What changed in this filing

/stocks — the workspaceLOADING

Item 1A. Risk Factors

2025-05-28 compared with 2024-05-29 · 136 added, 38 removed, 236 unchanged (42% of the section changed)

Columbus McKinnon is subject to a number of risks that could negatively affect our business, financial condition or results from business operations or cause our actual results to differ materially from those projected or indicated in any forward-looking statement.

You should carefully consider the risks described below, as well as the other information contained in this Form 10-K in evaluating your investment in us.

You should carefully consider the risks described below, as well as the other information contained elsewhere in this Form 10-K, in evaluating your investment in us.

The risks and uncertainties described below are those that we have identified as material, but are not the only risks or uncertainties facing Columbus McKinnon.

This list is not all-inclusive or necessarily in order of importance.

Our business could also be affected by additional risks that are not presently known to us or that we currently consider to be immaterial.

This list is not all-inclusive, and our business could also be materially adversely affected by additional risks that are not presently known to us or that we currently consider to be immaterial.

As a result, the trading price of our common stock could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment in our common stock.

Business Risks

Our business is cyclical and is affected by industrial economic and macroeconomic conditions.

Many of the end-users of our products are in highly cyclical industries, such as manufacturing, power generation and distribution, commercial construction, oil and gas exploration and refining, transportation, agriculture, logging, and mining that are sensitive to changes in general macroeconomic conditions.

Their demand for our products, and thus our results of operations, is cyclical and directly related to the level of production in their facilities, which changes as a result of changes in general macroeconomic conditions, including, among others, movements in interest rates, inflation, changes in currency exchange rates and higher fuel and other energy costs, and other factors beyond our control, and is vulnerable to economic downturns.

Our business is affected by industrial economic and macroeconomic conditions.

Many of the end-users of our products are in industries affected by changes in industrial economic and macroeconomic conditions, such as manufacturing, power generation and distribution, commercial construction, oil and gas exploration and refining, transportation, agriculture, logging, and mining that are sensitive to changes in general macroeconomic conditions.

Their demand for our products, and thus our results of operations, are directly related to the level of production in their facilities, which changes as a result of changes in general macroeconomic conditions, including, among others, movements in interest rates, tariffs and other trade regulations, inflation, changes in currency exchange rates, higher fuel and other energy costs, and other factors beyond our control, and is vulnerable to economic downturns.

Decreased capital and maintenance spending by these customers has in the past, and could in the future, have a material adverse effect on the demand for our products and our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

In particular, higher interest rates could result in decreased demand for our products from end-users, which would have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations, and concurrently result in higher interest expense related to borrowings under our credit facilities.

In particular, higher interest rates have in the past, and could in the future, result in decreased demand for our products from end-users, which would have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations, and concurrently result in higher interest expense related to borrowings under our credit facilities.

In addition, inflation can also result in higher interest rates and negatively impact our results of operation.

4 unchanged sentences

There can be no assurance that historically improving cycles are representative of actual future demand.

In addition, the cyclical nature of our business could at times also adversely affect our liquidity and ability to borrow under our Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Facility (as defined herein) and limits our ability to make accurate long-term predictions about the performance of the Company.

In addition, general macro-economic conditions could at times also adversely affect our liquidity and ability to borrow under our Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Facility (as defined herein) and limits our ability to make accurate long-term predictions about the performance of the Company.

Our business, particularly with respect to our material handling and precision conveyance products, is highly competitive and subject to consolidation of competitors.

6 unchanged sentences

Certain competitors may also have the ability to develop product or service innovations that could put us at a disadvantage.

In addition to the general competitive challenges we face, international trade policies could negatively affect the demand for our products and services and reduce our competitive position in such markets.

In addition to the general competitive challenges we face, tariffs and other international trade policies could negatively affect the demand for our products and services and reduce our competitive position in such markets.

In addition, through consolidation, some of our competitors have achieved substantially greater market penetration in certain of the markets in which we operate than we have been able to achieve.

