The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with the unaudited financial statements and the accompanying notes included in Part 1, Item 1 of this First Quarter 2022 Report and our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021.
Introduction
We are one of the leading providers of specialty contracting services operating mainly in the United States and Canada. We provide a wide range of specialty construction services, fabrication, maintenance, replacement, and engineering services to a diversified base of customers.
The current reportable segments include the Utilities segment, the Energy/Renewables segment and the Pipeline Services (“Pipeline”) segment. The Utilities segment operates throughout the United States and specializes in a range of services, including the installation and maintenance of new and existing natural gas and electric utility distribution and transmission systems, and communication systems.
The Energy/Renewables segment operates throughout the United States and in Canada and specializes in a range of services that include engineering, procurement, and construction, retrofits, highway and bridge construction, demolition, site work, soil stabilization, mass excavation, flood control, upgrades, repairs, outages, and maintenance services for entities in the renewable energy and energy storage, renewable fuels, and petroleum and petrochemical industries, as well as state departments of transportation.
The Pipeline segment operates throughout the United States and specializes in a range of services, including pipeline construction and maintenance, pipeline facility and integrity services, installation of compressor and pump stations, and metering facilities for entities in the petroleum and petrochemical industries, as well as gas, water, and sewer utilities.
We have longstanding customer relationships with major utility, refining, petrochemical, power, midstream, and engineering companies, and state departments of transportation. We have completed major underground and industrial projects for a number of large natural gas transmission and petrochemical companies in the United States, major electrical and gas projects for a number of large utility companies in the United States, as well as significant projects for our engineering customers. We enter into a large number of contracts each year, and the projects can vary in length from daily work orders to as long as 36 months, and occasionally longer, for completion on larger projects. Although we have not been dependent upon any one customer in any year, a small number of customers tend to constitute a substantial portion of our total revenue in any given year.
We generate revenue under a range of contracting types, including fixed-price, unit-price, time and material, and cost reimbursable plus fee contracts. A substantial portion of our revenue is derived from contracts where scope is adequately defined, and therefore we can reasonably estimate total contract value. For these contracts, revenue is recognized over time as work is completed because of the continuous transfer of control to the customer (typically using an input measure such as costs incurred to date relative to total estimated costs at completion to measure progress). For certain contracts, where scope is not adequately defined and we can’t reasonably estimate total contract value, revenue is recognized either on an input basis, based on contract costs incurred as defined within the respective contracts or an output basis based on units completed.
The classification of revenue and gross profit for segment reporting purposes can at times require judgment on the part of management. Our segments may perform services across industries or perform joint services for customers in multiple industries. To determine reportable segment gross profit, certain allocations, including allocations of shared and indirect costs, such as facility costs, equipment costs and indirect operating expenses were made.
Acquisition of Alberta Screw Piles, Ltd.
On March 1, 2022, we acquired ASP for a cash price of approximately $4.1 million. In addition, the sellers could receive a contingent earnout payment of up to $3.2 million based on achievement of certain operating targets over the one and two year periods ending March 1, 2023 and March 1, 2024, respectively. We incorporated the operations of ASP into our Energy/Renewables segment.