---

---

ITEM 1.	BUSINESS

---

---

•

Components. Components include technology elements typically performing a single, discrete technological function, which when physically combined with other components may be used to create a module or sub-assembly. Examples include but are not limited to power amplifiers and limiters, switches, oscillators, filters, equalizers, digital and analog converters, chips, MMICs (monolithic microwave integrated circuits), and memory and storage devices.

•

Modules and Sub-assemblies. Modules and sub-assemblies include combinations of multiple functional technology elements and/or components that work together to perform multiple functions but are typically resident on or within a single board or housing. Modules and sub-assemblies may in turn be combined to form an integrated subsystem. Examples of modules and sub-assemblies include but are not limited to embedded processing modules, embedded processing boards, switch fabric boards, high speed input/output boards, digital receiver boards, graphics and video processing and Ethernet and IO (input-output) boards, multi-chip modules, integrated radio frequency and microwave multi-function assemblies, tuners, and transceivers.

•

Integrated Subsystems. Integrated subsystems include multiple modules and/or sub-assemblies combined with a backplane or similar functional element and software to enable a solution. These are typically but not always integrated within a chassis and with cooling, power and other elements to address various requirements and are also often combined with additional technologies for interaction with other parts of a complete system or platform. Integrated subsystems also include spare and replacement modules and sub-assemblies sold as part of the same program for use in or with integrated subsystems sold by us.

---

---

•

The aerospace and defense electronics market is expected to grow in 2018 and beyond. According to Renaissance Strategic Advisors (“RSA”), the global aerospace and defense electronics market is estimated to be $103 billion in 2018, growing to $117 billion by 2022. Within this global market, RSA estimates that the U.S. defense electronics market will be approximately $51 billion in 2018, growing to $57 billion in 2022. Within the context of the overall U.S. defense budget and spending for defense electronics specifically, we believe the ISR, EW, guided missiles and precision munitions, and ballistic missile defense market segments have a high priority for future DoD spending. We continue to build on our strengths in the design and development of performance optimized electronic subsystems for these markets, and often

---

•

The rapidly expanding demand for tactical ISR is leading to significant growth in sensor data being generated, leading to even greater demand for the capability of our products to securely store and process data onboard platforms. An increase in the prevalence and resolution of ISR sensors is generating significant growth in the associated data that needs to be stored and turned into information for the warfighter in a timely manner. In addition, several factors are driving the defense and intelligence industries to demand greater capability to collect, store, and process data onboard the aircraft, UAVs, ships and other vehicles, which we refer to collectively as platforms. These factors include the limited communications bandwidth of existing platforms, the need for platforms that can operate more autonomously and possibly in denied communications environments, the need for platforms with increased persistence to enable them to remain in or fly above the battlefield for extended periods, and the need for greater onboard processing capabilities.

•

Rogue nations’ missile programs and threats from peer nations are causing greater investment in advanced new radar, EW and ballistic missile defense capabilities. There are a number of new and emerging threats, such as peer nations developing stealth technologies, including stealth aircraft, new anti-ship ballistic missiles that potentially threaten the U.S. naval fleet, and a variety of other advanced missile capabilities. Additionally, U.S. armed forces require enhanced signals intelligence and jamming capabilities. In response to these emerging threats, we have participated in key DoD programs, including Aegis, Patriot, SEWIP, a large ground-based radar, F-22 Raptor, F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and upgrade programs for the F-15 and F-16.

•

The long-term DoD budget pressure is pushing more dollars toward upgrades of the electronic subsystems on existing platforms, which may increase demand for our products. The DoD is moving from major new weapons systems developments to upgrades of the electronic subsystems on existing platforms. These upgrades are expected to include more sensors, signal processing, ISR algorithms, multi-intelligence fusion and exploitation, computing and communications. We believe that upgrades to provide new urgent war fighting capability, driven by combatant commanders, are occurring more rapidly than traditional defense prime contractors can easily react to. We believe these trends will cause defense prime contractors to increasingly seek out our high-performance, cost-effective open architecture products.