1 unchanged sentence

There can also be no assurance that customers will continue to regard our products favorably, that we will be able to develop new products or product developments that appeal to customers, that we will be able to improve or maintain our profit margins on sales to our customers or that we will be able to continue to compete successfully in our core markets.

Our growth strategy depends on successful integration of acquisitions.

Our growth strategy depends on successful integration of acquisitions, including upon closing of such transaction, the Kito Acquisition.

Acquisitions are a key part of our growth strategy.

Our historical growth has depended, and our future growth is likely to depend, on our ability to successfully execute our acquisition strategy, and the successful integration of acquired businesses into our existing business.

Such a strategy involves the potential risks inherent in assessing the value, strengths, weaknesses, contingent or other liabilities, and potential profitability of acquisition candidates and in integrating the operations of acquired companies.

10 unchanged sentences

The primary raw materials used in our chain, forging and crane building operations are steel, aluminum, and other raw materials such as motors, electrical and electronic components, castings and machined parts and components.

The industries that produce these critical components and materials are also themselves highly cyclical and at times pricing and availability can be volatile due to a number of factors beyond our control, including general macroeconomic conditions, inflation, labor costs, competition, import duties, tariffs, and currency exchange rates.

This volatility can significantly affect our raw material costs.

In an environment of increasing raw material prices and trade tariffs, competitive conditions will determine how much of the price increases we can pass on to our customers.

In the future, to the extent we are unable to pass on any steel, aluminum, or other raw material price increases to our customers, our profitability could be adversely affected.

The United States has maintained tariffs on certain imported steel, aluminum and items originating from China, which have increased the cost of raw materials we purchase.

The imposition of tariffs by the United States has resulted in retaliatory tariffs from a number of countries, including China, which also increase the cost of raw materials we purchase.

presidential administration has implemented or announced plans to implement, as the case may be, new or increased tariffs, particularly relating to imports from China, the European Union and other Asian countries, though it remains unclear exactly what actions will be taken or implemented.

Any escalation of trade tensions, additional tariffs, retaliatory measures by foreign governments or shifts in U.S.

or international trade policies could adversely impact our supply chain, increase our costs for raw materials, including significantly, or reduce demand for our products.

A trade war or other significant changes in trade regulations could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

In an environment of increasing raw material prices and trade tariffs, duties and quotas, competitive conditions will determine how much of the price increases we can pass on to our customers.

In the future, to the extent we are unable to pass on any steel, aluminum, or other raw material price increases to our customers, our profitability could be adversely affected, including materially.

Our results of operations could be materially adversely affected if we are unable to obtain sufficient pricing for our products and service to meet our profitability expectations.

11 unchanged sentences

Particularly, the markets for motors, computer chips, and other components are experiencing increased demand, creating substantial uncertainty regarding the availability of key components and raw materials used to manufacture our products.

quick-turn delivery requests from customers, or meet customer demand and product delivery dates for our end customers where we cannot timely secure adequate supply of these components and raw materials.

This constrained supply environment has materially adversely affected, and could further materially adversely affect, availability, lead times and cost of components and raw material, and has materially impacted, and could continue to materially impact, our ability to respond to accelerated or quick-turn delivery requests from customers, or meet customer demand and product delivery dates for our end customers where we cannot timely secure adequate supply of these components and raw materials.

Moreover, if any of our suppliers become financially unstable, or otherwise unable or unwilling to provide us with raw materials or components, we may have to find new suppliers.

56 unchanged sentences

We may be unable to consummate those asset sales to raise capital or sell assets at prices that we believe are fair and proceeds that we do receive may be inadequate to meet any debt service obligations then due.

Furthermore, we may be able to incur substantial additional indebtedness in the future.

The terms of our debt instruments do not fully prohibit us from doing so.

This could further exacerbate the risks that we face.

Furthermore, we may be able to incur substantial additional indebtedness in the future and, in connection with the completion of the Kito Acquisition, expect to incur substantial additional indebtedness.

