Ingersoll Rand (IR) Risk Factors

The markets in which we operate are characterized by changing technologies and introductions of new products and services. Our ability to develop new products based on technological innovation, including those that incorporate artificial intelligence or drive sustainability, energy reduction and the reduction and/or recycling of water in our customers' processes, can affect our competitive position and often requires the investment of significant resources. Difficulties or delays in research, development or production of new products and technologies, or failure to gain market acceptance of new products and technologies, may significantly reduce future revenues and materially and adversely affect our competitive position. We may not have sufficient resources to continue to make the investment required to maintain or increase our market share or that our investments will be successful. If we do not compete successfully, our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.

Our success depends in part on the creation, maintenance and protection of our proprietary technology and intellectual property rights. We rely on a combination of patents, tradenames, trade secrets, copyrights, confidentiality provisions, contractual restrictions and licensing arrangements to establish and protect our proprietary rights. Our nondisclosure agreements and confidentiality agreements may not effectively prevent disclosure of our proprietary information, technologies and processes, and may not provide an adequate remedy in the event of breach of such agreements or unauthorized disclosure of such information, and if a competitor lawfully obtains or independently develops our trade secrets, we would have no right to prevent such competitor from using such technology or information to compete with us, either of which could harm our competitive position. Our applications for patent and tradename protection may not be granted, or the claims or scope of such issued patents or registered tradenames may not be sufficiently broad to protect our products. In addition, effective patent, copyright, tradename and trade secret protection may be unavailable or limited for some of our tradenames and patents in some foreign countries. We may be required to spend significant resources to monitor and police our intellectual property rights, and we cannot guarantee that such efforts will be successful in preventing infringement or misappropriation. If we fail to successfully enforce these intellectual property rights, our competitive position could suffer, which could harm our operating results. Although we make a significant effort to avoid infringing known proprietary rights of third parties, the steps we take to prevent misappropriation, infringement or other violation of the intellectual property of others may not be successful and from time to time we may receive notice that a third party believes that our products may be infringing certain patents, tradenames or other proprietary rights of such third party. Responding to and defending such claims, regardless of their merit, can be costly and time-consuming, can divert management's attention and other resources, and we may not prevail. Depending on the resolution of such claims, we may be barred from using a specific technology or other rights, may be required to redesign or re-engineer a product which may require significant resources, may be required to enter into licensing arrangements from the third party claiming infringement (which may not be available on commercially reasonable terms, or at all), or may become liable for significant damages. If any of the foregoing occurs, our ability to compete could be affected or our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially adversely affected.

Our global operations subject us to regulation by U.S. federal and state laws and multiple foreign laws, regulations and policies, which could result in conflicting legal requirements. These laws and regulations are complex, change frequently, have become more stringent over time and increase our cost of doing business. These laws and regulations include import and export control, environmental, health and safety regulations, data privacy requirements, international labor laws and work councils and anti-corruption and bribery laws such as the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the U.K. Bribery Act, the U.N. Convention Against Bribery and local laws prohibiting corrupt payments to government officials. We are subject to the risk that we, our employees, our affiliated entities, contractors, agents or their respective officers, directors, employees and agents may take actions determined to be in violation of any of these laws, for which we might be held responsible, particularly as we expand our operations geographically through organic growth and acquisitions. An actual or alleged violation could result in substantial fines, sanctions, civil or criminal penalties, debarment from government contracts, curtailment of operations in certain jurisdictions, competitive or reputational harm, litigation or regulatory action and other consequences that might adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition or strategic objectives.

We have been named as a defendant in many asbestos and silica-related personal injury lawsuits. The plaintiffs in these suits allege exposure to asbestos or silica from multiple sources, and typically we are one of approximately 25 or more named defendants. We believe that, given our financial reserves and anticipated insurance recoveries, the pending and potential future lawsuits are not likely to have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or liquidity. However, future developments, including, without limitation, potential insolvencies of insurance companies or other defendants, an adverse determination in the Adams County Case, or other inability to collect from our historical insurers or indemnitors, could cause a different outcome. In addition, even if any damages payable by us in any individual lawsuit are not material, the aggregate damages and related defense costs could be material and could materially adversely affect our financial condition if we were to receive an adverse judgment in a number of these lawsuits. Accordingly, the resolution of pending or future lawsuits may have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or liquidity. See Note 21 "Contingencies" to our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Form 10-K.