•

Defense procurement reform is causing the defense prime contractors to outsource more work to commercial companies. RSA estimates that in 2018 the U.S. defense tier 2 embedded computing and RF market addressable by suppliers such as Mercury is approximately $16 billion. RSA estimates that the U.S. defense prime contractors currently outsource only a small percentage of their work. On a global basis the tier 2 embedded computing and RF market in 2018 is estimated by RSA to be $32 billion. The U.S. government is intensely focused on making systems more affordable and shortening their development time. As a company that provides commercial items to the defense industry, we believe our products and subsystem solutions are often more affordable than solutions with the same functionality developed by a defense prime contractor. Several factors are providing incentives for defense prime contractors to outsource more work to subcontractors with significant expertise and cost-effective technology capabilities and solutions, and we have transformed our business model over the last several years to address these long-term outsourcing trends and other needs.

•

DoD security and program protection requirements are creating new opportunities for our advanced secure processing capabilities. The government is focused on ensuring that the U.S. military protects its defense electronic systems and the information held within them from nefarious activities such as tampering, reverse engineering, and other forms of advanced attacks, including cyber. The requirement to add security comes at a time when the commercial technology world continues to offshore more of the design, development, manufacturing, and support of such capabilities, making it more difficult to protect against embedded vulnerabilities, tampering, reverse engineering and other undesired activities. The DoD has a mandate to ensure both the provenance and integrity of the technology and its associated supply chain. These factors have created a unique opportunity for us to expand beyond sensor processing into the provision of advanced secure processing subsystems and capabilities for other on-board critical computing applications designed, developed, manufactured, and supported in the U.S.A. In addition, advanced systems sold to foreign military buyers also require protection so that the technologies, techniques and data associated with them do not become more widely available, which further enhances our market opportunity.

•

Subsystem Solutions Provider for the C4ISR and EW Markets. Through our commercially developed, specialized processing subsystem solutions, we address the challenges associated with the collection and processing of massive, continuous streams of data and dramatically shorten the time that it takes to give information to U.S. armed forces at the tactical edge. Our solutions are specifically designed for flexibility and interoperability, allowing our products to be easily

---

•

Diverse Mix of Stable, Growth Programs Aligned with DoD Funding Priorities. Our products and solutions have been deployed on more than 300 different programs and over 25 different defense prime contractors. We serve high priority markets for the DoD and foreign militaries, such as UAVs, ballistic missile defense, guided missiles and precision munitions, airborne reconnaissance, EW, and have secured positions on mission-critical programs including Aegis, Predator and Reaper UAVs, F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, Patriot missile, SEWIP, and Paveway. In addition, we consistently leverage our technology and capabilities across multiple programs, providing significant operating leverage and cost savings. Our recent acquisitions allow us to participate in a broader array of programs, many with customers that are already key strategic customers of ours.

•

We are a leading commercial provider of secure processing subsystems designed and made in the U.S.A. We have a portfolio of open standards architecture (“OSA”) technology building blocks across the entire sensor processing chain. We offer embedded secure processing capabilities with advanced packaging and cooling technologies that ruggedize commercial technologies while allowing them to stay cool for reliable operation. These capabilities allow us to help our customers meet the demanding SWaP requirements of today’s defense platforms. Our pre-integrated subsystems improve affordability by substantially reducing customer system integration costs and time-to-market for our solutions. System integration costs are one of the more substantial costs our customers bear in developing and deploying technologies in defense programs and platforms. Our pre-integrated solutions approach allows for more rapid and affordable modernization of existing platforms and faster deployment of new platforms.