The terms of our current debt instruments do not fully prohibit us from doing so and the terms of any new debt instruments we enter into in the future, including in connection

with the incurrence of indebtedness for the Kito Acquisition, may not fully prohibit us from doing so.

Any additional indebtedness we incur could further exacerbate the risks that we face.

Our ability to raise capital in the future may be limited.

Our business and operations may consume resources faster than we anticipate.

In the future, we may need to raise additional funds through the issuance of new equity securities, debt, or a combination of both.

Additional financing may not be available on favorable terms or at all.

If adequate funds are not available on acceptable terms, we may be unable to fund our capital requirements.

If we issue new debt securities, the debt holders would have rights senior to holders of our common stock to make claims on our assets and the terms of any debt could restrict our operations, including our ability to pay dividends on our common stock.

If we issue additional equity securities or securities convertible into equity securities, existing shareholders will experience dilution and the new equity securities could have rights senior to those of our common stock.

Because our decision to issue securities in any future offering will depend on market conditions and other factors beyond our control, we cannot predict or estimate the amount, timing, or nature of our future offerings and their impact on the market price of our common stock.

Our operations outside the U.S.

pose certain risks that may adversely impact sales and earnings.

We have operations and assets located outside of the U.S., primarily in Germany, the United Kingdom, Hungary, Russia, China, Malaysia and Mexico, including our new facility in Monterrey, Mexico.

We have operations and assets located outside of the U.S., primarily in Germany, the United Kingdom, Hungary, China, Malaysia and Mexico, including our new facility in Monterrey, Mexico.

In addition, we import a portion of our hoist product line from Asia and sell our products to distributors located in approximately 50 countries.

3 unchanged sentences

business, including but not limited to differing protections of intellectual property, trade barriers, labor unrest, geopolitical conflicts, exchange controls, regional economic uncertainty, differing (and possibly more stringent) labor regulation, risk of governmental expropriation, U.S.

and foreign customs and tariffs, political and economic instability in the jurisdictions in which we operate, foreign receivables collection risk, current and changing regulatory environments, difficulty in obtaining distribution support, difficulty in staffing and managing

widespread operations, differences in the availability, and terms of financing, political instability and risks of increases in taxes.

and foreign customs, quotas and duties, and tariffs ( in particular, the new tariffs implemented and additional tariffs proposed to be implemented by the new U.S.

presidential administration on goods imported into the U.S.

from Mexico and other countries where we have manufacturing operations), political and economic instability in the jurisdictions in which we operate, foreign receivables collection risk, current and changing regulatory environments, difficulty in obtaining distribution support, difficulty in staffing and managing widespread operations, differences in the availability, and terms of financing, political instability and risks of increases in taxes.

In particular, in connection with our Mexican manufacturing operations, as a result of the tariffs or other trade restrictions implemented or proposed to be implemented by the U.S.

or other countries, the cost of our products manufactured in Mexico or other countries and imported into the U.S.

or other countries have increased and could continue to increase further, which, in turn, has adversely affected, and could continue to adversely affect, the demand for these products, make our products less competitive and have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations and margins.

Any of these factors, individually or together, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

9 unchanged sentences

While the Company’s business operations relating to Russia constitute an immaterial part of the Company’s overall business, we may decide to, or be required to, exit from our operations in Russia in their entirety, which could result in a loss of revenues from our Russian operations (approximately $836,000 for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025) or may necessitate the need to incur a bad debt reserve or an asset write-off related to our Russian operations.

Furthermore, there is no guarantee that the current Russian invasion of Ukraine will not draw military intervention from other countries or further retaliation from Russia, which, in turn, could lead to a much larger conflict beyond its current geographic, political and economic scope.

Furthermore, there is no guarantee that the current Russian invasion of Ukraine will not draw military intervention from other countries or further retaliation from Russia, which,

in turn, could lead to a much larger conflict beyond its current geographic, political and economic scope.

If such escalation should occur, supply chain, trade routes and markets currently served by the Company could be adversely affected and other risks discussed in this Form 10-K may be exacerbated.

