This Form 10-K and the information we are incorporating by reference contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including information regarding the Company’s financial outlook, future plans, objectives, business prospects and anticipated financial performance. You can identify forward-looking statements by words such as “will,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” or variations of these words, or similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, these statements inherently involve a wide range of inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. The Company’s actual actions, results, and financial condition may differ materially from what is expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Specific factors that could cause such a difference include those set forth below and other important factors disclosed previously and from time to time in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Given these factors, as well as other variables that may affect our operating results, you should not rely on forward-looking statements, assume that past financial performance will be a reliable indicator of future performance, nor use historical trends to anticipate results or trends in future periods. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date thereof. We expressly disclaim any obligation or intention to provide updates to the forward-looking statements and the estimates and assumptions associated with them.

Risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the applicable statements include, but are not limited to:

Any significant increase in the cost of raw materials or disruption in the availability of raw materials could adversely affect our performance.

Our ability to manage our cost structure can be adversely affected by movements in commodity and other raw material prices. Our primary raw materials include plastic resins, colorants and natural and synthetic rubbers. Plastic resins in particular are subject to substantial short term price fluctuations, including those arising from supply shortages and changes in the price of natural gas, crude oil and other petrochemical intermediates from which resins are produced, as well as other factors. Over the past several years, we have at times experienced rapidly increasing resin prices. The Company’s revenue and profitability may be materially and adversely affected by these price fluctuations.

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Market conditions may limit our ability to raise selling prices to offset increases in our raw material input costs. If we are unsuccessful in developing ways to mitigate raw material cost increases, we may not be able to improve productivity or realize our ongoing cost reduction programs sufficiently to help offset the impact of these increased raw material costs. As a result, higher raw material costs could result in declining margins and operating results.

Changes in raw material availability may also occur due to events beyond our control, including natural disasters such as floods, tornadoes and hurricanes. Our specific molding technologies and/or product specifications can limit our ability to locate alternative suppliers to produce certain products.

Changes in trade policies could result in new tariffs or other restrictions on products, components or raw materials sourced, directly or indirectly, from foreign countries, which could increase raw material costs and adversely impact profitability. However, as the Company has limited foreign operations and sources the majority of its raw materials domestically, we do not believe any new tariffs would have a material impact on our operations.  Additionally, the Company believes that any impact can be mitigated through increases in price or sourcing through an alternate supply chain.

We may incur inherent risks and may not achieve anticipated benefits associated with our strategic growth initiatives.

Our growth initiatives include:

While this is a continuous process, all of these activities and initiatives have inherent risks and there remain significant challenges and uncertainties, including economic and general business conditions that could limit our ability to achieve anticipated benefits associated with announced strategic initiatives and affect our financial results. We may not achieve any or all of these goals and are unable to predict whether these initiatives will produce significant revenues or profits.

We may not realize the improved operating results that we anticipate from past acquisitions or from acquisitions we may make in the future and we may experience difficulties in integrating the acquired businesses or may inherit significant liabilities related to such businesses.  

We explore opportunities to acquire businesses that we believe are related to the execution of the Company’s long-term strategy, with a focus on, among other things, asset light business models, flexible operations, and penetration of niche markets. Some of these acquisitions may be material to us. We expect such acquisitions will produce operating results consistent with our other operations and fit within our strategic goals; however, we may be unable to achieve the benefits expected to be realized from our acquisitions. In addition, we may incur additional costs and our management’s attention may be diverted because of unforeseen expenses, difficulties, complications, delays and other risks inherent in acquiring businesses, including the following:

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Our results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected by a downturn in the United States economy or the global markets.

We operate in a wide range of regions, primarily North America and Central America, and, until the divesture of our Brazil Business in the fourth quarter of 2017, South America. Additionally, some of our end markets are cyclical, and some of our products are a capital expense for our customers. Worldwide and regional business and political conditions and overall strength of the worldwide, regional and local economies, including changes in the economic conditions of the broader markets and in our individual niche markets, could have an adverse effect on one or both of our operating segments.

We operate in a very competitive business environment, which could affect our financial condition and results of operations.

Both of our segments participate in markets that are highly competitive. We compete primarily on the basis of product quality, product performance, value, and supply chain competency. Our competitive success also depends on our ability to maintain strong brands, customer relationships and the belief that customers will need our products and services to meet their growth requirements. The development and maintenance of such brands requires continuous investment in brand building, marketing initiatives and advertising. The competition that we face in all of our markets — which varies depending on the particular business segment, product lines and customers — may prevent us from achieving sales, product pricing and income goals, which could affect our financial condition and results of operations.

Our operations depend on our ability to maintain continuous, uninterrupted production at our manufacturing facilities, which are subject to physical and other risks that could disrupt production.