•

We provide advanced, integrated security features for our products and subsystems, addressing an increasingly prevalent requirement for DoD program security. We offer secure processing expertise that is built-in to our pre-integrated subsystems, not bolted on. By doing this we are able to provide secure building blocks that allow our customers to also incorporate their own security capabilities. This assists our customers in ensuring program protection as they deploy critical platforms and programs, all in support of DoD missions. The Carve-Out Acquisition brought us new security technologies and also allowed us to provide enhanced security capabilities in areas such as memory and storage devices. The Carve-Out Acquisition also provided us with a DMEA (“Defense Micro-Electronics Association”) certified trusted manufacturing facility for microelectronics in our Phoenix, Arizona facility.

•

We are pioneering a next generation business model. The DoD and the defense industrial base is currently undergoing a major transformation. Domestic political and budget uncertainty, geopolitical instability and evolving global threats have become constants. The defense budget, while stabilized in the short term, remains under pressure and R&D and technology spending are often in budgetary competition with the increasing costs of military personnel requirements, health care costs, and other important elements within the DoD and the federal budget generally. Finally, defense acquisition reform calls for the continued drive for innovation and competition within the defense industrial base, while also driving down acquisition costs. Our approach is built around a few key pillars:

•	We continue to leverage our expertise in building pre-integrated subsystems in support of critical defense programs, driving out procurement costs by lowering integration expenses of our customers.

•	We have been a pioneer in driving OSA for both embedded computing and RF.

•	The DoD has asked defense industry participants to invest their own resources into R&D. This approach is a pillar of our business model.

---

•	Security and program protection are now critical considerations for both program modernizations as well as for new program deployment. We are now in our third generation of building secure embedded processing solutions.

•

Value-Added Subsystem Solution Provider for Defense Prime Contractors. Because of the DoD’s continuing shift toward a firm fixed price contract procurement model, an increasingly uncertain budgetary and procurement environment, and increased budget pressures from both the U.S. and allied governments, defense prime contractors are accelerating their move toward outsourcing opportunities to help mitigate the increased program and financial risk. Our differentiated secure sensor and safety-critical processing solutions offer meaningful capabilities upgrades for our customers and enable the rapid, cost-effective deployment of systems to the end customer. We believe our open architecture subsystems offer differentiated sensor processing and data analytics capabilities that cannot be easily replicated. Our solutions minimize program risk, maximize application portability, and accelerate customers’ time to market, all within a fixed-pricing contracting environment.

•

Delivery of Platform-Ready Solutions for Classified Programs. We believe our integration work through our Cypress, California facility provides us with critical insights as we implement and incorporate key classified government intellectual property, including critical intelligence and signal processing algorithms, into advanced systems. This integration work provides us the opportunity to combine directly and integrate our technology building blocks along with our intellectual property into our existing embedded processing products and solutions, enabling us to deliver more affordable, platform-ready integrated ISR subsystems that leverage our OSA and address key government technology and procurement concerns. Our operations in this environment also help us identify emerging needs and opportunities to influence our future product development, so that critical future needs can be met in a timely manner with commercially-developed products and solutions.

•

Advanced Microelectronics Centers. Our Advanced Microelectronics Centers (“AMCs”) in Hudson, New Hampshire and West Caldwell, New Jersey, design, build and test RF components and subsystems in support of a variety of key customer programs. With our fiscal 2014 move into our new AMC in Hudson, New Hampshire, including the installation of integrated business systems into both our AMCs, we have a platform for scalable, continued growth in our RF product lines. Our scalable microelectronics manufacturing operations at our AMCs enable rapid, cost-effective deployment of RF solutions to our customers. The acquisitions of the Carve-Out Business and Delta have provided us with west coast RF manufacturing locations providing similar advanced capabilities and better proximity to certain key customer locations.

•

United States Manufacturing Operations. Our United States Manufacturing Operations (“USMO”) in Phoenix, Arizona is built around scalable, repeatable, secure, affordable, and predictable manufacturing. The facility is a DMEA certified secure trusted site, certified to AS9100 quality standards and it utilizes Lean Six Sigma methodologies throughout manufacturing. The USMO is designed for efficient manufacture, enabling our customers to access the best proven technology and high performing, secure processing solutions. This allows for the most repeatable product performance, while optimizing affordability and production responsiveness.

