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PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET | 9 Months Ended
--- | ---
Sep. 30, 2013
PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET |
PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET | 5. PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET As of September 30, 2013 and December 31, 2012, property, plant and equipment consisted of the following:
(In millions) |  | September 30, 2013 |  | December 31, 2012 |
--- | --- | --- | --- | --- | ---
Machinery and equipment |  | $ | 2,306.9 |  | $ | 1,492.6 |
Buildings |  |  | 223.9 |  |  | 203.7 |
Depletable land and land improvements |  |  | 291.2 |  |  | 90.4 |
Construction-in-progress |  |  | 97.6 |  |  | 33.6 |
Property, plant and equipment, at cost |  |  | 2,919.6 |  |  | 1,820.3 |
Less: accumulated depreciation |  |  | 1,270.3 |  |  | 1,182.6 |
Property, plant and equipment, net |  | $ | 1,649.3 |  | $ | 637.7 |
Depreciation expense is computed using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets. We periodically monitor actual experience to determine whether events and circumstances have occurred that may warrant revision of the estimated useful lives of property, plant and equipment. Effective January 1, 2013, we changed the useful lives of certain property, plant and equipment as a result of our historical experience which demonstrated longer useful lives for certain classes of assets. The change was accounted for as a change in estimate and applied prospectively. For the three months ended September 30, 2013, the effect of the change decreased depreciation expense by $5.2 million, increased net income attributable to Axiall by approximately $3.3 million and increased diluted earnings per share by $0.05. For the nine months ended September 30, 2013, the effect of the change decreased depreciation expense by $16.0 million, increased net income attributable to Axiall by approximately $10.1 million and increased diluted earnings per share by $0.15. The estimated useful lives of our property, plant and equipment are as follows:
Buildings |  |  | 27-39 years |
Depletable land and land improvements |  |  | 15-25 years |
Machinery, plant and equipment |  |  | 2-25 years |
Dies and moulds |  |  | 3-10 years |
Office furniture and equipment |  |  | 2-10 years |
Computer equipment and software |  |  | 3-10 years |

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- Definition The entire disclosure for long-lived, physical assets used in the normal conduct of business and not intended for resale. Includes, but is not limited to, accounting policies and methodology, roll forwards, depreciation, depletion and amortization expense, including composite depreciation, accumulated depreciation, depletion and amortization expense, useful lives and method used, income statement disclosures, assets held for sale and public utility disclosures. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 360 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6391035&loc=d3e2868-110229 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 360 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 2 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6391110&loc=d3e2921-110230 Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 205 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6360339&loc=d3e1361-107760 Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 210 -SubTopic 10 -Section S99 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (SX 210.5-02.13-14) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6877327&loc=d3e13212-122682 + Details
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