Manitowoc Company (MTW) Risk Factors

We must comply with all applicable international trade, customs, export controls and economic sanctions laws and regulations of the United States and other countries. We are also subject to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other anti-bribery laws that generally bar bribes or gifts to foreign governments or officials. The presidential administration in the United States has taken, and make take additional, actions that may inhibit international trade by U.S.-based companies. Changes in trade sanctions laws may restrict our business practices, including cessation of business activities in sanctioned countries or with sanctioned parties, and may result in modifications to compliance programs. Violation of these laws or regulations could result in sanctions or fines and could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations, cash flows and reputation.

Many of our foreign competitors benefit from government policies that could give them a competitive advantage in the United States and Europe, including currency devaluation and erecting trade barriers that prevent American manufacturers from selling cranes in those markets. Low-cost competition from China and developing markets could also result in decreased demand for our products. If competition in our industry intensifies or if our current competitors lower their prices for competing products, we may lose sales or be required to lower the prices we charge for our products, which may undermine our ability to generate returns on our investments.

Historically, sales of products that we manufacture and sell have been subject to cyclical variations caused by changes in general economic conditions and other factors. In particular, demand for our products is cyclical and is impacted by the strength of the economy, generally, the availability of financing and other factors, including crude oil prices, that may have an effect on the level of construction activity on an international, national or regional basis, each of which have been and/or continue to be negatively impacted by global supply chain constraints, labor constraints, logistic constraints, cost pressures, inflation, high interest rates, recessionary concerns and geopolitical events. Additionally, the level of construction activity and customer demand has been and may continue to be impacted by pandemics or global health crises. During periods of expansion in construction activity, we generally have benefited from increased demand for our products. Conversely, during recessionary periods, we have been adversely affected by reduced demand for our products, and challenging conditions can continue well beyond the end of such periods. Furthermore, any economic recession may impact leveraged companies, such as Manitowoc, more than competing companies with less leverage and may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Demand for our products also depends in part on federal, state, local and foreign governmental spending and appropriations, including infrastructure, security and defense outlays. Reductions in governmental spending can reduce demand for our products, which in turn, can negatively affect our performance. Our sales depend, in part, upon our customers' replacement or repair cycles. Adverse economic conditions, including global supply chain constraints, labor constraints, logistic constraints, and cost pressures, pandemics or public health crises, inflation, high interest rates, recessionary concerns and geopolitical events, have caused and may continue to cause customers to forego or postpone new purchases in favor of repairing existing machinery. If we are unable to sufficiently adjust to market conditions, among other potential adverse effects on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, we could fail to deliver on planned results, incur high fixed costs and/or fail to benefit from higher than expected customer demand resulting in loss of market share.

