Item 1A. Risk Factors
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Except as noted below, there have been no material changes in our risk factors from those previously disclosed in Item 1A of Part I of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 30, 2020.
We depend on manufacturing relationships and on limited-source suppliers, and any disruptions in these relationships may cause damage to our customer relationships.
We procure all parts and certain services involved in the production of our products and subcontract most of our product manufacturing to outside firms that specialize in such services. Although most of the components of our products are available from multiple vendors, we have several single-source supplier relationships, either because alternative sources are not available or because the relationship is advantageous to us. Further, the COVID-19 pandemic has created stress on many supply chains globally. This has had some impact on our own ability to procure certain inventory and services. Prior to our first quarter of fiscal 2021 these impacts were generally small and contained. More recently we have seen more significant shortages and higher prices in our ability to procure certain inventory. In addition, shipping costs have recently increased significantly as well. We do expect these shortages and higher costs to have some impact on our business in upcoming quarters, although the severity and duration of the impacts is not clear at this time they could potentially be material. There can be no assurance that our suppliers will be able to meet our future requirements for products and components in a timely fashion. In addition, the availability and cost of many of these components to us is dependent in part on our ability to provide our suppliers with accurate forecasts of our future requirements. Delays or lost revenue could be caused by other factors beyond our control, including late deliveries by vendors of components, or force majeure events such as the ongoing pandemic. As an example of force majeure, a fire in November 2014 disrupted the operations at one of our contract manufacturers in Thailand. If we are required to identify alternative suppliers for any of our required components, qualification and pre-production periods could be lengthy and may cause an increase in component costs and delays in providing products to customers. Any extended interruption in the supply of any of the key components currently obtained from limited sources could disrupt our operations and have a material adverse effect on our customer relationships and profitability.
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