Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash All short-term investments purchased with an original maturity of three months or less are considered cash equivalents. Restricted cash represents cash in escrow funds related to the security for an indemnity agreement for our casualty insurance provider as well as funds held in escrow to support certain international cash pooling programs.

Inventories Inventories are valued at the lower of cost or market value. Approximately 79% and 84% of the company’s inventories at December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively, were valued using the first-in, first-out (FIFO) method. The remaining inventories were valued using the last-in, first-out (LIFO) method. If the FIFO inventory valuation method had been used exclusively, inventories would have increased by $40.0 million and $36.2 million at December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. Finished goods and work-in-process inventories include material, labor and manufacturing overhead costs.

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets The company accounts for its goodwill and other intangible assets under the guidance of ASC Topic 350-10, “Intangibles — Goodwill and Other.” Under ASC Topic 350-10, goodwill is not amortized, but it is tested for impairment annually, or more frequently, as events dictate. See additional discussion of impairment testing under “Impairment of Long-Lived Assets,” below. The company’s other intangible assets with indefinite lives, including trademarks and tradenames and in-place distributor networks, are not amortized, but are also tested for impairment annually, or more frequently, as events dictate. The company’s other intangible assets subject to amortization are tested for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying values may not be recoverable. Other intangible assets are amortized straight-line over the following estimated useful lives:



	Useful lives
Patents	10-20 years
Engineering drawings	15 years
Customer relationships	10-20 years

Property, Plant and Equipment Property, plant and equipment are stated at cost. Expenditures for maintenance, repairs and minor renewals are charged against earnings as incurred. Expenditures for major renewals and improvements that substantially extend the capacity or useful life of an asset are capitalized and are then depreciated. The cost and accumulated depreciation for property, plant and equipment sold, retired, or otherwise disposed of are relieved from the accounts, and resulting gains or losses are reflected in earnings. Property, plant and equipment are depreciated over the estimated useful lives of the assets using the straight-line depreciation method for financial reporting and on accelerated methods for income tax purposes.

Property, plant and equipment are depreciated over the following estimated useful lives:



	Years
Building and improvements	2 - 40
Machinery, equipment and tooling	2 - 20
Furniture and fixtures	3 - 15
Computer hardware and software	2 - 7

Property, plant and equipment also include cranes accounted for as operating leases. Equipment accounted for as operating leases includes equipment leased directly to the customer and equipment for which the company has assisted in the financing arrangement whereby it has guaranteed more than insignificant residual value or made a buyback commitment. Equipment that is leased directly to the customer is accounted for as an operating lease with the related assets capitalized and depreciated over their estimated economic life. Equipment involved in a financing arrangement is depreciated over the life of the underlying arrangement so that the net book value at the end of the period equals the buyback amount or the residual value amount. The amount of rental equipment included in property, plant and equipment amounted to $69.4 million and $83.4 million, net of accumulated depreciation, at December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively.

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets The company reviews long-lived assets for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the assets’ carrying amount may not be recoverable. The company conducts its long-lived asset impairment analyses in accordance with ASC Topic 360-10-5. ASC Topic 360-10-5 requires the company to group assets and liabilities at the lowest level for which identifiable cash flows are largely independent of the cash flows of other assets and liabilities and to evaluate the asset group against the sum of the undiscounted future cash flows.

For property, plant and equipment and other long-lived assets, other than goodwill and other indefinite lived intangible assets, the company performs undiscounted operating cash flow analyses to determine impairments. If an impairment is determined to exist, any related impairment loss is calculated based upon comparison of the fair value to the net book value of the assets. Impairment losses on assets held for sale are based on the estimated proceeds to be received, less costs to sell.

