Business and segment information

12 Months Ended

Jan. 31, 2017

Business and segment information [Abstract]

Business and segment information [Text Block]

Note 1 - Business and segment information

Perma-Pipe International Holdings, Inc. ("PPIH", the "Company", or the "Registrant") was incorporated in Delaware on October 12, 1993. As of January 31, 2016, PPIH is engaged in the manufacture and sale of products in one distinct segment: Piping Systems. As described below, prior to January 29, 2016, the Company was also engaged in the manufacture and sale of products in the Filtration Products segment. In February 2017, the Company announced that the board of directors had authorized Company management to move forward with the re-naming and re-branding of MFRI, Inc. under the Perma-Pipe name now that the Company operates in a single business segment under the Perma-Pipe brand, and the Company believes this decision will better serve its strategy, position it well in the industry and global market, and better reflect the Company’s mission and strategy, and positions it to leverage the strong reputation Perma-Pipe has established since beginning operations. The name change to Perma-Pipe International Holdings, Inc. was effective March 20, 2017. The Company's common stock has been and will continue to be reported under its new ticker symbol “PPIH” since March 21, 2017.

Fiscal year. The Company's fiscal year ends on January 31. Years and balances described as 2016 and 2015 are the fiscal years ended January31,2017 and 2016, respectively.

Nature of business. Piping Systems engineers, designs, manufactures and sells specialty piping and leak detection and location systems. This segment's specialty piping systems include (i) industrial and secondary containment piping systems for transporting chemicals, hazardous fluids and petroleum products, (ii) insulated and jacketed piping systems for district heating and cooling, Municipal Freeze Protection, Oil & Gas, Mining and Industrial applications, (iii) insulation for subsea oil and gas gathering flowlines and equipment, (iv) above and below ground long lines for oil and mineral transportation and (v) anti-corrosion coatings for oil and gas distribution and gathering pipelines.  The leak detection and location systems are sold with some of its piping systems and also on a stand-alone basis to monitor areas where fluid intrusion may contaminate the environment, endanger personal safety, cause a fire hazard, impair essential services or damage equipment or property.

Prior to January 29, 2016, the Company had a Filtration Products segment. This business is reported as discontinued operations in the consolidated financial statements, and the notes to consolidated financial statements have been restated to conform to the current year reporting of this business. For further information, see Note 4 - Discontinued operations, in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

Segment information was as follows:

	2016	2015
Net sales
Piping Systems	$98,845	$122,696
Gross profit
Piping Systems	$11,716	$26,741
Income (loss) from operations
Piping Systems	$(2,435)	$10,537
Corporate	(8,353)	(7,659)
Total (loss) income from operations	$(10,788)	$2,878
Segment assets
Piping Systems	$98,855	$112,161
Corporate	2,731	10,229
Total segment assets	$101,586	$122,390
Capital expenditures
Piping Systems	$1,925	$4,762
Corporate	332	289
Total capital expenditures	$2,257	$5,051
Depreciation and amortization
Piping Systems	$5,009	$3,735
Corporate	327	469
Total depreciation and amortization	$5,336	$4,204

Geographic information. Net sales are attributed to a geographic area based on the destination of the product shipment. Sales to foreign customers was 57% in 2016 compared to 50% in 2015. Long-lived assets are based on the physical location of the assets and consist of property, plant and equipment used in the generation of revenues in the geographic area.

	2016	2015
Net sales
United States	$42,048	$58,707
Middle East	28,009	60,749
Canada	25,915	2,581
India	2,360	372
Other	513	287
Total net sales	$98,845	$122,696
Property, plant and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation
United States	$11,747	$13,822
Canada	13,276	—
Middle East	10,987	11,211
India	265	367
Total	$36,275	$25,400