Item 1. BUSINESS

The Company

TD Group, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, TransDigm Inc., is a leading global designer, producer and supplier of highly engineered aircraft components for use on nearly all commercial and military aircraft in service today. Our business is well diversified due to the broad range of products we offer to our customers. We estimate that approximately 90% of our net sales for fiscal year 2021 were generated by proprietary products. For fiscal year 2021, we estimate that we generated approximately 80% of our net sales from products in which we are the sole source provider.

Most of our products generate significant aftermarket revenue. Once our parts are designed into and sold on a new aircraft, we generate net sales from aftermarket consumption over the life of that aircraft, which is generally estimated to be approximately 25 to 30 years. A typical platform can be produced for 20 to 30 years, giving us an estimated product life cycle in excess of 50 years. We estimate that approximately 50% of our net sales in fiscal year 2021 were generated from aftermarket net sales, the vast majority of which come from the commercial and military aftermarkets. Historically, these aftermarket revenues have produced a higher gross profit and have been more stable than net sales to original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”).

Products

We primarily design, produce and supply highly engineered proprietary aerospace components with significant aftermarket content. We seek to develop highly customized products to solve specific needs for aircraft operators and manufacturers. We attempt to differentiate ourselves based on engineering, service and manufacturing capabilities. We typically choose not to compete for non-proprietary “build to print” business because it frequently offers lower margins than proprietary products. We believe that our products have strong brand names within the industry and that we have a reputation for high quality, reliability and strong customer support.

Our business is well diversified due to the broad range of products that we offer to our customers. Our major product offerings, substantially all of which are ultimately provided to end-users in the aerospace industry, include mechanical/electro-mechanical actuators and controls, ignition systems and engine technology, specialized pumps and valves, power conditioning devices, specialized AC/DC electric motors and generators, batteries and chargers, engineered latching and locking devices, engineered rods, engineered connectors and elastomer sealing solutions, databus and power controls, cockpit security components and systems, specialized and advanced cockpit displays, engineered audio, radio and antenna systems, specialized lavatory components, seat belts and safety restraints, engineered and customized interior surfaces and related components, advanced sensor products, switches and relay panels, thermal protection and insulation, lighting and control technology, parachutes, high performance hoists, winches and lifting devices, and cargo loading, handling and delivery systems. Each of these product offerings is composed of many individual products that are typically customized to meet the needs of a particular aircraft platform or customer.

COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has continued to cause a significant adverse impact on our net sales, net income and EBITDA As Defined when compared to pre-pandemic levels. COVID-19 was first reported in December 2019 and, since being declared as a pandemic by the World Health Organization in March 2020, has dramatically impacted the global health and economic environment, including millions of confirmed cases, business slowdowns or shutdowns, government challenges and market volatility. The commercial aerospace industry, in particular, has been significantly disrupted, both domestically and internationally, by the pandemic. The pandemic has resulted in governments around the world implementing stringent measures to help control the spread of the virus, including quarantines, “shelter in place” and “stay at home” orders, travel restrictions, business curtailments and other measures. As a result, demand for travel declined at a rapid pace beginning in the second half of fiscal 2020 and has remained depressed compared to pre-pandemic levels. However, commercial air travel has increasingly shown signs of recovery in recent months with increasing air traffic, primarily in certain domestic markets. The recovery in international commercial air travel has been slower with international travel only slightly recovered from COVID-19 pandemic lows. The exact pace and timing of the commercial air travel recovery remains uncertain and is expected to continue to be uneven depending on factors such as trends in the number of COVID-19 infections (e.g., impact of new variants of COVID-19 resurfacing), the continued efficacy of vaccines (particularly against any newly-emerging variants of COVID-19) and easing of quarantines and travel restrictions, among other factors. We currently expect COVID-19 to continue to cause an adverse impact on our net sales, net income and EBITDA as Defined compared to pre-pandemic levels into fiscal 2022.