Each year, in its second quarter, the company tests for impairment of goodwill according to a two-step approach. In the first step, the company estimates the fair values of its reporting units using the present value of future cash flows approach, subject to a comparison for reasonableness to its market capitalization at the date of valuation. If the carrying amount exceeds the fair value, the second step of the goodwill impairment test is performed to measure the amount of the impairment loss, if any. In the second step, the implied fair value of the goodwill is estimated as the fair value of the reporting unit used in the first step less the fair values of all other net tangible and intangible assets of the reporting unit. If the carrying amount of the goodwill exceeds its implied fair market value, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount equal to that excess, not to exceed the carrying amount of the goodwill. In addition, goodwill of a reporting unit is tested for impairment between annual tests if an event occurs or circumstances change that would more-likely-than-not reduce the fair value of a reporting unit below its carrying value. For other indefinite lived intangible assets, the impairment test consists of a comparison of the fair value of the intangible assets to their carrying amount. See Note 11, “Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets,” for further details on our impairment assessments.

Warranties Estimated warranty costs are recorded in cost of sales at the time of sale of the warranted products based on historical warranty experience for the related product or estimates of projected costs due to specific warranty issues on new products. These estimates are reviewed periodically and are adjusted based on changes in facts, circumstances or actual experience.

Environmental Liabilities The company accrues for losses associated with environmental remediation obligations when such losses are probable and reasonably estimable. Such accruals are adjusted as information develops or circumstances change. Costs of long-term expenditures for environmental remediation obligations are discounted to their present value when the timing of cash flows are estimable.

Product Liabilities The company records product liability reserves for its self-insured portion of any pending or threatened product liability actions. The reserve is based upon two estimates. First, the company tracks the population of all outstanding pending and threatened product liability cases to determine an appropriate case reserve for each based upon the company’s best judgment and the advice of legal counsel. These estimates are continually evaluated and adjusted based upon changes to facts and circumstances surrounding the case. Second, the company determines the amount of additional reserve required to cover incurred but not reported product liability obligations and to account for possible adverse development of the established case reserves (collectively referred to as IBNR). This analysis is performed at least twice annually.

Foreign Currency Translation The financial statements of the company’s non-U.S. subsidiaries are translated using the current exchange rate for assets and liabilities and the average exchange rate for the year for income and expense items. Resulting translation adjustments are recorded to Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (AOCI) as a component of Manitowoc stockholders’ equity.

Derivative Financial Instruments and Hedging Activities The company has written policies and procedures that place all financial instruments under the direction of corporate treasury and restrict all derivative transactions to those intended for hedging purposes. The use of financial instruments for trading purposes is strictly prohibited. The company uses financial instruments to manage the market risk from changes in foreign exchange rates, commodities and interest rates. The company follows the guidance in accordance with ASC Topic 815-10, “Derivatives and Hedging.” The fair values of all derivatives are recorded in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The change in a derivative’s fair value is recorded each period in current earnings or AOCI depending on whether the derivative is designated and qualifies as part of a hedge transaction and if so, the type of hedge transaction.

During 2015, 2014 and 2013, minimal amounts were recognized in earnings due to ineffectiveness of certain commodity hedges. The amount reported as derivative instrument fair market value adjustment in the AOCI account within the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) represents the net gain (loss) on foreign currency exchange contracts, commodity contracts, and interest rate contracts designated as cash flow hedges, net of income taxes.

Cash Flow Hedges The company selectively hedges anticipated transactions that are subject to foreign exchange exposure, commodity price exposure, or variable interest rate exposure, primarily using foreign currency exchange contracts, commodity contracts, and interest rate contracts, respectively. These instruments are designated as cash flow hedges in accordance with ASC Topic 815-10 and are recorded in the Consolidated Balance Sheets at fair value. The effective portion of the contracts’ gains or losses due to changes in fair value are initially recorded as a component of AOCI and are subsequently reclassified into earnings when the hedged transactions, typically sales and costs related to sales and interest expense, occur and affect earnings. These contracts are highly effective in hedging the variability in future cash attributable to changes in currency exchange rates, commodity prices, or interest rates.

