contract to the performance obligations on the basis of their relative standalone selling price. The Company estimates the likelihood of the amount of options that the customer is going to exercise when assessing the existence of performance obligations with respect to this allocation or for assessing the impact of loss contracts.

The Company typically provides warranties on all the Company's products and services. Generally, warranties are not priced separately because customers cannot purchase them independently of the products or services under contract so they do not create performance obligations. Spirit warranties generally provide assurance to the Company's customers that the products or services meet the specifications in the contract. In the event that there is a warranty claim because of a covered design, material or workmanship issue, the Company may be required to redesign or modify the product, offer concessions, and/or pay the customer for repairs or perform the repair. Provisions for estimated expenses related to design, service, and product warranties and certain extraordinary rework are made at the time products are sold. These costs are accrued at the time of the sale and are recorded as unallocated cost of sales. These estimates are established using historical information on the nature, frequency, and the cost experience of warranty claims, including the experience of industry peers. In the case of new development products or new customers, Spirit also considers factors including the warranty experience of other entities in the same business, management judgment, and the type and nature of the new product or new customer, among others.

Actual results could differ from those estimates and assumptions.

Revenue Recognition, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Revenues and Profit Recognition

Substantially all of the Company’s revenues are from long-term supply agreements with Boeing, Airbus, and other aerospace manufacturers. The Company participates in its customers’ programs by providing design, development, manufacturing, fabrication, and support services for major aerostructures in the fuselage, propulsion, and wing segments. During the early stages of a program, this frequently involves nonrecurring design and development services, including tooling. As the program matures, the Company provides recurring manufacturing of products in accordance with customer design and schedule requirements. Many contracts include clauses that provide sole supplier status to the Company for the duration of the program’s life (including derivatives). The Company's long-term supply agreements typically include fixed price volume-based terms and require the satisfaction of performance obligations for the duration of the program’s life.

The identification of an accounting contract with a customer and the related promises require an assessment of each party’s rights and obligations regarding the products or services to be transferred, including an evaluation of termination clauses and presently enforceable rights and obligations. In general, these long-term supply agreements are legally governed by Master Supply Agreements (or General Terms and Agreements) together with special business provisions (or work package agreements), which define specific program requirements. Purchase orders (or authorizations to proceed) are issued under these agreements to reflect presently enforceable rights and obligations for the units of products and services being purchased. The units for accounting purposes (“accounting contract”) is typically determined by the purchase orders. Revenue is recognized when the Company has a contract with presently enforceable rights and obligations, including an enforceable right to payment for work performed. These agreements may lead to continuing sales of more than twenty years. Customers generally contract with the Company for requirements in a segment relating to a specific program, and the Company’s performance obligations consist of a wide range of engineering design services and manufactured structural components, as well as spare parts and repairs for OEMs. A single program may result in multiple contracts for accounting purposes, and within the respective contracts, non-recurring work elements and recurring work elements may result in multiple performance obligations. The Company generally contracts directly with its customers and is the principal in all current contracts.

Management considers a number of factors when determining the existence of a contract and the related performance obligations that include, but are not limited to, the nature and substance of the business exchange, the contractual terms and conditions, the promised products and services, the termination provisions in the contract, including the presently enforceable rights and obligations of the parties to the contract, the nature and execution of the customer’s ordering process and how the Company is authorized to perform work, whether the promised products and services are distinct or capable of being distinct within the context of the contract, as well as how and when products and services are transferred to the customer.

Revenue is recognized when, or as, control of promised products or services transfers to a customer and is recognized in an amount that reflects the consideration that the Company expects to receive in exchange for those products or services. Revenue is recognized over time as work progresses when the Company is entitled to the reimbursement of costs plus a reasonable profit for work performed for which the Company has no alternate use. For these performance obligations that are satisfied over time, the Company generally recognizes revenue using an input method with revenue amounts being recognized proportionately as costs are incurred relative to the total expected costs to satisfy the performance obligation. The Company believes that costs incurred as a portion of total estimated costs is an appropriate measure of progress towards satisfaction of the performance obligation since this measure reasonably depicts the progress of the work effort.

Revenue for performance obligations that are not recognized over time are recognized at the point in time when control transfers to the customer (which is generally upon delivery). For performance obligations that are satisfied at a point in time, the Company evaluates the point in time when the customer can direct the use of, and obtain the benefits from, the products and services. Shipping and handling costs are not considered performance obligations and are included in cost of sales as incurred.