1 unchanged sentence

In addition, our success in international expansion could be limited by barriers to international expansion such as adverse tax consequences and export controls.

Changes in applicable tax laws and regulations, or their interpretation and application, including the possibility of retroactive effect, could affect our income tax expense and profitability.

Certain provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act passed in 2022, including a 15% corporate alternative minimum tax, as well as the similar 15% global minimum tax under the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Pillar Two Global Anti-Base Erosion Rules, may impact our income tax expense, profitability, and capital allocation decisions and may negatively impact our effective tax rate.

If we cannot manage these risks effectively, the costs of doing business in some international markets may be prohibitive or our costs may increase disproportionately to our revenue.

7 unchanged sentences

We are subject to debt covenant restrictions.

Each of our Term Loan B and Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Facility contains a financial leverage covenant, which will only be tested if any extensions of credit (other than letters of credit) are outstanding under the Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Facility at the end of any fiscal quarter, and other restrictive covenants.

Our Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Facility contains a financial leverage covenant, which will only be tested if any extensions of credit (other than letters of credit) are outstanding under the Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Facility at the end of any fiscal quarter, and other restrictive covenants.

A significant decline in our operating income or cash generating ability could cause us to violate our leverage covenant in our bank credit facilities.

3 unchanged sentences

Depending on prevailing economic conditions at the time, the Company might find it difficult to modify or restructure the debt on attractive terms, or at all.

A ratings downgrade or other negative action by a ratings organization could adversely affect the trading price of our common stock.

Credit rating agencies continually revise their ratings for companies they follow, and we have faced, and may continue to face, downgrades from credit rating agencies.

The condition of the financial and credit markets and prevailing interest rates have fluctuated in the past and are likely to fluctuate in the future.

In addition, developments in our business and operations, including with respect to sustainability matters, could lead to further ratings downgrades for us or our subsidiaries.

Any fluctuation in the rating of us or our subsidiaries may impact our ability to access debt markets in the future or increase our cost of future debt, which could have a material adverse effect on our operations and financial condition and may adversely affect the trading price of shares of our common stock.

Risks related to the Kito Acquisition

The Kito Acquisition is contingent upon the satisfaction of a number of conditions, including regulatory approval, that may be outside either party’s control and that either party may be unable to satisfy or obtain that could cause the stock purchase agreement to be terminated in accordance with its terms.

The closing of our acquisition of Kito remains subject to the satisfaction or waiver of certain closing conditions, including the expiration or early termination of the waiting period applicable to the consummation of the Kito Acquisition under the HSR Act and the receipt of certain other regulatory approvals.

These conditions to the completion of the Kito Acquisition, some of which are beyond our control and/or the control of Kito, may not be satisfied or waived in a timely manner or at all;

accordingly, the Kito Acquisition may be delayed or not completed.

As a condition to granting required regulatory approvals, governmental entities may impose conditions, limitations, obligations or costs or place restrictions on our conduct after the closing of the Kito Acquisition.

Such conditions or changes and the process of obtaining regulatory approvals could, among other things, have the effect of delaying completion of the Kito Acquisition or of imposing additional costs or limitations on us following the Kito Acquisition, any of which may have an adverse effect on us.

Additionally, either we or Kito may terminate the stock purchase agreement under certain circumstances specified therein, subject to the payment of a “termination fee” in certain cases.

The Kito Acquisition may present certain risks to our business and operations prior to the closing.

Our business and operations are subject to various risks related to the Kito Acquisition prior to closing, including:

• uncertainty about the effect of the Kito Acquisition on employees, customers, suppliers and other persons with whom we or Kito Crosby have a business relationship having an adverse effect on our business, operations and stock price;

• our operations may be restricted by the terms of the stock purchase agreement for the Kito Acquisition, which may cause us to forgo otherwise beneficial business opportunities;

• the proposed transaction may disrupt our current business plans and operations;

• our management’s attention may be directed toward the completion of the Kito Acquisition and diverted away from our day-to-day business operations;

• we may incur significantly higher transaction costs than we currently anticipate, such as legal, financing and accounting fees, and other costs, fees, expenses and charges related to the Kito Acquisition, whether or not the transaction is completed;

• the Kito Acquisition may not be completed, which may have an adverse effect on our stock price and future business and financial results.