Fair Value Hedges The company periodically enters into interest rate swaps designated as a hedge of the fair value of a portion of its fixed rate debt. These hedges effectively result in changing a portion of its fixed rate debt to variable interest rate debt. Both the swaps and the debt are recorded in the Consolidated Balance Sheets at fair value. The change in fair value of the swaps should exactly offset the change in fair value of the hedged debt, with no net impact to earnings. Interest expense of the hedged debt is recorded at the variable rate in earnings. See Note 13, “Debt” for further discussion of fair value hedges.

The company selectively hedges cash inflows and outflows that are subject to foreign currency exposure from the date of transaction to the related payment date. The hedges for these foreign currency accounts receivable and accounts payable are recorded in the Consolidated Balance Sheets at fair value. Gains or losses due to changes in fair value are recorded as an adjustment to earnings in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

Stock-Based Compensation Stock-based compensation plans are described more fully in Note 18, “Stock-Based Compensation.” The company recognizes expense for all stock-based compensation with graded vesting on a straight-line basis over the vesting period of the entire award. The company recognized $0.3 million, $1.0 million and $2.8 million of compensation expense related to restricted stock awards during the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively. In addition, the company recognized $4.4 million, $5.7 million and $6.3 million of compensation expense related to stock options during the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively. The company also recognized $7.5 million, $5.9 million, and $5.8 million of compensation expense associated with restricted stock units in 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively. The company also recognized $2.2 million of expense on accelerated vesting of retention awards under severance agreements; this expense is included in "Separation expense" in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

Revenue Recognition Revenue is generally recognized and earned when all the following criteria are satisfied with regard to a specific transaction: persuasive evidence of a sales arrangement exists; the price is fixed or determinable; collectability of cash is reasonably assured; and delivery has occurred or services have been rendered. Shipping and handling fees are reflected in net sales and shipping and handling costs are reflected in cost of sales in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

The company enters into transactions with customers that provide for residual value guarantees and buyback commitments on certain crane transactions. The company records transactions which it provides significant residual value guarantees and any buyback commitments as operating leases. Net revenues in connection with the initial transactions are recorded as deferred revenue and are amortized to income on a straight-line basis over a period equal to that of the customer’s third party financing agreement. See Note 20, “Guarantees.”

The company also leases cranes to customers under operating lease terms. Revenue from operating leases is recognized ratably over the term of the lease, and leased cranes are depreciated over their estimated useful lives.

Research and Development Research and development costs are charged to expense as incurred and amounted to $83.6 million, $87.4 million and $86.4 million for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively. Research and development costs include salaries, materials, contractor fees and other administrative costs.

Income Taxes The company utilizes the liability method to recognize deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected future income tax consequences of events that have been recognized in the company’s financial statements. Under this method, deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the temporary difference between financial statement carrying amounts and the tax basis of assets and liabilities using enacted tax rates in effect in the years in which the temporary differences are expected to reverse. Valuation allowances are provided for deferred tax assets where it is considered more likely than not that the company will not realize the benefit of such assets. The company evaluates its uncertain tax positions as new information becomes available. Tax benefits are recognized to the extent a position is more likely than not to be sustained upon examination by the taxing authority.

Earnings Per Share Basic earnings per share is computed by dividing net earnings attributable to Manitowoc by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during each year or period. Diluted earnings per share is computed similar to basic earnings per share except that the weighted average shares outstanding is increased to include shares of restricted stock, performance shares and the number of additional shares that would have been outstanding if stock options were exercised and the proceeds from such exercise were used to acquire shares of common stock at the average market price during the year or period.

Comprehensive Income (Loss) Comprehensive income (loss) includes, in addition to net earnings, other items that are reported as direct adjustments to Manitowoc stockholders’ equity. Currently, these items are foreign currency translation adjustments, employee postretirement benefit adjustments and the change in fair value of certain derivative instruments.