•

Long-Standing Industry Relationships. We have established long-standing relationships with defense prime contractors, the U.S. government and other key organizations in the defense industry over our 30 years in the defense electronics industry. Our customers include Airbus, BAE Systems, Boeing, Harris, L3 Technologies, Leonardo, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon. Over this period, we have become recognized for our ability to develop new technologies and meet stringent program requirements. We believe we are well-positioned to maintain these high-level customer engagements and enhance them through the additional relationships that our recently acquired businesses have with many of the same customers.

•

Proven Management Team. Over the past several years, our senior management team has refocused the Company on its economic core, developed a long-term compelling strategy for the defense markets and restored profitability to the business. Our senior management team has a history of identifying and evaluating successful business acquisition opportunities, performing in-depth due diligence, negotiating with owners and management, structuring, financing, and closing transactions and then integrating the acquired business resulting in the creation of synergies and enhanced overall returns. Having completed these critical steps to rebuild the Company and with a senior management team with significant experience in growing, scaling and acquiring businesses, we believe that we have demonstrated our operational capabilities and we are well-positioned to continue growing and scaling our business.

---

---

---

•	reduced and delayed demand for our products;

•	increased risk of order cancellations or delays;

•	downward pressure on the prices of our products;

---

•	greater difficulty in collecting accounts receivable; and

•	risks to our liquidity, including the possibility that we might not have access to our cash and short-term investments or to our line of credit when needed.

•	Changes in government administration and national and international priorities, including developments in the geo-political environment, could have a significant impact on national or international defense spending priorities and the efficient handling of routine contractual matters. These changes could have a negative impact on our business in the future.

•

Our contracts with the U.S. and foreign governments and their defense prime contractors and subcontractors are subject to termination either upon default by us or at the convenience of the government or contractor if, among other reasons, the program itself has been terminated. Termination for convenience provisions generally entitle us to recover costs incurred, settlement expenses and profit on work completed prior to termination, but there can be no assurance in this regard.

•

Because we contract to supply goods and services to the U.S. and foreign governments and their prime and subcontractors, we compete for contracts in a competitive bidding process. We may compete directly with other suppliers or align with a prime or subcontractor competing for a contract.  We may not be awarded the contract if the pricing or product offering is not competitive, either at our level or the prime or subcontractor level.  In addition, in the event we are awarded a contract, we are subject to protests by disappointed bidders of contract awards that can result in the reopening of the bidding process and changes in governmental policies or regulations and other political factors. In addition, we may be subject to multiple rebid requirements over the life of a defense program in order to continue to participate on such program, which can result in the loss of the program or significantly reduce our revenue or margin from the program. The government’s requirements for more frequent technology refreshes on defense programs may lead to increased costs and lower long term revenues.

•	Consolidation among defense industry contractors has resulted in a few large contractors with increased bargaining power relative to us. The increased bargaining power of these contractors may adversely affect our ability to compete for contracts and, as a result, may adversely affect our business or results of operations in the future.

•

Our customers include U.S. government contractors who must comply with and are affected by laws and regulations relating to the formation, administration, and performance of U.S. government contracts. In addition, when we contract with the U.S. government, we must comply with these laws and regulations, including the organizational conflict-of-interest regulations. A violation of these laws and regulations could result in the imposition of fines and penalties to us or our customers or the termination of our or their contracts with the U.S. government. As a result, there could be a delay in our receipt of orders from our customers, a termination of such orders, or a termination of contracts between us and the U.S. government.

