Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Property, Plant and Equipment

v2.4.0.6
Property, Plant and Equipment
12 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2012
Property, Plant and Equipment  
Property, Plant and Equipment

4. Property, Plant and Equipment

        Property, plant and equipment as of March 31, 2012 and 2011 consisted of the following:

 
  2012   2011   Estimated
Useful Life
 
  (In thousands)
   

Machinery, rental equipment, equipment, automobiles and furniture

  $ 20,506   $ 21,635   2 - 10 years

Leasehold improvements

    9,696     9,663   10 years

Molds and tooling

    4,880     4,773   2 - 5 years
             

 

    35,082     36,071    

Less, accumulated depreciation

    (30,249 )   (30,132 )  
             

Total property, plant and equipment, net

  $ 4,833   $ 5,939    
             

        Depreciation expense for property, plant and equipment was $2.6 million, $2.8 million and $3.2 million for the years ended March 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.

        During the three months ended September 30, 2010, the Company sold ten of its microturbine rental units for approximately $430,000. The net book value of the rental equipment related to this sale was approximately $365,000. The Company recognized this sale as revenue and the cost of the units as cost of goods sold.

        During the three months ended September 30, 2009, the Company determined the depreciation of its leasehold improvements had changed from an original estimate of eight years to a revised estimate of 9.1 years because of the extension of lease terms for both manufacturing facilities located in Chatsworth and Van Nuys, California. This change in the estimated depreciation of the leasehold improvements resulted in a decrease in the annual depreciation from $1.3 million per year to $0.9 million per year in Fiscal 2010, a decrease from $0.8 million per year to $0.5 million per year in Fiscal 2011, an increase from $0.2 million per year to $0.5 million per year in Fiscal 2012, an increase from $23,000 per year to $0.4 million per year in Fiscal 2013, and an increase from $22,000 per year to $0.1 million per year in Fiscal 2014. The change in accounting estimate did not result in a change to net loss per common share for the year ended March 31, 2010.