We may fail to successfully close the Kito Acquisition, and if we do successfully close the Kito Acquisition, we may fail to realize all of the anticipated benefits of the Kito Acquisition or those benefits may take longer to realize than expected.

We expect to devote significant management attention to closing the Kito Acquisition and, if it closes, integrating the business practices and operations of Kito with Columbus McKinnon.

In the event the Kito Acquisition successfully closes, we may experience disruptions to our business and, if integrated ineffectively, such disruptions could restrict the realization of the full expected benefits of the Kito Acquisition.

The failure to meet the challenges involved in the integration process and to realize the anticipated benefits of the Kito Acquisition could cause an interruption or loss of momentum in our operations.

If the Kito Acquisition successfully closes, difficulties in integrating Kito into our business may include rationalizing the operations, processes and systems of the acquired business, retaining and motivating key management and employees, and integrating existing business relationships with suppliers and customers.

Even an integration of Kito is successful, the financial and operational results may differ materially from our assumptions and forecasts due to unforeseen expenses, delays, conditions and liabilities.

In addition, we may incur unanticipated costs or expenses following an acquisition, including post-closing asset impairment charges, expenses associated with eliminating duplicate facilities, and other liabilities.

Furthermore, the successful closing of the Kito Acquisition and the subsequent integration of Kito into our business may result in material unanticipated problems, expenses, charges, liabilities, competitive responses, loss of customers and other business relationships, and diversion of management’s attention.

Additional integration challenges may include difficulty in achieving anticipated cost savings, synergies, business opportunities and growth prospects from the acquisition;

difficulties in the integration of operations and systems, including pricing and marketing strategies;

and difficulties in conforming standards, controls, procedures, financial reporting and accounting and other policies, business cultures and compensation structures.

Many of these factors will be outside of our control and any one of them could result in increased costs, including restructuring charges, decreases in revenues and diversion of management’s time and energy, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Upon closing of the Kito Acquisition, the Kito business may underperform relative to our expectations.

Following completion of the Kito Acquisition, we may not be able to maintain the levels of revenue, earnings or operating efficiency that Kito and we have achieved or might achieve separately.

The business and financial performance of Kito are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, including the risk of the loss of, or changes to, its relationships with its customers.

Upon the closing of the Kito Acquisition, we may be unable to achieve the same growth, revenues and profitability that Kito has achieved in the past.

We will issue a substantial number of Preferred Shares (as defined below) and incur a substantial amount of indebtedness in connection with the financing of the Kito Acquisition.

We expect to finance a portion of the purchase price for the Kito Acquisition through the issuance of 800,000 Series A Cumulative Convertible Participating Preferred Shares, par value $1.00 per share (the “Preferred Shares”), in connection with the closing of the Kito Acquisition, to CD&R XII Keystone Holdings, L.P., a Cayman Islands exempted limited partnership (together with its affiliated funds, the “CD&R Investors”) pursuant to the terms of an investment agreement, dated February 10, 2025 (the “Investment Agreement”).

Once issued, the Preferred Shares will have rights, preferences, and privileges that are not held by, and are preferential to, the rights of our common stock and will reduce the relative voting power of the holders of our common stock.

Subject to certain restrictions on conversion and voting as described in greater detail in the Investment Agreement and the form of Certificate of Amendment to the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation for the Preferred Shares (the "Certificate of Amendment"), the aggregate number of shares of common stock of the Company into which the Preferred Shares may be converted will initially be equal to 21,231,440 common shares, based on the initial conversion price for the Preferred Shares of $37.68, and result in the CD&R Investors owning, on an as converted basis, approximately 43% of the Company’s outstanding common stock upon completion of the issuance.

Under the terms of the Investment Agreement, the CD&R Investors will have the right to designate up to three directors on our Board of Directors, subject to specified ownership requirements.