Within the United States, our business has been designated as “essential,” which has allowed us to continue to serve our customers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic; nonetheless, the pandemic has disrupted our operations. Our ability to continue to manufacture products is highly dependent on our ability to maintain the safety and health of our factory employees. The ability of our employees to work has been, and may again, be significantly impacted by individuals contracting or being exposed to COVID-19. While we are following the requirements of governmental authorities and taking preventative and protective measures to prioritize the safety of our employees, these measures are not always successful, and we have been required at times to temporarily close facilities or take other partial shutdown measures. Furthermore, in light of enacted and any additional reductions in our workforce as a result of declines in our business caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we cannot assure that we will be able to rehire our workforce as our business continues to recover. Finally, though this appears to be lower risk at the present time, our acquisition strategy, which is a key element of our overall business strategy, may be impacted by our efforts to maintain the Company’s cash liquidity position in response to the COVID-19 pandemic depending on the duration of the pandemic and its impact on our cash flows.

Although we remain cautiously optimistic that the global vaccination efforts will continue to progress and positively influence the markets we serve, the magnitude of the impact of COVID-19 remains unpredictable and we continue to anticipate potential supply chain disruptions, employee absenteeism and short-term suspensions of manufacturing facilities, and additional health and safety costs related to the COVID-19 pandemic that could unfavorably impact our business. Longer-term, because of these factors, it is difficult to forecast a precise impact on the Company’s future results.

Segments

The Company’s businesses are organized and managed in three reporting segments: Power & Control, Airframe and Non-aviation.

The Power & Control segment includes operations that primarily develop, produce and market systems and components that predominately provide power to or control power of the aircraft utilizing electronic, fluid, power and mechanical motion control technologies. Major product offerings include mechanical/electro-mechanical actuators and controls, ignition systems and engine technology, specialized pumps and valves, power conditioning devices, specialized AC/DC electric motors and generators, batteries and chargers, databus and power controls, advanced sensor products, switches and relay panels, high performance hoists, winches and lifting devices, and cargo loading, handling and delivery systems. Primary customers of this segment are engine and power system and subsystem suppliers, airlines, third party maintenance suppliers, military buying agencies and repair depots. Products are sold in the original equipment and aftermarket market channels.

The Airframe segment includes operations that primarily develop, produce and market systems and components that are used in non-power airframe applications utilizing airframe and cabin structure technologies. Major product offerings include engineered latching and locking devices, engineered rods, engineered connectors and elastomer sealing solutions, cockpit security components and systems, specialized and advanced cockpit displays, engineered audio, radio and antenna systems, specialized lavatory components, seat belts and safety restraints, engineered and customized interior surfaces and related components, thermal protection and insulation, lighting and control technology and parachutes. Primary customers of this segment are airframe manufacturers and cabin system suppliers and subsystem suppliers, airlines, third party maintenance suppliers, military buying agencies and repair depots. Products are sold in the original equipment and aftermarket market channels.

The Non-aviation segment includes operations that primarily develop, produce and market products for non-aviation markets. Major product offerings include seat belts and safety restraints for ground transportation applications, mechanical/electro-mechanical actuators and controls for space applications, hydraulic/electromechanical actuators and fuel valves for land-based gas turbines, and refueling systems for heavy equipment used in mining, construction and other industries and turbine controls for the energy and oil and gas markets. Primary customers of this segment are off-road vehicle suppliers and subsystem suppliers, child restraint system suppliers, satellite and space system suppliers, manufacturers of heavy equipment used in mining, construction and other industries and turbine original equipment manufacturers, gas pipeline builders and electric utilities.