We are subject to inherent risks in our diverse manufacturing and distribution activities, including, but not limited to: product quality, safety, licensing requirements and other regulatory issues, environmental events, loss or impairment of key manufacturing or distribution sites, disruptions in logistics and transportation services, labor disputes and industrial accidents. While we maintain insurance covering our manufacturing and production facilities, including business interruption insurance, a catastrophic loss of the use of all or a portion of our facilities due to accident, fire, explosion, or natural disaster, whether short or long-term, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Unexpected failures of our equipment and machinery may also result in production delays, revenue loss and significant repair costs, as well as injuries to our employees. Any interruption in production capability may require us to make large capital expenditures to remedy the situation, which could have a negative impact on our profitability and cash flows. Our business interruption insurance may not be sufficient to offset the lost revenues or increased costs that we may experience during a disruption of our operations. A temporary or long-term business disruption could result in a permanent loss of customers. If this were to occur, our future sales levels, and therefore our profitability, could be materially adversely affected.

We derive a portion of our revenues from direct and indirect sales outside the United States and are subject to the risks of doing business in foreign countries.

We currently operate manufacturing, sales and service facilities outside of the United States, particularly in Canada and Central America. For the year ended December 31, 2018, international net sales accounted for approximately 9% of our total net sales from continuing operations. Accordingly, we are subject to risks associated with operations in foreign countries, including:

In addition, our operations outside the United States are subject to the risk of new and different legal and regulatory requirements in local jurisdictions, potential difficulties in staffing and managing local operations and potentially adverse tax consequences. The costs related to our international operations could adversely affect our operations and financial results in the future.

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Our future performance depends in part on our ability to develop and market new products if there are changes in technology, regulatory requirements or competitive processes.

Changes in technology, regulatory requirements and competitive processes may render certain products obsolete or less attractive. Our performance in the future will depend in part on our ability to develop and market new products that will gain customer acceptance and loyalty, as well as our ability to adapt our product offerings and control our costs to meet changing market conditions. Our operating performance would be adversely affected if we were to incur delays in developing new products or if such products did not gain market acceptance. There can be no assurance that existing or future products will be sufficiently successful to enable us to effectively compete in our markets or, should new product offerings meet with significant customer acceptance, that one or more current or future competitors will not introduce products that render our products noncompetitive.

We may not be successful in protecting our intellectual property rights, including our unpatented proprietary know-how and trade secrets, or in avoiding claims that we infringed on the intellectual property rights of others.

In addition to relying on patent and trademark rights, we rely on unpatented proprietary know-how and trade secrets and employ various methods, including confidentiality agreements with employees and consultants, to protect our know-how and trade secrets. However, these methods and our patents and trademarks may not afford complete protection and there can be no assurance that others will not independently develop the know-how and trade secrets or develop better production methods than us. Further, we may not be able to deter current and former employees, contractors and other parties from breaching confidentiality agreements and misappropriating proprietary information and it is possible that third parties may copy or otherwise obtain and use our information and proprietary technology without authorization or otherwise infringe on our intellectual property rights. Additionally, in the future we may license patents, trademarks, trade secrets and similar proprietary rights to third parties. While we attempt to ensure that our intellectual property and similar proprietary rights are protected when entering into business relationships, third parties may take actions that could materially and adversely affect our rights or the value of our intellectual property, similar proprietary rights or reputation. In the future, we may also rely on litigation to enforce our intellectual property rights and contractual rights and, if not successful, we may not be able to protect the value of our intellectual property. Furthermore, no assurance can be given that we will not be subject to claims asserting the infringement of the intellectual property rights of third parties seeking damages, the payment of royalties or licensing fees and/or injunctions against the sale of our products. Any litigation could be protracted and costly and could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations regardless of its outcome.

If we are unable to maintain access to credit financing, our business may be adversely affected.

The Company’s ability to make payments and to refinance our indebtedness, fund planned capital expenditures, finance acquisitions and pay dividends will depend on our ability to generate cash in the future and retain access to credit financing. This, to some extent, is subject to general economic, financial, competitive, legislative, regulatory and other factors that are beyond our control.

We cannot provide assurance that our business will generate sufficient cash flow from operating activities or that future borrowings will be available to us under our credit facilities in amounts sufficient to enable us to service debt, make necessary capital expenditures or fund other liquidity needs. We may need to refinance all or a portion of our indebtedness, on or before maturity. We cannot be sure that we would be able to refinance any of our indebtedness on commercially reasonable terms or at all.