In 2017, the U.S. government enacted comprehensive tax legislation commonly referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ("Tax Act"). The Tax Act makes broad and complex changes to the U.S. tax code that affected 2017 and 2018, including, but not limited to (1) requiring a one-time transition tax on certain unrepatriated earnings of foreign subsidiaries that is payable over eight years and (2) bonus depreciation that will allow for full expensing of qualified property. The Tax Act also established new tax laws that significantly affected recent and future tax years. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development ("OECD") has a framework to implement a global minimum corporate tax of 15% for companies with global revenues and profits above certain thresholds (referred to as Pillar 2), with certain aspects of Pillar 2 effective January 1, 2024 and other aspects effective January 1, 2025. While it is uncertain whether the U.S. will enact legislation to adopt Pillar 2, certain countries in which we operate have adopted legislation, and other countries are in the process of introducing legislation to implement Pillar 2. We do not expect Pillar 2 to have a material impact but we continue to monitor the tax law changes surrounding Pillar 2. While we monitor proposals and other developments that would materially impact our tax burden and/or effective tax rate and investigate our options, we could still be subject to increased taxation on a going forward basis no matter what action we undertake if certain legislative proposals or regulatory changes are enacted, certain tax treaties are amended and/or our interpretation of applicable tax or other laws is challenged and determined to be incorrect. The inability to realize any anticipated tax benefits related to our operations and corporate structure could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows. See Note 1 "Summary of Significant Accounting Policies" and Note 16 "Income Taxes" to our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Form 10-K for additional information related to our accounting for income tax matters. Further, the specific future impacts of the Tax Act and Pillar 2 on holders of our common shares are uncertain and could in certain instances be adverse. We urge our stockholders to consult with their legal and tax advisors with respect to any such legislation and the potential tax consequences of investing in our common stock.

Our operations and properties are subject to increasingly stringent domestic and foreign laws and regulations relating to environmental protection, including laws and regulations governing air emissions, water discharges, waste management and workplace safety. Under such laws and regulations, we can be subject to substantial fines and sanctions for violations and be required to install costly pollution control equipment or put into effect operational changes to limit pollution emissions or decrease the likelihood of accidental hazardous substance releases. We use and generate hazardous substances and waste in our manufacturing operations. In addition, many of our current and former properties are, or have been, used for industrial purposes. We have been identified as a potentially responsible party with respect to several sites designated for cleanup under U.S. federal "Superfund" or similar state laws that may impose joint and several liability for cleanup of certain waste sites and for related natural resource damages. A liability on our balance sheet reflects costs that are probable and estimable for our projected financial obligations relating to these matters. If we have underestimated our remaining financial obligations, we may face greater exposure that could have an adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations or liquidity. We have experienced, and expect to continue to experience, operating costs to comply with environmental laws and regulations. In addition, new laws and regulations, stricter enforcement of existing laws and regulations, the discovery of previously unknown contamination or the imposition of new cleanup requirements could require us to incur costs or become the basis for new or increased liabilities that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations or liquidity.

Our financial performance depends, in large part, on conditions in the markets we serve and on the general condition of the global economy, which impacts these markets. Any sustained weakness in demand for our products and services resulting from a contraction or uncertainty in the global economy could adversely impact our revenues and profitability. In addition, we believe that many of our suppliers and customers access global credit markets to provide liquidity, and in some cases, utilize external financing to purchase products or finance operations. If our customers are unable to access credit markets or lack liquidity, it may impact customer demand for our products and services. Furthermore, our products are sold in many industries, some of which are cyclical and may experience periodic contractions. Cyclical weakness in the industries that we serve could adversely affect demand for our products and affect our profitability and financial performance.