The primary measurement used by management to review and assess the operating performance of each segment is EBITDA As Defined. The Company defines EBITDA As Defined as earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization plus certain non-operating items recorded as corporate expenses including non-cash compensation charges incurred in connection with the Company’s stock incentive plans, restructuring costs related to the Company's cost reduction measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, foreign currency gains and losses, acquisition-integration costs, acquisition and divestiture transaction-related expenses, and refinancing costs. COVID-19 restructuring costs represent actions taken by the Company to reduce its workforce to align with customer demand, as well as incremental costs related to the pandemic that are not expected to recur once the pandemic has subsided and are clearly separable from normal operations (e.g., additional cleaning and disinfecting of facilities by contractors above and beyond normal requirements, personal protective equipment). Acquisition and divestiture-related costs represent accounting adjustments to inventory associated with acquisitions of businesses and product lines that were charged to cost of sales when the inventory was sold; costs incurred to integrate acquired businesses and product lines into the Company’s operations, facility relocation costs and other acquisition-related costs; transaction-related costs for both acquisitions and divestitures comprising deal fees; legal, financial and tax diligence expenses and valuation costs that are required to be expensed as incurred and other acquisition accounting adjustments.

For financial information about our segments, refer to Note 17, “Segments,” in the notes to the consolidated financial statements included herein.

Sales and Marketing

Consistent with our overall strategy, our sales and marketing organization is structured to continually develop technical solutions that meet customer needs. In particular, we attempt to focus on products and programs that will lead to high-margin, repeatable sales in the aftermarket.

We have structured our sales efforts along our major product offerings, assigning a business unit manager to certain products. Each business unit manager is expected to grow the sales and profitability of the products for which he or she is responsible and to achieve the targeted annual level of bookings, net sales, new business and profitability for such products. The business unit managers are assisted by account managers and sales engineers who are responsible for covering major OEM and aftermarket accounts. Account managers and sales engineers are expected to be familiar with the personnel, organization and needs of specific customers to achieve total bookings and new business goals for each account and, together with the business unit managers, to determine when additional resources are required at customer locations. Most of our sales personnel are evaluated, in part, on their bookings and their ability to identify and obtain new business opportunities.

Though typically performed by employees, the account manager function may be performed by independent representatives depending on the specific customer, product and geographic location. We also use a number of distributors to provide logistical support as well as serve as a primary customer contact with certain smaller accounts. Boeing Distribution Services, Inc., Satair A/S (a subsidiary of Airbus S.A.S.) and Seal Dynamics (a subsidiary of HEICO Corporation), among others, are our major distributors.

Manufacturing and Engineering

We maintain approximately 100 manufacturing facilities. Most of our manufacturing facilities are comprised of manufacturing, distribution and engineering functions, and most facilities have certain administrative functions, including management, sales and finance. We continually strive to improve productivity and reduce costs, including rationalization of operations, developing improved control systems that allow for accurate accounting and reporting, investing in equipment, tooling, information systems and implementing broad-based employee training programs. Management believes that our manufacturing systems and equipment contribute to our ability to compete by permitting us to meet the rigorous tolerances and cost sensitive price structure of aircraft component customers.

We attempt to differentiate ourselves from our competitors by producing uniquely engineered products with high quality and timely delivery. Our engineering costs are recorded in cost of sales and in selling and administrative expenses within our consolidated statements of income. Research and development costs are recorded in selling and administrative expenses within our consolidated statements of income. The aggregate of engineering expense and research and development expense represents approximately 11% of our operating units’ aggregate costs, or approximately 6% of our consolidated net sales for fiscal year 2021. Our proprietary products, and particularly our new product initiatives, are designed by our engineers and are intended to serve the needs of the aircraft component industry. These proprietary designs must withstand the extraordinary conditions and stresses that will be endured by products during use and meet the rigorous demands of our customers’ tolerance and quality requirements.

We use sophisticated equipment and procedures to comply with quality requirements, specifications and Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) and OEM requirements. We perform a variety of testing procedures as required by our customers, such as testing under different temperature, humidity and altitude levels, flammability testing, shock and vibration testing and X-ray fluorescent measurement. These procedures, together with other customer approved techniques for document, process and quality control, are used throughout our manufacturing facilities. Refer to Note 3, “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies,” in the notes to the consolidated financial statements included herein with respect to the total costs of research and development.