•

We sell many products to U.S. and international defense contractors and also directly to the U.S. government as a commercial supplier such that cost data is not supplied. To the extent that there are interpretations or changes in the Federal Acquisition Regulations ("FAR") regarding the qualifications necessary to be a commercial item supplier, there could be a material adverse effect on our business and operating results. For example, there have been legislative proposals to narrow the definition of a “commercial item” (as defined in the FAR) that could limit our ability to contract as a commercial item supplier. In addition, growth in our defense sales relative to our commercial sales could adversely impact our status as a commercial supplier, which could adversely affect our business and operating results. Changes in our mix of business, in federal regulations, or in the interpretation of federal regulations, may subject us to audit by the Defense Contract Audit Agency ("DCAA") for certain of our products or services. Operating under a cost-accounting business

---

•

During fiscal 2018, we ceased to qualify as a “small business” for government contracts purposes under the definition of that term in an applicable NAICS code because we had more than 1,250 employees. Loss of our small business status could negatively impact us since our customers purchases from us would not qualify as purchases from a small business, customers may flow down additional FAR clauses in their contracts with us that are less favorable than our existing contract terms and conditions, and that we may need to implement a sub-contracting plan with other companies that qualify as a small business.

•

We are subject to the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulations Supplement, referred to as DFARS, in connection with our defense work for the U.S. government and defense prime contractors. Amendments to the DFARS, such as the amendment to the DFARS specialty metals clause requiring that the specialty metals in specified items be smelted or produced in the U.S. or other qualifying countries, may increase our costs for certain materials or result in supply-chain difficulties or production delays due to the limited availability of compliant materials. Compliance with the conflict minerals regulations enacted pursuant to the Dodd Frank legislation may pose similar risks and increase our costs. The new DFARS cyber-security requirements may increase our costs or delay the award of contracts if we are unable to certify that we satisfy such cyber-security requirements.

•	The U.S. government or a defense prime contractor customer could require us to relinquish data rights to a product in connection with performing work on a defense contract, which could lead to a loss of valuable technology and intellectual property in order to participate in a government program.

•	The U.S. government or a defense prime contractor customer could require us to enter into a firm fixed price or cost-plus contract that could negate our cost efficiency initiatives.

•

We are subject to various U.S. federal export-control statutes and regulations which affect our business with, among others, international defense customers. In certain cases the export of our products and technical data to foreign persons, and the provision of technical services to foreign persons related to such products and technical data, may require licenses from the U.S. Department of Commerce or the U.S. Department of State. The time required to obtain these licenses, and the restrictions that may be contained in these licenses, may put us at a competitive disadvantage with respect to competing with international suppliers who are not subject to U.S. federal export control statutes and regulations. In addition, violations of these statutes and regulations can result in civil and, under certain circumstances, criminal liability as well as administrative penalties which could have a material adverse effect on our business and operating results.

•

We anticipate that sales to our U.S. prime defense contractor customers as part of foreign military sales (“FMS”) programs will be an increasing part of our business going forward. These FMS sales combine several different types of risks and uncertainties highlighted above, including risks related to government contracts, risks related to defense contracts, timing and budgeting of foreign governments, and approval from the U.S. and foreign governments related to the programs, all of which may be impacted by macroeconomic and geopolitical factors outside of our control. For example, the decline in oil prices may negatively impact foreign defense budgets.

•

Certain of our employees with appropriate security clearances may require access to classified information in connection with the performance of a U.S. government contract. We must comply with security requirements pursuant to the National Industrial Security Program Operating Manual, or NISPOM, and other U.S. government security protocols when accessing sensitive information. Failure to comply with the NISPOM or other security requirements may subject us to civil or criminal penalties, loss of access to sensitive information, loss of a U.S. government contract, or potentially debarment as a government contractor.

•

We may need to invest additional capital to build out higher level security infrastructure at certain of our facilities to capture new design wins on defense programs with higher level security requirements. Failure to invest in such infrastructure may limit our ability to obtain new design wins on defense programs. In addition, we may need to invest in additional secure laboratory space to efficiently integrate subsystem level solutions and maintain quality assurance on current and future programs.

---

---

•	our ability to create demand for products in new markets;

•	our ability to respond to changes in our customers’ businesses by updating existing products and introducing, in a timely fashion, new products which meet the needs of our customers;

•	our ability to increase our market visibility and penetration with the prime defense contractors;

•	our ability to develop a reputation as a best-of-breed technology provider;

•	the quality of our new products;

•	our ability to respond rapidly to technological change;

---

•	our ability to increase our in-house manufacturing capacity and utilization; and

•	our ability to successfully integrate any acquisitions that we make and achieve revenue and cost synergies and economies of scale.