With such representation on our Board of Directors, the CD&R Investors will have influence over the appointment of Company management and any action requiring the vote of our Board of Directors.

If the Preferred Shares are issued, circumstances may occur in which the interests of the CD&R Investors could conflict with the interests of our other shareholders.

We also expect to finance a portion of the purchase price for the Kito Acquisition by incurring additional third-party indebtedness.

We face risks associated with increases in overall indebtedness.

We cannot guarantee that the combination of Kito and Columbus McKinnon will be able to generate sufficient cash flow to pay dividends at a rate of 7% per annum, compounded quarterly on our Preferred Shares (but subject to an increase to 10% per annum if certain events occur) and service and repay this indebtedness, or that we will be able to refinance such indebtedness on favorable terms, or at all.

If we are unable to service our indebtedness and fund our operations, we may be forced to, among other things, reduce or delay capital expenditures, seek additional capital, sell assets, or refinance our indebtedness.

Any such action may not be successful, and we may be unable to service such indebtedness.

Any of the above risks could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operation, cash flows and/or stock price.

We expect to incur substantial expenses related to the Kito Acquisition and to the integration of Kito into our business, and the expenses may be greater than anticipated due to unexpected events.

We have incurred and expect to incur a number of significant non-recurring costs associated with the Kito Acquisition and, upon closing of the Kito Acquisition, the integration of Kito into our business.

These costs include legal, financial advisory, accounting, consulting and other advisory fees, severance and employee benefit-related costs, public company filing fees and other regulatory fees, financial printing and other printing costs and other related costs.

In addition, we expect to incur integration costs following the closing of the Kito Acquisition as we integrate Kito’s business with ours, including facilities and systems consolidation costs and employment-related costs.

There are a large number of processes, policies, procedures, operations, technologies and systems that may need to be integrated, including purchasing, accounting and finance, payroll, compliance, treasury management, branch operations, vendor management, risk management, lines of business, pricing and benefits.

While we have assumed that a certain level of costs will be incurred, there are many factors beyond our control that could affect the total amount or the timing of these expenses.

Moreover, many of the expenses that we will incur are, by their nature, difficult to estimate accurately.

These expenses could, particularly in the near term, exceed the savings that we expect to achieve from the elimination of duplicative expenses and the realization of economies of scale.

These expenses may result in us recording increased expenses as a result of the Kito Acquisition or the integration of Kito into our business, and the amount and timing of such charges are uncertain at the present and could exceed initial estimates.

Pursuant to the terms of the Investment Agreement, we are required to recommend that our shareholders approve certain matters and terms relating to the Preferred Shares.

We cannot guarantee that our shareholders will approve these matters.

Under the terms of the Investment Agreement and the Certificate of Amendment, we have agreed to seek to obtain, at our first meeting of shareholders following the date of the Investment Agreement (the “First Meeting”), among other things, shareholder approval of (i) the issuance of the common shares underlying the Preferred Shares to be issued in connection with the Kito Acquisition in excess of 19.99% of the number of common shares outstanding prior to the transaction, in accordance with

NASDAQ Listing Rule 5635, and (ii) an amendment to our Certificate of Incorporation to increase the number of authorized but unissued common shares to 100 million and permit certain preemptive rights (collectively, the “Requisite Shareholder Approval”).

If the Requisite Shareholder Approval is not obtained at the First Meeting, subject to applicable law and the exercise of the fiduciary duties of our Board of Directors, we will continue to use our reasonable best efforts to obtain such approval at each subsequent meeting of shareholders, and if the Requisite Shareholder Approval is not obtained on or prior to July 31, 2026, we have agreed to hold a special meeting of our shareholders to be held between August 1, 2026 and December 31, 2026 to seek such approval, which would be time consuming and costly.

Our products involve risks of personal injury and property damage, which exposes us to potential liability.

30 unchanged sentences

Over time, we and other predecessor operators of such facilities have generated, used, handled, and disposed of hazardous and other regulated wastes.

quantified and which could reduce our profits or have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, operations, or liquidity.