Customers

We predominantly serve customers in the commercial, regional, business jet and general aviation aftermarket, which accounted for approximately 23% of our net sales for fiscal year 2021; the commercial aerospace OEM market, comprising large commercial transport manufacturers and regional and business jet manufacturers, which accounted for approximately 20% of our net sales for fiscal year 2021; and the defense market, which accounted for approximately 50% of our net sales for fiscal year 2021. Non-aerospace net sales comprised approximately 7% of our net sales for fiscal year 2021.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and its adverse impact on air travel worldwide, the commercial aerospace industry has been significantly disrupted. The defense aerospace market has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic to a lesser extent than the commercial aerospace market due to certain supply chain disruptions as well as “stay at home” orders, quarantines, etc. impacting the government procurement workforce which has slowed production and/or orders. The significant adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the commercial aerospace market channels has led to the defense market comprising a greater percentage of our net sales in fiscal years 2021 and 2020 compared to pre-pandemic historical levels. In fiscal years 2015 through 2019, representing the five fiscal years prior to the pandemic, defense market net sales ranged from 29% to 37% of total net sales. As the commercial aerospace industry recovers from the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we would expect defense market net sales to account for a percentage of total net sales that is relatively in line with our historical levels prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Our customers include: (1) distributors of aerospace components; (2) worldwide commercial airlines, including national and regional airlines; (3) large commercial transport and regional and business aircraft OEMs; (4) various armed forces of the United States and friendly foreign governments; (5) defense OEMs; (6) system suppliers; and (7) various other industrial customers. Our top ten customers for fiscal year 2021 accounted for approximately 42% of our net sales. Products supplied to many of our customers are used on multiple platforms. None of our customers individually accounted for greater than 10% of our net sales for fiscal year 2021.

The markets in which we sell our products are, to varying degrees, cyclical and have experienced upswings and downturns. The demand for our commercial aftermarket parts and services depends on, among other things, the breadth of our installed OEM base, revenue passenger miles (“RPMs”), the size and age of the worldwide aircraft fleet, the percentage of the worldwide fleet that is in warranty, and airline profitability. The demand for defense products is specifically dependent on government budget trends, military campaigns and political pressures.

Competition

The niche markets within the aerospace industry that we serve are relatively fragmented and we face several competitors for many of the products and services we provide. Due to the global nature of the commercial aircraft industry, competition in these categories comes from both U.S. and foreign companies. Competitors in our product offerings range in size from divisions of large public corporations to small privately-held entities with only one or two components in their entire product portfolios.

We compete on the basis of engineering, manufacturing and marketing high quality products, which we believe meet or exceed the performance and maintenance requirements of our customers, consistent and timely delivery, and superior customer service and support. The industry’s stringent regulatory, certification and technical requirements and the investments necessary in the development and certification of products may create disincentives for potential new competitors for certain products. If customers receive products that meet or exceed expectations and performance standards, we believe that they will have a reduced incentive to certify another supplier because of the cost and time of the technical design and testing certification process. In addition, we believe that the availability, dependability and safety of our products are reasons for our customers to continue long-term supplier relationships.

Government Contracts

Companies engaged in supplying defense-related equipment and services to United States Government (“U.S. Government”) agencies are subject to business risks specific to the defense industry. These risks include the ability of the U.S. Government to unilaterally: (1) suspend us from receiving new contracts; (2) terminate existing contracts; (3) reduce the value of existing contracts; (4) audit our contract-related costs and fees, including allocated indirect costs; (5) control and potentially prohibit the export of our products; and (6) seek repayment of contract related payments under certain circumstances. Violations of government procurement laws could result in civil or criminal penalties.

Governmental Regulation

The commercial aircraft component industry is highly regulated by the FAA in the United States and by the Joint Aviation Authorities in Europe and other agencies throughout the world, while the military aircraft component industry is governed by military quality specifications. We, and the components we manufacture, are required to be certified by one or more of these entities or agencies, and, in many cases, by individual OEMs, in order to engineer and service parts and components used in specific aircraft models.

We must also satisfy the requirements of our customers, including OEMs and airlines that are subject to FAA regulations, and provide these customers with products and services that comply with the government regulations applicable to commercial flight operations. In addition, the FAA requires that various maintenance routines be performed on aircraft components. We believe that we currently satisfy or exceed these maintenance standards in our repair and overhaul services. We also maintain several FAA-approved repair stations.