For the year ended December 31, 2023, 58% of our revenues were from customers in countries outside of the United States. We have manufacturing facilities in Germany, the United Kingdom, China, Italy, India and other countries. We intend to continue to expand our international operations to the extent that suitable opportunities become available. Non-U.S. operations and United States export sales could be adversely affected as a result of: political or economic instability in certain countries; differences in foreign laws, including increased difficulties in protecting intellectual property and uncertainty in enforcement of contract rights; credit risks; currency fluctuations, in particular, changes in currency exchange rates between the U.S. dollar, Euro, British Pound and the Chinese Renminbi; exchange controls; changes in and uncertainties with respect to tariffs and import/export trade restrictions (including changes in United States trade policy toward other countries, such as the imposition of tariffs and the resulting consequences), as well as other changes in political policy in the United States, China, the U.K. and certain European countries (including the impacts of the U.K.'s withdrawal from the European Union); royalty and tax increases; nationalization of private enterprises, especially in China where we have material operations, supply chain dependencies and hold material cash balances; civil unrest and protests, strikes, acts of terrorism, war or other armed conflict (including the Russia-Ukraine war and the Israel-Hamas conflict); shipping products during times of crisis or war; and other factors inherent in foreign operations. In addition, our expansion into new countries may require significant resources and the efforts and attention of our management and other personnel, which will divert resources from our existing business operations. As we expand our business globally, our success will depend, in large part, on our ability to anticipate and effectively manage these risks associated with our international operations.

Some of our operations involve risks of, among other things, property damage, which could curtail our operations. For example, if one or more of our manufacturing facilities are damaged by severe weather or any other disaster, accident, catastrophe or event, our operations could be significantly interrupted impacting our ability to produce products and sell products to customers. These interruptions might involve significant damage to, among other things, property, and repairs might take from a week or less for a minor incident to many months for a major interruption. In addition, disruptions in our supply chain due to natural disasters (including but not limited to those as a result of climate change), catastrophes, pandemics (such as COVID-19) or other events could reduce our ability to produce products and satisfy customer demand. Similar interruptions could result from damage to production or other facilities that provide supplies or other raw materials to our plants. Interruptions to our operations and supply chain could also result from pandemic which could adversely impact our workforce or that of our suppliers, causing disruption to the manufacturing process or our supply chain, and last a week or months depending on the severity of the disruption.

We conduct our business in many different currencies. A significant portion of our revenue, 55% for the year ended December 31, 2023, is denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. Accordingly, currency exchange rates, and in particular unfavorable movement in the exchange rates between U.S. dollars and Euros, British Pounds and Chinese Renminbi, affect our operating results. The effects of exchange rate fluctuations on our future operating results are unpredictable because of the number of currencies in which we do business and the potential volatility of exchange rates. We are also subject to the risks of currency controls and devaluations. Although historically not significant, if currency controls were enacted in countries where the Company generates significant cash balances, these controls may limit our ability to convert currencies into U.S. dollars or other currencies, as needed, or to pay dividends or make other payments from funds held by subsidiaries in the countries imposing such controls, which could adversely affect our liquidity. Currency devaluations could also negatively affect our operating margins and cash flows.

We actively compete with many companies producing similar products. Depending on the particular product and application, we experience competition based on a number of factors, including price, quality, performance and availability. We compete against many companies, including divisions of larger companies with greater financial resources than we possess. As a result, these competitors may be both domestically and internationally better able to withstand a change in conditions within the markets in which we compete and throughout the global economy as a whole. In addition, our ability to compete effectively depends on how successfully we anticipate and respond to various competitive factors, including new competitors entering our markets, new products and services that may be introduced by competitors, changes in customer preferences, pricing pressures and new government regulations. If we are unable to anticipate our competitors' development of new products and services, identify customer needs and preferences on a timely basis, or successfully introduce new products and services or modify existing products and service offerings in response to such competitive factors, we could lose customers to competitors. If we cannot compete successfully, our sales and operating results could be materially and adversely affected.