The transaction price for a contract reflects the consideration the Company expects to receive for fully satisfying the performance obligations in the contract. The Company’s current contracts do not include any significant financing components because the timing of the transfer of the underlying products and services under contract are at the customers’ discretion. The Company's contracts with customers generally require payment under normal commercial terms after delivery. Payment terms are typically within 30 to 120 days of delivery. The total transaction price is allocated to each of the identified performance obligations using the relative standalone selling price to reflect the amount the Company expects to be entitled for transferring the promised products and services to the customer. A majority of the Company’s agreements with customers include options for future purchases. For the purposes of allocating transaction price, the Company assesses, based upon the facts and circumstances of the business arrangement, the amount and likelihood of options to be exercised that may result in deferral of revenue to future contracts and options. Deferred revenues are recognized as, or when, the underlying future performance obligations are satisfied.

Standalone selling price is the price at which the Company would sell a promised good or service separately to a customer. Standalone selling prices are established at contract inception and subsequent changes in transaction price are allocated on the same basis as at contract inception. Standalone selling prices for the Company’s products and services are generally not observable and the Company uses the “Expected Cost plus a Margin” approach to determine standalone selling price. Expected costs are typically derived from the available periodic forecast information. If a contract modification changes the overall transaction price of an existing contract, the Company allocates the new transaction price on the basis of the relative standalone selling prices of the performance obligations and cumulative adjustments, if any, are recorded in the current period.

The Company also identifies and estimates variable consideration for contractual provisions such as unpriced contract modifications, cost sharing provisions, incentives and awards, non-warranty claims and assertions, provisions for non-conformance and rights to return, or other payments to, or receipts from, customers and suppliers. The timing of satisfaction of performance obligations and actual receipt of payment from a customer may differ and affects the balances of the contract assets and liabilities.

For contracts that are deemed to be loss contracts, the Company establishes forward loss reserves for total estimated costs that are in excess of total estimated consideration in the period in which they become known. These reserves are based on estimates for accounting contracts, plus options that the Company believes are likely to be exercised. The Company records forward loss reserves for all performance obligations in the aggregate for the accounting contract.

Disaggregation of Revenue

The Company disaggregates revenue based on the method of measuring satisfaction of the performance obligation either over time or at a point in time, and determining whether the accounting contract is a short duration or long duration contract. Short duration contracts are those for which the performance obligations are expected to be fully satisfied within 12 months of contract origination. The number of units and the production schedule is used to make this assessment. Additionally, the Company disaggregates revenue based upon the location where products and services are transferred to the customer. The Company’s principal operating segments and related revenue are noted in Note 22, Segment Information.

The following table disaggregates revenues by the method of performance obligation satisfaction:



	For the Three Months Ended		For the Nine Months Ended
Revenue	September 27, 2018		September 27, 2018
Contracts with performance obligations satisfied over time	$	1,456.7	$	4,212.6
Contracts with performance obligations satisfied at a point in time	357.0		1,174.1
Total Revenue	$	1,813.7	$	5,386.7

The following table disaggregates revenue by major customer:



	For the Three Months Ended		For the Nine Months Ended
Customer	September 27, 2018		September 27, 2018
Boeing	$	1,465.5	$	4,262.2
Airbus	263.8		869.0
Other	84.4		255.5
Total Revenue	$	1,813.7	$	5,386.7

The following table disaggregates revenue based upon the location where control of products are transferred to the customer:



	For the Three Months Ended		For the Nine Months Ended
Location	September 27, 2018		September 27, 2018
United States	$	1,534.0	$	4,460.8
International
United Kingdom	184.4		574.1
Other	95.3		351.8
Total International	279.7		925.9
Total Revenue	$	1,813.7	$	5,386.7

Inventory, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Inventory

Raw materials are stated at lower of cost (principally on an actual or average cost basis) or market. Production costs for contracts, including costs expected to be recovered on specific anticipated contracts (satisfaction of performance obligations that have commenced because the Company expects the customer to exercise options), are classified as work-in-process and include direct material, labor, overhead, and purchases. Revenue and related cost of sales are recognized as the performance obligations are satisfied. Typically, anticipated contracts materialize and the related performance obligations are satisfied within 6-12 months. These costs are evaluated for impairment periodically and capitalized costs for which anticipated contracts do not materialize are written off in the period in which it becomes known. Work-in-process includes $152.9 in costs incurred in anticipation of specific future contracts and no impairments were charged for the period ending September 27, 2018. See Note 9, Inventory.