Owens Corning (OC) Risk Factors

We are highly dependent on the skills and experience of our senior management team and other skilled and experienced personnel. These individuals possess sales, marketing, manufacturing, logistical, financial, business strategy and administrative skills that are important to the operation of our business. We cannot assure that we will be able to retain all of our existing senior management personnel and skilled and experienced personnel. The loss of any of these individuals or an inability to attract additional qualified personnel could prevent us from implementing our business strategy and could adversely impact our business and our future financial condition or results of operations. The current and future labor markets may impact our ability to retain these individuals.

Many of our business activities globally involve substantial investments in manufacturing facilities and many products are produced at a limited number of locations. These facilities could be materially damaged by natural disasters such as floods, tornados, hurricanes, fires, earthquakes, pandemics or by theft or sabotage. We could incur uninsured losses and liabilities arising from such events, including damage to our reputation, and/or suffer material losses in operational capacity, which could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

In the ordinary course of business, we are subject to various legal and regulatory proceedings, which may include but are not limited to those involving antitrust, tax, trade, environmental, intellectual property, data privacy and other matters, including general commercial litigation. Any claims raised in legal and regulatory proceedings, whether with or without merit, could be time consuming and expensive to defend and could divert management's attention and resources. Additionally, the outcome of legal and regulatory proceedings may differ from our expectations because the outcomes of these proceedings are often difficult to predict reliably. Various factors and developments can lead to changes in our estimates of liabilities and related insurance receivables, where applicable, or may require us to make additional estimates, including new or modified estimates, that may be appropriate due to a judicial ruling or judgment, a settlement, regulatory developments or changes in applicable law. A future adverse ruling, settlement or unfavorable development could result in charges that could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations in any particular period. In accordance with customary practice, we maintain insurance against some, but not all, of these potential claims. In the future, we may not be able to maintain insurance at commercially acceptable premium levels. In addition, the levels of insurance we maintain may not be adequate to fully cover any and all losses or liabilities. If any significant judgment or claim is not fully insured or indemnified against, it could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our manufacturing facilities are subject to numerous foreign, federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to the presence of hazardous materials, pollution and the protection of the environment, including those governing emissions to air, discharges to water, use, storage and transport of hazardous materials, storage, treatment and disposal of waste, remediation of contaminated sites and protection of worker health and safety. We are also subject to laws, rules and regulations relating to certain raw materials used in our business or in our products. Liability under these laws involves inherent uncertainties. Environmental liability estimates may be affected by changing determinations of what constitutes an environmental exposure or an acceptable level of cleanup. For example, remediation activities generally involve a potential range of activities and costs related to soil and groundwater contamination. This can include pre-cleanup activities, such as fact finding and investigation, risk assessment, feasibility studies, remedial action design and implementation (where actions may range from monitoring to removal of contaminants, to installation of longer-term remediation systems). Please see "Item 1 - Business - Environmental Control" for information on costs and accruals related to environmental remediation. To the extent that the required remediation procedures or timing of those procedures change, additional contamination is identified, or the financial condition of other potentially responsible parties is adversely affected, the estimate of our environmental liabilities may change. Change in required remediation procedures or timing of those procedures at existing legacy sites, or discovery of contamination at additional sites, could result in increases to our environmental obligations. Violations of environmental, health and safety laws are subject to civil, and, in some cases, criminal sanctions. As a result of these uncertainties, we may incur unexpected interruptions to operations, fines, penalties or other reductions in income which could adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations. It is possible that new laws and regulations will specifically address climate change, toxic air emissions, ozone forming emissions and fine particulate matter. New environmental and chemical regulations could impact our ability to expand production or construct new facilities in every geographic region in which we operate. Continued and increased government and public emphasis on environmental issues is expected to result in increased future investments for environmental controls at ongoing operations, which will be charged against income from future operations. Present and future environmental laws and regulations applicable to our operations, and changes in their interpretation, may require substantial capital expenditures or may require or cause us to modify or curtail our operations, which may have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Although emerging in nature, an increasing number of laws and regulations focused on product and chemical hazards, including regulations concerning the impact of product manufacturing and use on climate change, and resulting preferential product selection could also impact our ability to manufacture and sell certain products or require significant research and development investment and capital expenditures to meet regulatory requirements.