•	problems and increased costs in connection with the integration of the personnel, operations, technologies, or products of the acquired businesses;

•	layering of integration activity due to multiple overlapping acquisitions;

•	unanticipated costs;

•	failure to achieve anticipated increases in revenues and profitability;

•	diversion of management’s attention from our core business;

•	adverse effects on business relationships with suppliers and customers and those of the acquired company;

•	acquired assets becoming impaired as a result of technical advancements or worse-than-expected performance by the acquired company;

•	failure to rationalize manufacturing capacity, locations, and operating models to achieve anticipated economies of scale, or disruptions to manufacturing and product design operations during the combination of facilities;

•	failure to rationalize business and information systems and to expand the IT infrastructure and security protocols throughout the enterprise;

•	volatility associated with accounting for earn-outs in a given transaction;

•	entering markets in which we have no, or limited, prior experience;

•	potential loss of key employees; and

•	adversely affect our internal control over financial reporting before the acquiree's complete integration into our control environment.

•	issue stock that would dilute our existing shareholders’ ownership percentages;

•	incur debt and assume liabilities;

•	obtain financing on unfavorable terms, or not be able to obtain financing on any terms at all;

•	incur amortization expenses related to acquired intangible assets or incur large and immediate write-offs;

•	incur large expenditures related to office closures of the acquired companies, including costs relating to the termination of employees and facility and leasehold improvement charges resulting from our having to vacate the acquired companies’ premises; and

•	reduce the cash that would otherwise be available to fund operations or for other purposes.

---

•	failure to implement our business plan for the combined business;

•	unanticipated issues in integrating manufacturing, logistics, business systems, information and communications systems, and other infrastructure items;

•	unanticipated changes in applicable laws and regulations;

•	failure to retain key employees;

•	failure to retain key customers;

•	failure to rationalize our supply chain;

•	operating risks inherent in Themis and Germane and our business;

•	the impact of any assumed legal proceedings;

•	the impact on our internal controls and compliance with the regulatory requirements under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002; and

•	unanticipated issues, expenses, charges and liabilities related to the acquisitions of Themis and Germane.

•	making it more difficult for us to satisfy our obligations under our debt instruments, including, without limitation, the Revolver; and if we fail to comply with these requirements, an event of default could result;

•	limiting our ability to obtain additional financing to fund future working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions or other general corporate requirements;

---

•	requiring a substantial portion of our cash flows to be dedicated to debt service payments instead of other purposes, thereby reducing the amount of cash flows available for working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions and other general corporate purposes;

•	increasing our vulnerability to general adverse economic and industry conditions;

•	exposing us to the risk of increased interest rates as certain of our borrowings have variable interest rates, which could increase the cost of servicing our financial instruments and could materially reduce our profitability and cash flows;

•	limiting our flexibility in planning for and reacting to changes in the industry in which we compete;

•	placing us at a disadvantage compared to other, less leveraged competitors; and

•	increasing our cost of borrowing.

---

•	changes in applicable laws and regulatory requirements;

•	export and import restrictions;

•	export controls relating to technology;

•	tariffs and other trade barriers;

•	less favorable intellectual property laws;

•	difficulties in staffing and managing foreign operations;

•	longer payment cycles;

•	problems in collecting accounts receivable;

•	adverse economic conditions in foreign markets;

•	political instability;

•	fluctuations in currency exchange rates;

---

•	expatriation controls; and

•	potential adverse tax consequences.