The credit facilities contain restrictive covenants and cross default provisions that require us to maintain specified financial ratios. The Company’s ability to satisfy those financial ratios can be affected by events beyond our control, and we cannot be assured we will satisfy those ratios. A breach of any of those financial ratio covenants or other covenants could result in a default. Upon the occurrence of an event of default, the lenders could elect to declare the applicable outstanding indebtedness due immediately and payable and terminate all commitments to extend further credit. We cannot be sure that our lenders would waive a default or that we could pay the indebtedness in full if it were accelerated.

If we fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results. As a result, current and potential shareholders could lose confidence in our financial reporting, which would harm our business and the trading price of our common stock.

Internal control systems are intended to provide reasonable assurance regarding the preparation and fair presentation of published financial statements. Any failure to maintain effective controls or implement required new or improved controls could cause us to fail to meet our periodic reporting obligations or result in material misstatements in our consolidated financial statements, and substantial costs and resources may be required to rectify these internal control deficiencies. If we have an internal control deficiency and our remedial measures are insufficient, material weaknesses or significant deficiencies in our internal control over financial reporting could be discovered or occur in the future, and our consolidated financial statements may contain material misstatements. See Item 9A – Controls and Procedures for further discussion.

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We may be subject to risks relating to our information technology systems.

We rely on information technology systems to process, transmit and store electronic information and manage and operate our business. Such systems are vulnerable to damage or interruption from natural disasters, power loss, telecommunication failures, computer viruses, computer denial-of-service attacks, unauthorized intrusion, and other events, any of which could interrupt our business operations. While we have implemented security measures designed to prevent and mitigate the risk of breaches, information security risks have generally increased in recent years because of the proliferation of new technologies and the increased sophistication and activities of perpetrators of cyber-attacks. A failure in or a breach of security could expose us and our customers and suppliers to risks of misuse of confidential information, manipulation and destruction of data, production downtimes and operations disruptions, which in turn could negatively affect our reputation, competitive position, business, results of operations or cash flows. Furthermore, because the techniques used to carry out cyber-attacks change frequently and in many instances are not recognized until after they are used against a target, we may be unable to anticipate these changes or implement adequate preventative measures.

Future claims, litigation and regulatory actions could adversely affect our financial condition and our ability to conduct our business.

The nature of our business exposes us, from time to time, to breach of contract, warranty or recall claims, or claims for negligence, product liability, strict liability, personal injury or property damage claims. While we strive to ensure that our products comply with applicable government regulatory standards and internal requirements and that our products perform effectively and safely, customers from time to time could claim that our products do not meet contractual requirements, and users could be harmed by use or misuse of our products. This could give rise to breach of contract, warranty or recall claims, or claims for negligence, product liability, strict liability, personal injury or property damage. Such claims can be expensive to defend and may divert the attention of management for significant time periods. While we currently maintain what we believe to be a suitable and adequate product liability insurance, product liability insurance coverage may not be available or adequate in all circumstances and such claims may increase the cost of such insurance coverage. In addition, claims may arise related to patent infringement, environmental liabilities, distributor terminations, commercial contracts, antitrust or competition law, employment law and employee benefits issues and other regulatory matters. While we have in place processes and policies to mitigate these risks and to investigate and address such claims as they arise, we cannot predict the underlying costs to defend or resolve such claims.

Current and future environmental and other governmental laws and requirements could adversely affect our financial condition and our ability to conduct our business.

Our operations are subject to federal, state, local and foreign environmental laws and regulations that impose limitations on the discharge of pollutants into the air and water and establish standards for the handling, use, treatment, storage and disposal of, or exposure to, hazardous wastes and other materials and require clean-up of contaminated sites. Some of these laws and regulations require us to obtain permits, which contain terms and conditions that impose limitations on our ability to emit and discharge hazardous materials into the environment and periodically may be subject to modification, renewal and revocation by issuing authorities. Fines, penalties and other civil or criminal sanctions may be imposed for non-compliance with applicable environmental laws and regulations and the failure to have or to comply with the terms and conditions of required permits. Certain environmental laws in the United States, such as the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability act of 1980, as amended, 42 U.S.C. §§ 9601 et seq. (“CERCLA” or “Superfund law”) and similar state laws, impose liability for the cost of investigation or remediation of contaminated sites upon the current or, in some cases, the former site owners or operators (or their predecessor entities) and upon parties who arranged for the disposal of wastes or transported or sent those wastes to an off-site facility for treatment or disposal, regardless of when the release of hazardous substances occurred or the lawfulness of the activities giving rise to the release. Such liability can be imposed without regard to fault and, under certain circumstances, can be joint and several, resulting in one party being held responsible for the entire obligation.

While we have not been required historically to make significant capital expenditures in order to comply with applicable environmental laws and regulations, we cannot predict with any certainty our future capital expenditure requirements because of continually changing compliance standards and environmental technology. Furthermore, violations or contaminated sites that we do not know about, including contamination caused by prior owners and operators of such sites, or at sites formerly owned or operated by us or our predecessors in connection with discontinued operations, could result in additional compliance or remediation costs or other liabilities, which could be material.

