allocations to other purchasers, interruptions in production by suppliers, new laws or regulations, changes in foreign currency exchange rates, and worldwide price levels. In addition, many of our raw materials and intermediate products are available in the quantities we require from a limited number of suppliers, which makes it more difficult to replace suppliers in the event of any supply disruption. Further, in some cases, we are limited in our ability to purchase certain raw materials from other suppliers by supply agreements that contain certain minimum purchase requirements. Additionally, we can provide no assurance that, as our supply contracts expire, we will be able to renew them or, if they are terminated, that we will be able to obtain replacement supply agreements on terms favorable to us. In particular, we rely on a local basis on single principal suppliers of palladium, with whom we have long-standing relationships. While we believe there are other suppliers of palladium in each of the regions in which we operate that may meet our needs, we may face difficulty or delays in finding a new supplier should that need arise. Our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be materially adversely affected if we are unable to obtain adequate supplies of raw materials in a timely manner or if the costs of raw materials increase significantly.
From time to time, suppliers may extend lead times, limit supplies, or increase prices due to capacity constraints, environmental limitations, or other factors. In addition, some of the raw materials that we use are derived from petrochemical based feedstocks, and there have been historical periods of rapid and significant upward and downward movements in the prices of these feedstocks. We may not always be able to pass on these price increases, and price increases by our other suppliers, to our customers due to competitive pricing pressure, and, even when we are able to do so, there may be a time delay between increased raw material prices and our ability to increase the prices of our products. Any limitation on, or delay in, our ability to pass on any price increases could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
In addition to specialty and commodity chemicals and precious metals, our manufacturing, testing, and operations processes, in particular the control software for our own equipment, require specialized software which is available only from a limited number of suppliers. Should the access to software and services from these suppliers be restricted or contracts be terminated, we can provide no assurance that we would be able to immediately replace these services, which could adversely affect our business and operations.
We depend upon our information technology systems, which are subject to interruption and failure.
Our business operations could be disrupted if our information technology systems fail to perform adequately. The efficient operation of our business depends on our information technology systems, some of which are managed by third-party service providers. We rely on our information technology systems to effectively manage our business data, communications, supply chain, order entry and fulfillment, and other business processes. The failure of our information technology systems to perform as we anticipate could disrupt our business and could result in transaction errors, processing inefficiencies, and the loss of sales and customers, causing our business and results of operations to suffer. In addition, our information technology systems may be vulnerable to damage or interruption from circumstances beyond our control, including fire, natural disasters, power outages, systems failures, security breaches, cyber-attacks, and viruses. Any such damage or interruption could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
Further, our information technology systems, including those managed by third-party service providers, may be subject to computer viruses, malicious software, attacks by hackers, and other forms of cyber intrusions or unauthorized access, any of which can create system disruptions, shutdowns, or unauthorized disclosure of sensitive data. In addition, a security breach that leads to disclosure of information protected by privacy laws could compel us to comply with breach notification requirements under state, national, and federal laws and regulations, potentially resulting in litigation or regulatory action, or otherwise subjecting us to liability under laws that protect personal data.
We attempt to mitigate the above risks by employing several measures, including monitoring and testing of our security controls, employee training, maintenance of protective systems and contingency plans, and contracting with
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