Concentration of Credit Risk Credit extended to customers through trade accounts receivable potentially subjects the company to risk. This risk is limited due to the large number of customers and their dispersion across various industries and many geographical areas. However, a significant amount of the company’s receivables are with distributors and contractors in the construction industry, large companies in the foodservice and beverage industry, customers servicing the U.S. steel industry, and government agencies. The company currently does not foresee a significant credit risk associated with these individual groups of receivables, but continues to monitor the exposure, if any.

Recent accounting changes and pronouncements In January 2016, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2016-01, “Financial Instruments (Subtopic 825-10) - Recognition and Measurement of Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities.” This update provides guidance for the recognition, measurement, presentation, and disclosure of financial instruments. This guidance is effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2017, and early adoption is not permitted. The company is evaluating the impact, if any, the adoption of this ASU will have on the company’s consolidated financial statements.

In November 2015, the FASB issued ASU No. 2015-17, "Balance Sheet Classification of Deferred Taxes (Subtopic 740-10)." ASU 2015-17 simplifies the presentation of deferred income taxes by eliminating the requirement for companies to present deferred tax liabilities and assets as current and non-current on the balance sheet. Instead, companies will be required to classify all deferred tax assets and liabilities as non-current. This guidance is effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2016 and early adoption is permitted. We early adopted this ASU on a prospective basis as of December 31, 2015. Prior periods were not retrospectively adjusted.

In September 2015, the FASB issued ASU No. 2015-16, “Business Combinations (Topic 805) - Simplifying the Accounting for Measurement-Period Adjustments.” The amendments in this ASU require that an acquirer in a business combination recognize adjustments to provisional amounts that are identified during the measurement period in the reporting period in which the adjustment amounts are determined, rather than as retrospective adjustments. The amendments in this ASU are effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, including interim periods within those fiscal years. The amendments in this ASU should be applied prospectively to adjustments to provisional amounts that occur after the effective date of this ASU with earlier application permitted for financial statements that have not been issued. We believe the adoption of this ASU will not have a material impact on our combined financial statements.

In August 2015, the FASB issued ASU No. 2015-15, “Presentation and Subsequent Measurement of Debt Issuance Costs Associated with Line-of-Credit Arrangements.” This ASU clarifies the guidance related to accounting for debt issuance costs related to line-of-credit arrangements. In April 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-03 which requires entities to present debt issuance costs related to a recognized debt liability as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of that debt liability; see further discussion of ASU 2015-03 below. The guidance in ASU 2015-03 did not address presentation or subsequent measurement of debt issuance costs related to line-of-credit arrangements. Given the absence of authoritative guidance within ASU 2015-03 for debt issuance costs related to line-of-credit arrangements, the SEC staff would not object to an entity deferring and presenting debt issuance costs as an asset and subsequently amortizing the deferred debt issuance costs ratably over the term of the line-of-credit arrangement, regardless of whether there are any outstanding borrowings on the line-of-credit arrangement. We believe the adoption of this ASU will not have a material impact on our combined financial statements.

In July 2015, the FASB issued ASU No. 2015-11, “Inventory (Topic 330): Simplifying the Measurement of Inventory.” This ASU changes the guidance on accounting for inventory accounted for on a first-in first-out basis (FIFO). Under the revised standard, an entity should measure FIFO inventory at the lower of cost and net realizable value. Net realizable value is the estimated selling prices in the ordinary course of business, less reasonably predictable costs of completion, disposal, and transportation. Subsequent measurement is unchanged for inventory measured on a last-in, first-out basis (LIFO). The amendments in this ASU are effective for fiscal years, and for interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2016. We believe the adoption of this ASU will not have a material impact on our combined financial statements.