Additional environmental liabilities could exist, including clean-up obligations at these locations or other sites at which materials from our operations were disposed, which could result in substantial future expenditures that cannot be currently quantified and which could reduce our profits or have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, operations, or liquidity.

We may face claims of infringement on the intellectual property of others, or others may infringe upon our intellectual property.

14 unchanged sentences

General Risks

The market price of our common stock has been, and may in the future continue to be, volatile.

The market price of our common stock has been volatile in the past and may become volatile again in the future.

The closing prices of our common stock on Nasdaq during fiscal 2025 ranged from $15.95 to $45.78 per share.

The market price of our common stock could fluctuate significantly for many reasons, including:

fluctuations in our quarterly operating results;

reasons unrelated to our operations, such as reports by industry analysts, investor perceptions or negative announcements by our customers, competitors or suppliers regarding their own performance;

general stock market and industry conditions;

general financial, economic and political instability;

and in response to the risks described in this Item 1A, Risk Factors, and elsewhere in this Form 10-K.

The volatility in the market price of our common stock may make it difficult for you to resell your shares of our common stock when desired or at attractive prices.

In addition, our quarterly operating results are likely to fluctuate in the future While we believe that operating results for any particular quarter are not necessarily a meaningful indication of future results, fluctuations in our quarterly operating results could limit or prevent investors from readily selling their shares and may otherwise negatively affect the market price and liquidity of our shares.

Adverse changes in global economic conditions may negatively affect our industry, business, and results of operations.

11 unchanged sentences

Furthermore, the potential physical impacts of climate change on our customers, and therefore on our operations, are speculative and highly uncertain, and would be particular to the circumstances developing in various geographical regions.

Concern over climate change will likely result in new legal or regulatory requirements designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the effects of climate change.

For example, the SEC has adopted new climate change disclosure rules aimed at enhancing and standardizing climate change-related disclosures by public companies.

If these new rules are

successfully implemented, our compliance costs could be significant.

Concern over climate change may result in new legal or regulatory requirements designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the effects of climate change.

For example, the European Union (“EU”) recently adopted the European Sustainability Reporting Standards and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (“CSRD”) that may require robust disclosure of certain social and environmental information and data.

However, the European Commission has also proposed an “Omnibus simplification package” aimed at simplifying sustainability regulatory requirements, which may introduce changes to regulations such as the CSRD (among possible other EU sustainability-related regulations).

It is currently unclear to what extent any such changes will be implemented, and the extent to which these changes could impact Columbus McKinnon.

We are evaluating and will continue to evaluate the applicability of the CSRD as regulatory guidance is issued and as the European countries in which we operate adopt implementing legislation, and we will establish a compliance program to address any applicable requirements.

Further, our customers and the markets we serve may impose emissions reduction or other environmental standards and requirements.

8 unchanged sentences

We depend on various information technology systems throughout the Company to administer, store, and support multiple business activities, including to process the data we collect, store and use in connection with our business.

If these systems are damaged, cease to function properly, or are subject to cyber-security attacks, such as those involving unauthorized access, malicious software and/or other intrusions, we could experience production downtimes, operational delays, other detrimental impacts on our operations or ability to provide products and services to our customers, the compromising of confidential or otherwise protected information, destruction or corruption of data, security breaches, other manipulation or improper use of our systems or networks, financial losses from remedial actions, loss of business or potential liability, and/or damage to our reputation.

If these systems are damaged, cease to function properly, or are subject to cyber-security attacks, such as those involving unauthorized access, malicious software and/or other intrusions, and if our systems for protecting against such cybersecurity attacks prove insufficient, we could experience production downtimes, operational delays, other detrimental impacts on our operations or ability to provide products and services to our customers, the compromising of confidential or otherwise protected information, destruction or corruption of data, security breaches, other manipulation or improper use of our systems or networks, financial losses from remedial actions, loss of business or potential liability, litigation, including individual claims, consumer class actions and commercial litigation;

regulatory intervention and sanctions or fines;

and prolonged negative publicity and/or damage to our reputation.