In addition, our businesses are subject to many other laws and requirements typically applicable to manufacturers and exporters. Without limiting the foregoing, sales of many of our products that will be used on aircraft owned by foreign entities are subject to compliance with export control laws and the manufacture of our products and the operations of our businesses, including the disposal of hazardous wastes, are subject to compliance with applicable environmental laws.

Market Channels

The commercial aerospace industry, including the aftermarket and OEM markets, is impacted by the health of the global economy and geopolitical events around the world. The commercial aerospace industry, in particular, has been significantly disrupted, both domestically and internationally, by the pandemic. The commercial aerospace industry experienced a steep decline in RPMs beginning in the second half of our fiscal 2020 due to the pandemic’s impact on worldwide air travel demand and RPMs remained depressed in fiscal 2021 when compared to pre-pandemic levels. Also, as a result of the pandemic and decreased demand in commercial air travel, the commercial OEM sector has experienced reductions in commercial OEM production rates, including reductions at the two largest commercial OEMs, The Boeing Company (“Boeing”) and Airbus S.A.S. (“Airbus”). Although the commercial aerospace industry has shown signs of recovery in recent months, with increasing commercial air travel demand and both Boeing and Airbus disclosing potential OEM production rate increases for calendar 2022, the impact of COVID-19 continues to be fluid and the shape and speed of the recovery for the commercial aerospace industry remains uncertain.

The defense aerospace market is dependent on government budget constraints, the timing of orders, political pressures and the extent of global conflicts. It is not necessarily affected by general economic conditions that affect the commercial aerospace industry. The defense aerospace market has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic to a lesser extent than the commercial aerospace market due to certain supply chain disruptions as well as “stay at home” orders, quarantines, etc. impacting the government procurement workforce which has slowed production and/or orders. Also, government funding reprioritization such as shifting funds to efforts to combat the impact of the pandemic provides for uncertainty.

Historically, our presence in both the commercial aerospace and military sectors of the aerospace industry has served to mitigate the impact on our business of any specific industry risk. We service a diversified customer base in the commercial and military aerospace industry, and we provide components to a diverse installed base of aircraft, which mitigates our exposure to any individual airframe platform. At times, declines in net sales in one channel have been offset by increased net sales in another channel. However, due to differences between the profitability of our products sold to OEM and aftermarket customers, variation in product mix can cause variation in gross profit.

Outside of the significant market disruption caused by COVID-19, there are many short-term factors (including customer inventory level adjustments, unannounced changes in order patterns, strikes, facility shutdowns caused by fires, hurricanes, health crises or other incidents and mergers and acquisitions) that can cause short-term disruptions in our quarterly shipment patterns as compared to previous quarters and the same periods in prior years. As such, it can be difficult to determine longer-term trends in our business based on quarterly comparisons. To normalize for short-term fluctuations, we tend to look at our performance over several quarters or years of activity rather than discrete short-term periods. There are also fluctuations in OEM and aftermarket ordering and delivery requests from quarter-to-quarter, as well as variations in product mix from quarter-to-quarter, that may cause positive or negative variations in gross profit since commercial aftermarket net sales have historically produced a higher gross profit than net sales to commercial OEMs. Again, in many instances these are timing events between quarters and must be balanced with macro aerospace industry indicators.