---

---

•	delays in completion of internal product development projects;

•	delays in shipping hardware and software;

•	delays in acceptance testing by customers;

•	a change in the mix of products sold to our served markets;

•	changes in customer order patterns;

•	production delays due to quality problems with outsourced components;

•	inability to scale quick reaction capability products due to low product volume;

•	shortages and costs of components;

•	delays due to the implementation of new tariffs or other trade barriers;

•	the timing of product line transitions;

•	declines in quarterly revenues from previous generations of products following announcement of replacement products containing more advanced technology;

•	inability to realize the expected benefits from acquisitions and restructurings, or delays in realizing such benefits;

•	potential asset impairment, including goodwill and intangibles, or restructuring charges; and

•	changes in estimates of completion on fixed price service engagements.

---

---

---

---

•	investors’ perception of, and demand for, securities of defense technology companies;

•	conditions of the United States and other capital markets in which we may seek to raise funds;

•	our future results of operations, financial condition and cash flows; and

•	prevailing interest rates.

•	further develop or enhance our customer base;

•	acquire necessary technologies, products or businesses;

•	expand operations in the United States and elsewhere;

•	hire, train and retain employees;

•	market our software solutions, services and products; or

•	respond to competitive pressures or unanticipated capital requirements.

ITEM 1B.	UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

---

ITEM 2.	PROPERTIES

ITEM 3.	LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

ITEM 4.	MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

ITEM 4.1.	EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE REGISTRANT

---

---

ITEM 5.	MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

---

ITEM 6.	SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

(1)

In our periodic communications, we discuss a key measure that is not calculated according to U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), adjusted EBITDA. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as income from continuing operations before interest income and expense, income taxes, depreciation, amortization of intangible assets, restructuring and other charges, impairment of long-lived assets, acquisition and financing costs, fair value adjustments from purchase accounting, litigation and settlement income and expense, and stock-based and other non-cash compensation expense. We use adjusted EBITDA as an important indicator of the operating performance of our business. We use adjusted EBITDA in internal forecasts and models when establishing internal operating budgets, supplementing the financial results and forecasts reported to our board of directors, determining components of bonus and equity compensation for executive officers based on operating performance and evaluating short-term and long-term operating trends in our operations. We believe the adjusted EBITDA financial measure assists in providing a more complete understanding of our underlying operational measures to manage our business, to evaluate our performance compared to prior periods and the marketplace, and to establish operational goals. We believe that these non-GAAP financial adjustments are useful to investors because they allow investors to evaluate the effectiveness of the methodology and information used by management in our financial and operational decision-making.

ITEM 7.	MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

•	the acquisition of other companies or businesses;

•	the repayment and refinancing of debt;

•	capital expenditures;

•	working capital; and

•	other purposes as described in the prospectus supplement.

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

•	estimated step-ups for the fixed assets and inventory;

•	estimated fair values of intangible assets; and

•	estimated income tax assets and liabilities assumed from the acquiree.

---

---

ITEM 7A.	QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

---

---

---

ITEM 8.	FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

---

---

---

---

---

•	estimated step-ups for the fixed assets and inventory;

•	estimated fair values of intangible assets; and

•	estimated income tax assets and liabilities assumed from the acquiree.

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

C.	Acquisitions

---

---

---

---

D.	Fair Value of Financial Instruments

F.	Property and Equipment

---

H.	Intangible Assets

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

ITEM 9.	CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE

ITEM 9A.	CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

(a)	EFFECTIVENESS OF DISCLOSURE CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

(b)	INHERENT LIMITATIONS ON EFFECTIVENESS OF CONTROLS

---

(c)	MANAGEMENT’S ANNUAL REPORT ON INTERNAL CONTROL OVER FINANCIAL REPORTING

(d)	CHANGES IN INTERNAL CONTROL OVER FINANCIAL REPORTING

ITEM 9B.	OTHER INFORMATION

ITEM 10.	DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

ITEM 11.	EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

ITEM 12.	SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

ITEM 13.	CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE

ITEM 14.	PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES

---

ITEM 15.	EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES

1.	Financial statements:

2.	Financial Statement Schedule:

II.	Valuation and Qualifying Accounts

---

---

---

---

---