Our information technology systems may be damaged or cease to function properly due to any number of causes, such as catastrophic events, power outages and security breaches (including destructive malware such as ransomware) resulting in unauthorized access or cyber-security attacks.

As the breadth and complexity of our information technology systems continue to grow, including as a result of the increasing reliance on, and use of, mobile technologies and cloud-based services, the risk of security incidents and cyber-security attacks has increased.

While we attempt to mitigate these risks by employing a number of measures, including employee training, technical security controls, and maintenance of backup and protective systems, our systems, networks, products, and services remain potentially vulnerable to known or unknown cybersecurity threats, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

Furthermore, cybersecurity threats are constantly expanding and evolving and becoming increasingly sophisticated and complex, including attacks from highly organized adversaries such as nation state actors, thereby increasing the costs associated with our cyber-security defense measures and procedures and increasing the difficulty of detecting and defending against them and maintaining effective security measures and protocols.

While we attempt to mitigate these risks by employing a number of measures, including employee training, technical security controls, and maintenance of backup

and protective systems, our systems, networks, products, and services remain potentially vulnerable to known or unknown cybersecurity threats, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

Furthermore, cybersecurity threats are constantly expanding and evolving and becoming increasingly sophisticated and complex, including attacks from highly organized adversaries such as nation state actors and attacks using emerging technologies, such as generative artificial intelligence, which create more targeted and sophisticated phishing narratives or otherwise strengthen social engineering capabilities.

These new risks increase the costs associated with our cyber-security defense measures and procedures and increasing the difficulty of detecting and defending against them and maintaining effective security measures and protocols.

Further, third-party providers we utilize may incorporate generative artificial intelligence or other emerging technologies into their operations, and these tools may not meet existing or rapidly evolving regulatory or industry standards with respect to privacy and data protection, and it is possible that these providers may suffer a cyber-security attack that negatively impacts us.

We are also subject to a variety of laws and regulations in the U.S., Europe and around the world, as well as contractual obligations, regarding data privacy, security and protection.

1 unchanged sentence

These laws and regulations continue to evolve, are increasing in complexity and number and increasingly conflict among the various countries in which we operate, which has resulted in greater compliance risk for us.

In addition, the costs of compliance with, and other burdens imposed by, such data privacy laws and regulations, including those of the European Union (“EU”) and the UK which are, in some respects, more stringent than U.S.

In addition, the costs of compliance with, and other burdens imposed by, such data privacy laws and regulations, including those of the EU and the UK which are, in some respects, more stringent than U.S.

standards, could be significant.

8 unchanged sentences

Despite our training and compliance programs, we cannot assure you that our internal control policies and procedures always will protect us from reckless or criminal acts committed by our employees or agents.

In the event that we believe or have reason to believe that our employees

or agents have or may have violated applicable anti-corruption laws, including the FCPA, we may be required to investigate or have outside counsel investigate the relevant facts and circumstances.

In the event that we believe or have reason to believe that our employees or agents have or may have violated applicable anti-corruption laws, including the FCPA, we may be required to investigate or have outside counsel investigate the relevant facts and circumstances.

In addition, we are subject to and must comply with all applicable export controls and economic sanctions laws and embargoes imposed by the U.S.

7 unchanged sentences

We cannot assure you that we will be able to retain our existing management personnel or to attract additional qualified personnel when needed.

The market price of our common stock may be volatile.

The market price of our common stock is volatile and could fluctuate significantly for many reasons, including in response to the risks described in this section and elsewhere in this Form 10-K or for reasons unrelated to our operations, such as reports by industry analysts, investor perceptions or negative announcements by our customers, competitors or suppliers regarding their own performance, as well as industry conditions and general financial, economic and political instability.

Compared sentence by sentence after normalising whitespace, quotation marks, case and digits, so re-formatting and restated figures do not read as changed language. Wording changes appear as one removal and one addition. The current filing and the prior one are authoritative.

What changed 10-K

Item 1A. Risk Factors