Commercial Aftermarket

The key market factors in the commercial aftermarket include worldwide RPMs and the size and activity level of the worldwide fleet of aircraft and the percentage of the fleet that is in warranty. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the stringent measures implemented to help control the spread of the virus, demand for air travel declined at a rapid pace and has remained depressed compared to pre-pandemic levels. The reduced demand has led to a significant reduction in flights and an increase in parked aircraft. Certain airlines have also retired a portion of their fleets. Certain markets have reopened, some of which have experienced a resurgence of COVID-19 cases, while others, particularly international markets, remain closed or are enforcing extended quarantines. Although worldwide RPMs are still significantly lower than pre-pandemic levels, worldwide RPMs have been steadily recovering. Commercial air travel has increasingly shown signs of recovery in recent months with increasing air traffic, primarily in certain domestic markets, and parked aircraft returning to service. The pace of the international air travel traffic recovery has been slower and international RPMs have only slightly recovered from pandemic lows. There is potential for improved international recovery moving forward as vaccinations increase worldwide and government-imposed travel restrictions are eased. Current industry consensus indicates that worldwide RPMs will continue to recover in 2022. However, the impact of COVID-19 on the commercial aerospace market is fluid and continues to evolve. Overall, the timing and pace of the commercial aftermarket recovery remains uncertain and may not return to pre-pandemic levels until 2023 or beyond.

Commercial OEM Market

The commercial OEM market declined in fiscal 2021 primarily due to the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our commercial transport OEM shipments and revenues generally run ahead of Boeing and Airbus airframe delivery schedules. As a result, and consistent with prior years, our fiscal 2022 shipments will be a function of, among other things, the estimated 2022 and 2023 commercial airframe production rates. We have been experiencing decreased net sales across the commercial OEM sector driven primarily by the decrease in production rates by Boeing and Airbus related to reduced demand in the commercial air travel from the COVID-19 pandemic. We expect demand for our commercial OEM products to continue to be reduced in the short-term. However, the commercial OEM market is showing initial signs of recovery with airlines returning to the commercial OEMs to take planes or place orders, along with Boeing and Airbus disclosing potential OEM production rate increases for calendar 2022. Current industry consensus indicates production rates will continue to be lower than pre-pandemic historic levels but are expected to gradually increase over the next several years. However, the duration of the pandemic is unclear and the pace of the recovery of the commercial OEM market remains uncertain and continues to evolve.

Our businesses continually seek to provide solutions for our customers and others in the commercial aerospace industry. For example, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, many of our businesses have taken the opportunity to explore new business opportunities by working on developing highly engineered solutions for emerging needs arising from the pandemic and providing product offerings that could help the industry recover. Product solutions currently developed or being explored include anti-viral or antimicrobial technology, air purification, and touchless technologies, among others.

Defense

Our military business fluctuates from year-to-year, and is dependent, to a degree, on government budget constraints, the timing of orders, macro and micro dynamics with respect to the U.S. Department of Defense (“DOD”) procurement policy and the extent of global conflicts. Also, government funding reprioritization such as shifting funds to efforts to combat the impact of the pandemic provides for further unpredictability in the military spending outlook. The defense aerospace market has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic to a lesser extent than the commercial aerospace market. Any unfavorable impact on our defense aerospace business related to the COVID-19 pandemic was primarily during fiscal 2020 due to certain supply chain disruptions as well as “stay at home” orders, quarantines, etc. impacting the government procurement workforce which slowed production and/or orders. Uncertainty remains in the COVID-19 pandemic recovery, but we do not currently expect any significant unfavorable impact on our defense aerospace business related to the COVID-19 pandemic. For a variety of reasons, the military spending outlook is very uncertain. For planning purposes, we assume that military-related net sales of our types of products to be flatter in future years over the recent higher levels.

In fiscal years 2021 and 2020, the defense market channel comprises a greater percentage of net sales than historical comparisons due to the significant adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our commercial aftermarket channel and commercial OEM market channel. In fiscal years 2015 through 2019, representing the five fiscal years prior to the pandemic, defense market net sales ranged from 29% to 37% of total net sales. As the commercial aerospace industry recovers from the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we would expect defense market net sales to account for a percentage of total net sales that is relatively in line with our historical levels prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Raw Materials

We require the use of various raw materials in our manufacturing processes. We purchase a variety of manufactured component parts from various suppliers. We also purchase replacement parts, which are utilized in our various repair and overhaul operations. At times, we concentrate our orders among a few suppliers in order to strengthen our supplier relationships. Most of our raw materials and component parts are generally available from multiple suppliers at competitive prices.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the global supply chain to a certain extent and availability of raw materials, particularly electronic parts. Because we strive to limit the volume of raw materials and component parts on hand, our business could be adversely affected if we were unable to obtain these raw materials and components from our suppliers in the quantities we require or on favorable terms. Although we believe in most cases that we could identify alternative suppliers, or alternative raw materials or component parts, the lengthy and expensive FAA and OEM certification processes associated with aerospace products could prevent efficient replacement of a supplier, raw material or component part.