As of December 31, 2023, our total consolidated debt was $372.1 million compared to $385.6 million as of December 31, 2022. On March 25, 2019, we and certain of our subsidiaries (the "Loan Parties") entered into a credit agreement (the "ABL Credit Agreement") with JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. as administrative and collateral agent, and certain financial institutions party thereto as lenders, providing for a senior secured asset-based revolving credit facility (the "ABL Revolving Credit Facility") of up to $275.0 million. The borrowing capacity under the ABL Revolving Credit Facility is based on the value of inventory, accounts receivable and certain fixed assets of the Loan Parties. The Loan Parties' obligations under the ABL Revolving Credit Facility are secured on a first-priority bases, subject to certain exceptions and permitted liens, by substantially all of the personal property and fee-owned real property of the Loan Parties. The liens securing the ABL Revolving Credit Facility are senior in priority to the second-priority liens securing the obligations under the 2026 Notes (as defined below) and the related guarantees. The ABL Revolving Credit Facility includes a $75.0 million letter of credit sub-facility, $10.0 million of which is available to our German subsidiary that is a borrower under the ABL Revolving Credit Facility. On June 17, 2021, the Company amended the ABL Credit Agreement to adjust certain negative covenants which reduced restrictions on the Company's ability to expand its rental business. On May 19, 2022, the Company further amended the ABL Credit Agreement to (i) extend the maturity date to May 19, 2027 (subject to a springing maturity date of December 30, 2025 if the 2026 Notes have not been repaid in full or refinanced prior to December 30, 2025), (ii) permit the inclusion, subject to certain limitations, of the crane rental assets of certain subsidiaries in the borrowing base used to calculate availability under the ABL Credit Agreement, (iii) permit separate financing of crane rental assets not included in the borrowing base and (iv) replace U.S. dollar London Inter-bank Offered Rate with interest rates based on the secured overnight financing rate plus a credit spread adjustment ("SOFR"). On March 25, 2019, we and certain of our subsidiaries also entered into an indenture with U.S. Bank National Association as trustee and notes collateral agent, pursuant to which we issued $300.0 million aggregate principal amount of senior secured second lien notes due on April 1, 2026 with an annual coupon rate of 9.000% (the "2026 Notes"). Interest on the 2026 Notes is payable in cash semi-annual in arrears on April 1 and October 1 of each year. The 2026 Notes are fully and unconditionally guaranteed on a senior secured second lien basis, jointly and severally, by each of our existing and future domestic subsidiaries that is either a guarantor or a borrower under the ABL Revolving Credit Facility or that guarantees certain other debt of us or a guarantor. The 2026 Notes and the related guarantees are secured on a second-priority basis, subject to certain exceptions and permitted liens, by pledges of capital stock and other equity interests and other security interests in substantially all of the personal property and fee-owned real property of us and of the guarantors that secure obligations under the ABL Revolving Credit Facility. The amount of debt we maintain could have consequences, including increasing our vulnerability to general adverse economic and industry conditions; requiring a substantial portion of our cash flows from operations be used for the payment of interest rather than to fund working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions and general corporate requirements, especially in a high interest environment; limiting our ability to obtain additional financing and/or to refinance our existing debt (and the potential for higher costs associated with any additional financing or the refinancing of our existing debt); and limiting our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and the end markets in which we operate. The agreements governing our debt include covenants that restrict, among other matters, our ability to assume or guarantee additional debt or issue certain preferred shares, pay dividends on or make other distributions in respect of our capital stock or make other restricted payments, make certain investments, sell or transfer certain assets, create liens on certain assets to secure debt, consolidate, merge, sell, or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of our assets, enter into certain transactions with affiliates and designate our subsidiaries as unrestricted. Certain of our debt facilities require or will require us to maintain specified financial ratios and satisfy certain financial condition tests. Our ability to comply with these covenants may be affected by events beyond our control, including prevailing economic, financial and industry conditions. Adhering to these covenants may also require that we take disadvantageous actions, including reducing spending on marketing, advertising and new product innovation, reducing future financing for working capital, capital expenditures and general corporate purposes, selling assets or dedicating an unsustainable level of cash flows from operations to the payment of principal and interest on our indebtedness. Our leverage could also put us at a disadvantage compared to any competitors that are less leveraged. We cannot be certain that we will meet any future financial tests or that the lenders would waive any such failure to meet those tests. Refer to Note 12, "Debt," to the Consolidated Financial Statements. If we default under our debt agreements, our lenders could elect, among other potential remedies, to declare all amounts outstanding under our debt agreements to be immediately due and payable and could proceed against any collateral securing the debt, which would adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows in future periods.

In the ordinary course of business, we collect and store sensitive data and information, including our proprietary and regulated business information and that of our customers, suppliers and business partners, as well as personally identifiable information about our employees. We depend on our information systems to successfully manage our business. We have taken steps to maintain adequate data security by implementing cyber security technologies, internal controls, and network and data center resiliency and recovery processes. However, an inability to successfully manage these systems, including matters related to system and data security, privacy, reliability, compliance, performance and access, as well as an inability of these systems to fulfill their intended purpose within our business, could have an adverse effect on our business. Despite our efforts, our information systems, like those of other companies, are susceptible to damage or interruption due to natural disasters, power loss, telecommunications failures, viruses, breaches of security, system upgrades or new system implementations. Furthermore, like the cybersecurity incident that occurred in 2021, our security measures may not detect or prevent all security threats, whether from intentional or inadvertent breaches by our employees or attacks designed to gain unauthorized access to our systems, networks and data, such as denial-of-service attacks, viruses, malicious software, break-ins, phishing attacks, social engineering, security breaches or other attacks and similar disruptions. Any operational failure or breach of security from increasingly sophisticated cyber threats could lead to the loss or disclosure of both our and our customers' financial, product and other confidential information, result in regulatory actions, legal proceedings and increased insurance costs, and have an adverse effect on our business and reputation.