In April 2015, the FASB issued ASU No. 2015-05, “Customer’s Accounting for Fees Paid in a Cloud Computing Arrangement.” This ASU provides guidance on accounting for a software license in a cloud computing arrangement. If a cloud computing arrangement includes a software license, then the customer should account for the software license element of the arrangement consistent with the acquisition of other software licenses. If a cloud computing arrangement does not include a software license, the customer should account for the arrangement as a service contract. Further, all software licenses are within the scope of Accounting Standards Codification Subtopic 350-40 and will be accounted for consistent with other licenses of intangible assets. The amendments in this ASU are effective for fiscal years, and for interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2015. We believe the adoption of this ASU will not have a material impact on our combined financial statements.

In April 2015, the FASB issued ASU No. 2015-03, “Simplifying the Presentation of Debt Issuance Costs.” To simplify the presentation of debt issuance costs, this ASU requires that debt issuance costs related to a recognized debt liability be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of that debt liability, consistent with debt discounts, rather than as a deferred asset. The recognition and measurement guidance for debt issuance costs are not affected by the amendments in this ASU. The amendments in this ASU are effective for fiscal years, and for interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2015, with early application permitted. The guidance will be applied on a retrospective basis. We are evaluating the impact that the adoption of this ASU will have on our combined financial statements.

In February 2015, the FASB issued ASU No. 2015-02, “Consolidation (Topic 820)-Amendments to the Consolidation Analysis.” This ASU amends the current consolidation guidance for both the variable interest entity (VIE) and voting interest entity (VOE) consolidation models. The amendments in this ASU are effective for fiscal years, and for interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2015. We believe the adoption of this ASU will not have a material impact on our combined financial statements.

In January 2015, the FASB issued ASU No. 2015-01, “Income Statement-Extraordinary and Unusual Items.” This ASU eliminates from GAAP the concept of extraordinary items. ASU 2015-01 is effective for the first interim period within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, with early adoption permitted provided that the guidance is applied from the beginning of the fiscal year of adoption. A reporting entity may apply the amendments prospectively or retrospectively to all prior periods presented in the financial statements. We believe the adoption of this ASU will not have a material impact on our combined financial statements.

In August 2014, the FASB issued ASU No. 2014-15, “Presentation of Financial Statements-Going Concern.” This ASU provided guidance on management’s responsibility in evaluating whether there is substantial doubt about a company’s ability to continue as a going concern and to provide related footnote disclosures. ASU 2014-15 is effective in the first annual period ending after December 15, 2016, with early adoption permitted. We believe the adoption of this ASU will not have a material impact on our combined financial statements.

In May 2014, the FASB issued ASU No. 2014-09, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers.” This ASU provided a principles-based approach to revenue recognition to depict the transfer of goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. This ASU provides a five-step model to be applied to all contracts with customers. The five steps are to identify the contract(s) with the customer, identify the performance obligations in the contract, determine the transaction price, allocate the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract and recognize revenue when each performance obligation is satisfied. The revenue standard is effective for the first interim period within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017 (as finalized by the FASB in August 2015 in ASU 2015-14), and can be applied either retrospectively to each prior reporting period presented or retrospectively with the cumulative effect of initially applying the update recognized at the date of initial application along with additional disclosures. Early adoption is permitted as of the original effective date-the first interim period within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2016. We are evaluating the impact, if any, the adoption of this ASU will have on our combined financial statements.

In April 2014, the FASB issued ASU No. 2014-08, “Presentation of Financial Statements and Property, Plant, and Equipment: Reporting Discontinued Operations and Disclosures of Disposals of Components of an Entity.” This ASU changes the requirements for reporting discontinued operations in Accounting Standards Codification Subtopic 205-20, and now requires a disposal of a component of an entity or a group of components of an entity to be reported in discontinued operations only if the disposal represents a strategic shift that has (or will have) a major effect on an entity’s operations and financial results. There will also be additional disclosures required. The amendments in this ASU are effective prospectively for fiscal years (and interim reporting periods within those years) beginning after December 15, 2014. The significance of this guidance for us is dependent on any future disposals.