Intellectual Property

We have various trade secrets, proprietary information, trademarks, trade names, patents, copyrights and other intellectual property rights, which we believe, in the aggregate but not individually, are important to our business. The Company's products are manufactured, marketed and sold using a portfolio of patents, trademarks, licenses, and other forms of intellectual property, some of which expire in the future. The Company develops and acquires new intellectual property on an ongoing basis. Based on the broad scope of the Company’s product lines, management believes that the loss or expiration of any single intellectual property right would not have a material effect on our consolidated financial statements.

Environmental Matters

Our operations and facilities are subject to a number of federal, state, local and foreign environmental laws and regulations that govern, among other things, discharges of pollutants into the air and water, the generation, handling, storage and disposal of hazardous materials and wastes, the remediation of contamination and the health and safety of our employees. Environmental laws and regulations may require that the Company investigate and remediate the effects of the release or disposal of materials at sites associated with past and present operations. Certain facilities and third-party sites utilized by the Company have been identified as potentially responsible parties under the federal superfund laws and comparable state laws. The Company is currently involved in the investigation and remediation of a number of sites under applicable laws.

For information regarding environmental accruals, refer to Note 15, “Commitments and Contingencies,” in the notes to the consolidated financial statements included herein. Compliance with federal, state, local and foreign environmental laws during fiscal 2021 had no material impact on our capital expenditures or results of operations. Based upon consideration of currently available information, we believe liabilities for environmental matters will not have a material adverse impact on our consolidated financial statements, but we cannot assure that material environmental liabilities may not arise in the future. For further information on environmental-related risks, including climate change, refer to Item 1A. “Risk Factors.”

Employees

As of September 30, 2021, we had approximately 13,300 full-time, part-time and temporary employees. Approximately 16% of our full-time and part-time employees are represented by labor unions. Collective bargaining agreements between us and these labor unions expire at various dates ranging from December 2021 to December 2024.

Talent Development

We consider our employees to be our most valuable asset. The development, attraction and retention of employees is a critical success factor for TransDigm and its operating units for succession planning and sustaining our three core value drivers (obtaining profitable new business, continually improving our cost structure and providing highly engineered value-added products to customers). To support the advancement of our employees, we offer training and development programs encouraging advancement from within and continue to fill our team with strong and experienced management talent. We leverage both formal and informal programs to identify, foster, and retain top talent at both the corporate and operating unit level.

We have established TransDigm University, a formal mentoring and education program with a curated curriculum and established leadership serving as mentors. Participants in the program learn and develop more advanced skills leading to higher contribution and satisfaction within their roles, while mentors enhance their leadership capabilities by helping others progress. This program helps identify top performers, improving employee performance and retention, increasing our organizational learning and supporting the promotion of our current employees.

The Company’s Management Development Program (“MDP”) identifies new talent and prepares them for success within our organization. The Company actively recruits for MDP candidates at colleges and universities across the U.S. to ensure we are reaching a large and diverse pool of candidates. The program hires recent Master of Business Administration graduates who work for three eight-month stints at a selection of operating units. Program participants gain experience in developing, manufacturing, and selling aerospace components with the intent of becoming fully immersed in the operations of our business. Once the program is complete, MDP participants are better equipped with the knowledge and experience needed to excel as a manager at the Company. Our goal for successful MDP participants is to hire them on a full-time basis at an operating unit upon completion of the program.

TransDigm’s executive team also mentors rising talent on a more informal basis. This informal mentorship achieves a number of goals, including accelerating the development of top performers, increasing organizational learning, and improving employee performance and retention. The executive team also commits substantial time to evaluating the bench strength of our leadership and working with our leadership to improve their performance.