As more fully described in Item 3, “Legal Proceedings” below, we are a potentially responsible party (“PRP”) in an environmental proceeding and remediation matter in which substantial amounts may be involved. It is possible that adjustments to reserved expenses will be necessary as new information is obtained, including after preparation and EPA approval of the work plan for the remedial investigation and feasibility study (“RI/FS”), which is anticipated to occur in the first half of 2019. Estimates of the Company’s liability are based on current facts, laws, regulations and technology. Estimates of the Company’s environmental liabilities are further subject to uncertainties regarding the nature and extent of site contamination, the range of remediation alternatives available, evolving remediation standards, imprecise engineering evaluation and cost estimates, the extent of remedial actions that may be required, the extent of oversight by the EPA, the number and financial condition of other PRPs that may be named as well as the extent of their responsibility for the remediation, and the availability of insurance coverage for these expenses. At this time, we have not accrued for such remediation costs as we are unable to estimate the liability at this time. Additionally, we are party to a consent decree regarding another location pursuant to which we are required to contribute to the costs of the remediation project.

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We have limited insurance coverage for potential environmental liabilities associated with historic and current operations and we do not anticipate increasing such coverage in the future. We may also assume significant environmental liabilities in acquisitions. Such costs or liabilities could adversely affect our financial situation and our ability to conduct our business.

Environmental regulations specific to plastic products and containers could adversely affect our ability to conduct our business.

Federal, state, local and foreign governments could enact laws or regulations concerning environmental matters that increase the cost of producing, or otherwise adversely affect the demand for, plastic products. Legislation that would prohibit, tax or restrict the sale or use of certain types of plastic and other containers, and would require diversion of solid wastes such as packaging materials from disposal in landfills, has been or may be introduced in the U.S. Congress, in state legislatures and other legislative bodies. While container legislation has been adopted in a few jurisdictions, similar legislation has been defeated in public referenda in several states, local elections and many state and local legislative sessions. There can be no assurance that future legislation or regulation would not have a material adverse effect on us. Furthermore, a decline in consumer preference for plastic products due to environmental considerations could have a negative effect on our business.

Our insurance coverage may be inadequate to protect against potential hazardous incidents to our business.

We maintain property, business interruption, product liability and casualty insurance coverage, but such insurance may not provide adequate coverage against potential claims, including losses resulting from war risks, terrorist acts or product liability claims relating to products we manufacture. Consistent with market conditions in the insurance industry, premiums and deductibles for some of our insurance policies have been increasing and may continue to increase in the future. In some instances, some types of insurance may become available only for reduced amounts of coverage, if at all. In addition, there can be no assurance that our insurers would not challenge coverage for certain claims. If we were to incur a significant liability for which we were not fully insured or that our insurers disputed, it could have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

Our business operations could be significantly disrupted if members of our senior management team were to leave.

Our success depends to a significant degree upon the continued contributions of our senior management team. Our senior management team has extensive marketing, sales, manufacturing, finance and engineering experience, and we believe that the depth of our management team is instrumental to our continued success. The loss of any of our key executive officers in the future could significantly impede our ability to successfully implement our business strategy, financial plans, expansion of services, marketing and other objectives.

Unforeseen future events may negatively impact our economic condition.

Future events may occur that would adversely affect the reported value of our assets. Such events may include, but are not limited to, strategic decisions made in response to changes in economic and competitive conditions, the impact of the economic environment on our customer base, a material adverse change in our relationship with significant customers, or natural disasters or other catastrophic events beyond our control. Any of these events may adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

Equity Ownership Concentration

Based solely on the Schedule 13D filed on September 13, 2018, by Gabelli Funds, LLC, GAMCO Asset Management Inc., MJG Associates, Inc., Gabelli & Company Investment Advisors, Inc., Teton Advisors, Inc., Gabelli Foundation, Inc., GGCP, Inc., and GAMCO Investors, Inc., (collectively, the “Gamco Group”), for which the Company disclaims any responsibility, beneficially owned 7,162,114 shares of our common stock, which represented approximately 20% of the 35,351,248 shares outstanding as reported in our Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2018. Combined, these parties may have sufficient voting power to influence actions requiring the approval of our shareholders.

Changes in laws and regulations may have an adverse impact on our operations.

Changes in laws and regulations and approvals and decisions of courts, regulators, and governmental bodies on any legal claims known or unknown, could have an adverse effect on the Company’s financial results. Additionally, changes in tax laws or new guidance issued by the U.S. Treasury Department, the IRS, and other standard-setting bodies could impact our future effective tax rate and may result in a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows.