providing us with future product development opportunities and expanding our already substantial intellectual property portfolio. Available Information Our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, definitive proxy statements on Form 14A, current reports on Form 8-K, and any amendments to those reports are made available free of charge on our Company website, www.cabotcmp.com, as soon as reasonably practicable after such reports are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Statements of changes in beneficial ownership of our securities on Form 4 by our executive officers and directors are made available on our Company website by the end of the business day following the submission to the SEC of such filings. In addition, the SEC’s website (http://www.sec.gov) contains reports, proxy statements, and other information that we file electronically with the SEC. Environmental Matters Our facilities are subject to various environmental laws and regulations, including those relating to air emissions, wastewater discharges, the handling and disposal of solid and hazardous wastes, and occupational safety and health. We believe that our facilities are in substantial compliance with applicable environmental laws and regulations. By utilizing Six Sigma in our environmental management system process, we believe we have improved operating efficiencies while preserving the environment. Our operations in the United States, Japan, Singapore, Europe and Taiwan are ISO 14001 certified, which requires that we implement and operate according to various procedures that demonstrate our dedication to waste reduction, energy conservation and other environmental concerns. We are committed to maintaining these certifications and are actively pursuing ISO 18001 Safety and Health certification for our existing operations. We will also seek to obtain additional certifications, as applicable, in the areas in which we do business. We have incurred, and will continue to incur, capital and operating expenditures and other costs in complying with these laws and regulations in both the United States and other countries. However, we currently do not anticipate that the future costs of environmental compliance will have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations. Item 1A. Risk Factors Other than the incurrence of $175.0 million of long-term debt as described below and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, we do not believe there have been any material changes in our risk factors since the filing of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2011. However, we may update our risk factors in our SEC filings from time to time for clarification purposes or to include additional information, at management’s discretion, even when there have been no material changes. Risks Relating to Our Business Demand for Our Products Fluctuates and Our Business May Be Adversely Affected by Worldwide Economic and Industry Conditions Our business is affected by economic and industry conditions and our revenue is primarily dependent upon semiconductor demand. Semiconductor demand, in turn, is impacted by semiconductor industry cycles, and these cycles can dramatically affect our business. These cycles may be characterized by rapid increases or decreases in product demand, excess or low customer inventories, and rapid changes in prices of IC devices. For example, following approximately two quarters of soft demand in the semiconductor industry during the first half of our fiscal 2012 that followed approximately two years of growth, we again saw industry demand strengthen somewhat during the second half of our fiscal 2012. By the very end of fiscal 2012, however, we began to see what appears to be some softening of demand. In addition, our business has experienced historical seasonal trends as we saw our revenue decrease in the second quarter of fiscal 2012 from the revenue recorded in the first quarter of 2012. Furthermore, competitive dynamics within the semiconductor industry may impact our business. Our limited visibility to future Employees We believe we have a world-class team of employees who make the Company successful. As of October 31, 2012, we employed 1,042 individuals, including 555 in operations, 261 in research and development and technical, 102 in sales and marketing and 124 in administration. In general, none of our employees are covered by collective bargaining agreements. We have not experienced any work stoppages and in general consider our relations with our employees to be good. Financial Information About Geographic Areas We sell our products worldwide. Our geographic coverage allows us to utilize our business and technical expertise from a worldwide workforce, provides stability to our operations and revenue streams to offset geographyspecific economic trends, and offers us an opportunity to take advantage of new markets for products. For more financial information about geographic areas, see Note 18 of “Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements” included in Item 8 of Part II of this Form 10-K. 11