TransDigm University, MDP, various internship programs and informal mentoring demonstrates the Company’s ongoing commitment and initiatives towards accelerating the development of our future leaders.

Benefits

We are proud to offer attractive benefits packages that attract, retain, motivate and reward our talent, and we are committed to providing our employees and their families with programs that support their health and overall well-being. To assist employees with financial empowerment, we offer 401(k) programs and various legacy defined benefit pension plans. We also offer members the ability to save money on a tax-free basis through flexible spending accounts and health savings accounts. TransDigm offers competitive compensation programs to our employees that includes base pay, bonus programs and equity programs. TransDigm employees also receive paid time off and holidays.

We understand the value in furthering the knowledge and education of our current employee base. In addition to formal and informal employee development programs within TransDigm and our operating units, employees can expand their careers by accessing tuition reimbursement programs. Some operating units also partner with local colleges to provide training courses to TransDigm employees. Access to programs such as these enhance our employees’ value to the Company, our customers and our communities.

TransDigm’s equity compensation plans are designed to assist in attracting, retaining, motivating and rewarding key employees and directors, and promoting the creation of long-term value for our stockholders by closely aligning the interests of these individuals with those of our stockholders. TransDigm’s equity compensation plans provide for the granting of performance-based stock options. Equity compensation, and specifically stock options, is a significant component of TransDigm’s equity-based compensation strategy and value-based culture. Our approach to equity has a track record of success and we believe that the continued use of performance-based stock options will help retain the Company’s key employees and recruit the talented minds of the future.

Diversity

At TransDigm, we value new ideas, different experiences and fresh perspectives, and we firmly believe this is enhanced by a more diverse workforce throughout all levels of our organization. Diversity and inclusion make us stronger as a company – it is critical to innovation, provides a competitive advantage, yields better outcomes, and in turn, enables us to better deliver for all of our stakeholders.

We are committed to diversity at all levels of management and leadership, and our leadership team and Board of Directors are committed to improving diversity throughout the Company and fostering a more inclusive and open environment. We recognize that a company’s commitment to diversity and inclusion must come from the top, and we are focused on continuing to improve diversity within our leadership team, and at the Board of Directors level. Diversity and inclusion make us stronger as a business so we can effectively serve all our stakeholders. Our workforce includes talented people from many backgrounds.

Discrimination is not tolerated at TransDigm. We are committed to high ethical standards and equal employment opportunities in all personnel actions without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, citizenship status, age, marital status, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, or veteran status.

Health and Safety

Our commitment to manufacturing the safest, highest quality products is matched by our commitment to keeping our employees healthy and safe as they work to produce these products. We are dedicated to building, designing, maintaining, and operating our facilities to effectively manage process safety and other hazards, and to minimize risks. We also seek to empower and support our employees to prevent accidents and promote a safe environment. We expect personnel to report and communicate risks, potential hazards, incidents and near hits so that they can be investigated, and appropriate action can be taken to prevent future issues. To elevate the importance of this, we began to require our operating units to individually report on Environmental Health and Safety matters monthly to the executive team.

Since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been following guidance from the World Health Organization and the U.S. Center for Disease Control to protect employees and prevent the spread of the virus within all of our facilities globally. The Company has taken various steps to facilitate access to vaccines for our employees in accordance with federal guidelines and state and local vaccination plans.

Seasonality

We do not believe our net sales are subject to significant seasonal variation; however, our net sales have generally been lower in the first quarter of our fiscal year compared to the subsequent quarters due to fewer working days resulting from the observance of various holidays.

Available Information

TD Group’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K, including any amendments, will be made available free of charge on the Company’s website, www.transdigm.com, as soon as reasonably practicable, following the filing of the reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). In addition, the Company’s website allows investors and other interested persons to sign up to automatically receive e-mail alerts when news releases and financial information is posted on the website. The SEC also maintains a website, www.sec.gov, that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC. The information on or obtainable through our website is not incorporated into this Annual Report on Form 10-K.