BASIS OF PRESENTATION (Policies)

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2020

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

The following ASUs were adopted as of January 1, 2020, unless otherwise noted below:



Standard	Description
ASU No. 2018-14, Compensation - Retirement Benefits - Defined Benefit Plans - General (Subtopic 715-20), issued August 2018.	ASU 2018-14 modifies disclosure requirements for employers that sponsor defined benefit pension or other postretirement plans. The ASU also requires an entity to disclose the weighted-average interest crediting rates for cash balance plans and to explain the reasons for significant gains and losses related to changes in the benefit obligation. These disclosure requirements will be reflected in the Notes to the consolidated financial statements in the Company's year ended December 31, 2020 Form 10-K.
ASU No. 2018-13, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 944), issued August 2018.	ASU 2018-13 eliminates, amends and adds disclosure requirements related to fair value measurements. The ASU removes disclosure requirements pertaining to the amount of and reasons for transfers between Level 1 and Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy, the policy for timing of transfers between levels and the valuation processes for Level 3 fair value measurements. Refer to Note 17 to the consolidated financial statements for further details.
ASU No. 2016-13, Financial Instruments - Credit Losses (Topic 326), issued June 2016.	ASU 2016-13 modifies disclosure and measurement requirements related to credit losses. Topic 326 requires that an entity estimate impairment of trade receivables based on expected losses rather than incurred losses. The adoption did not have a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements.
ASU No. 2020-04, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848), issued March 2020.	ASU 2020-04 provides temporary optional guidance to ease the financial reporting burden associated with the expected market transition from the London Inter-Bank Offer Rate ("LIBOR") to alternative reference rates. The Company adopted the ASU on March 12, 2020 and it is effective through December 31, 2022. As of June 30, 2020, the Company has not utilized any of the optional guidance, however, it will continue to assess the potential impact on the Company’s debt contracts and hedging relationships through the effective period.

The Company is currently evaluating the impact on its financial statements of the following ASU:



Standard	Description
ASU No. 2019-12, Income Taxes (Topic 740), issued December 2019.	ASU 2019-12 simplifies the accounting for income taxes by removing certain exceptions to the general principles in Topic 740. The amendments also improve consistent application of and simplify GAAP for other areas of Topic 740 by clarifying and amending existing guidance. The ASU is effective January 1, 2021 and early adoption is permitted.

Segments

The Company's business units are aligned into three operating segments. The operating segments consist of Americas Welding, International Welding and The Harris Products Group. The Americas Welding segment includes welding operations in North and South America. The International Welding segment includes welding operations in Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia. The Harris Products Group includes the Company’s global oxy-fuel cutting, soldering and brazing businesses as well as its retail business in the United States.

Segment performance is measured and resources are allocated based on a number of factors, the primary measure being the adjusted earnings before interest and income taxes (“Adjusted EBIT”) profit measure. EBIT is defined as Operating income plus Other income (expense). EBIT is adjusted for special items as determined by management such as the impact of rationalization activities, certain asset impairment charges and gains or losses on disposals of assets.

Lessee, Leases [Policy Text Block]

The Company determines if an agreement is a lease at inception. Right-of-use assets represent the Company’s right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent the Company’s obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. Operating lease right-of-use assets and liabilities are recognized at the lease commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. As most of the Company’s operating leases do not provide an implicit rate, the Company uses its incremental borrowing rate based on information available at commencement date to present value the lease payments.

The Company has operating leases for sales offices, manufacturing facilities, warehouses and distribution centers, transportation equipment, office equipment and information technology equipment. Some of these leases are noncancelable. Variable or short-term lease costs contained within the Company’s operating leases are not material. Most leases include one or more options to renew, which can extend the lease term from 1 year to 11 years or more. The exercise of lease renewal options is at the Company's sole discretion. Certain leases also include options to purchase the leased property. Leases with an initial term of 12 months or less are not recorded on the Company's Condensed Consolidated Balance sheets. The Company recognizes lease expense for these leases on a straight-line basis over the lease term.

The depreciable life of assets and leasehold improvements are limited by the expected lease term, unless there is a transfer of title or purchase option reasonably certain of exercise. The Company's lease agreements do not contain any material residual value guarantees or material restrictive covenants.

Financial Instruments

The Company uses derivative instruments to manage exposures to currency exchange rates, interest rates and commodity prices arising in the normal course of business. Both at inception and on an ongoing basis, the derivative instruments that qualify for hedge accounting are assessed as to their effectiveness, when applicable. Hedge ineffectiveness was immaterial in the six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019.

The Company is subject to the credit risk of the counterparties to derivative instruments. Counterparties include a number of major banks and financial institutions. None of the concentrations of risk with any individual counterparty was considered significant at June 30, 2020. The Company does not expect any counterparties to fail to meet their obligations.

Cash Flow Hedges

Certain foreign currency forward contracts were qualified and designated as cash flow hedges. The dollar equivalent gross notional amount of these short-term contracts was $66,201 at June 30, 2020 and $59,982 at December 31, 2019.

During March and April 2020, in anticipation of future debt issuance associated with the Notes, referenced in Note 12, the Company entered into interest rate forward starting swap agreements to hedge the variability of future changes in interest rates. The forward starting swap agreements were qualified and designated as a cash flow hedge. The changes in fair value are recorded as part of AOCI, and upon completion of debt issuance and termination of the swaps, are amortized to interest expense over the life of the underlying debt. The dollar equivalent gross notional amount of the long-term contracts was $100,000 at June 30, 2020 and have a termination date of August 2025.

Fair Value Hedges

From time to time the company will enter into certain interest rate swap agreements that are qualified and designated as fair value hedges. At June 30, 2020, the Company had no interest rate swap agreements outstanding. The Company terminated $50,000 of interest rate swaps in the six months ended June 30, 2020 which resulted in a gain of $6,629 that will be amortized to interest expense over the remaining life of the underlying debt.

Net Investment Hedges

The Company has cross currency swap agreements that are qualified and designated as net investment hedges. The dollar equivalent gross notional amount of these contracts is $50,000 as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively.

Derivatives Not Designated as Hedging Instruments

The Company has certain foreign exchange forward contracts that are not designated as hedges. These derivatives are held as economic hedges of certain balance sheet exposures. The dollar equivalent gross notional amount of these contracts was $375,396 and $363,820 at June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively.