Valmont Industries Inc. (VMI) Q4 2019 Earnings Call Transcript

Valmont Industries Inc. (VMI) Q4 2019 Earnings Call Transcript

Greetings and welcome to the Valmont Industries Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2019 Earnings Conference Call.. It's now my pleasure to introduce your host Renee Campbell, Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications.. Good morning everyone and welcome to Valmont Industries fourth quarter and full year 2019 earnings call.. With me today are Steve Kaniewski, President and Chief Executive Officer; Mark Jaksich, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; and Tim Francis, Senior Vice President and Corporate Controller.. I'd like to begin this morning by thanking our global team of nearly 10,000 associates for their performance this past year.. We also generated over $200 million in free cash flow through a heightened focus on working capital improvement.. Net sales of $683.6 million declined 2% compared to last year, primarily due to significantly lower sales in two areas of our business, Access Systems and International Irrigation.. The higher sales were led by strong demand in wireless communication and transportation markets, higher irrigation technology sales, revenue from recent acquisition and sustained pricing discipline.. Its profitable recurring revenue model has provided a growth platform for technology sales over the past five years and has accelerated our technology leadership position in the field.. Turning