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.  The Company’s portfolio also includes the up-fit of market leading attachments and storage solutions under the HENDERSON® brand, and the DEJANA® brand and its related sub-brands. 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. During the first quarter of 2019, the Company reorganized its business segments to reflect a new operating structure as a result of a change in how the Company’s chief operating decision maker allocates resources, makes operating decisions and assesses the performance of the business. Financial information regarding these segments is in Note 17 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Certain reclassifications have been made to the prior period financial statements to conform to the 2020 presentation related to non-qualified benefit plan assets and liabilities. There was a balance sheet reclassification of non-qualified benefit plan assets from Other long-term assets to Non-qualified benefit plan assets of $7,270 as of December 31, 2019. Additionally, there was a balance sheet reclassification of deferred compensation from Other long-term liabilities to Retiree benefits and deferred compensation of $7,679 as of December 31, 2019.

Recently adopted accounting standards

In June 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”)  issued ASU 2016-13, “Financial Instruments - Credit Losses,” which modifies the measurement of expected credit losses for financial instruments held at the reporting date. The standard is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2019. The Company adopted this standard in the first quarter of fiscal 2020. Upon adoption, the Company recognized the cumulative effect of adopting this guidance as an adjustment to the opening balance of retained earnings of $557, net of tax. The Company has identified and implemented changes to processes and controls to meet the standard’s updated reporting and disclosure requirements. See Note 2 for additional information.

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In March 2020, the FASB issued ASU 2020-04, “Reference Rate Reform,” which provides optional guidance for a limited period of time to ease the potential burden in accounting for (or recognizing the effects of) reference rate reform on financial reporting. The Company adopted this standard in the first quarter of fiscal 2020 specifically related to its interest rate swap, where the Company asserts the forecasted transaction using the existing reference rate associated with the swap remains probable.

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In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-14, “Compensation - Retirement benefits (Topic 715-20)”, which amends ASC 715 to add, remove and clarify disclosure requirements related to defined benefit pension and other postretirement plans. The ASU eliminates the requirement to disclose the amounts in accumulated other comprehensive income expected to be recognized as part of net periodic benefit cost over the next year. The ASU also removes the disclosure requirements for the effects of a one-percentage-point change on the assumed health care costs and the effect of this change in rates on service cost, interest cost and the benefit obligation for postretirement health care benefits. This ASU is effective for fiscal years ending after December 15, 2020 and must be applied on a retrospective basis. The Company adopted this standard in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020, and there was no material impact to the Company as a result of its adoption.

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See Note 22 for a summary of recent accounting pronouncements not yet adopted and the Company’s evaluation of their impact on the financial statements.