Business Acquisitions, Investments and Redeemable Noncontrolling Interests (Details 1) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended					0 Months Ended		0 Months Ended				3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 01, 2012	Aug. 27, 2011	Sep. 01, 2012	Aug. 27, 2011	Dec. 03, 2011	Sep. 01, 2012 Fair Value, Inputs, Level 3 [Member]	Dec. 03, 2011 Fair Value, Inputs, Level 3 [Member]	May 09, 2012 Modular [Member]	Sep. 01, 2012 Modular [Member]	Dec. 30, 2011 PDDA [Member]	Dec. 30, 2011 PDDA [Member] Customer Relationships [Member]	Dec. 30, 2011 PDDA [Member] Noncompete Agreements [Member]	Dec. 29, 2010 TransWeb [Member]	Sep. 01, 2012 TransWeb [Member]	Aug. 27, 2011 TransWeb [Member]	Sep. 01, 2012 TransWeb [Member]	Aug. 27, 2011 TransWeb [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Business Acquisition, Effective Date of Acquisition								May 09, 2012		Dec. 30, 2011			Dec. 29, 2010
Business Acquisition, Percentage of Voting Interests Acquired								100.00%					100.00%
Business Acquisition, Name of Acquired Entity								Modular Engineering Company Pty Ltd.		PDDA Filtration, Inc.			TransWeb LLC
Business Acquisition, Base Purchase Price Excluding Cash Acquired								$ 7,875					$ 30,017
Business Acquisition, Cost of Acquired Entity, Purchase Price										530
Payments to Acquire Businesses, Gross								5,237
Business Acquisition, Purchase Price Withheld													17,000
Business Acquisition, Description of Acquired Entity								a manufacturer of pressure vessels, process and storage tanks and other natural gas filtration products and distributor of aftermarket elements		privately-held provider of filtration solutions			a privately-owned manufacturer of media used in a variety of end-use applications, including respirators and heating, ventilation and air conditioning ("HVAC") filters
Business Combination, Reason for Business Combination								acquisition of Modular gives the Company first-fit manufacturing capabilities in Western Australia, as well as a platform for aftermarket growth throughout the region		PDDA specializes in liquid process filtration products, serving customers in diverse industries including chemical processing, food and beverage, oil and gas, power generation, water, wine and biofuel production			to expand the Company’s technology capabilities in the area of media development and to enhance the product offerings of the Company's filtration operating companies
Net sales	286,733	284,819	828,852	819,072										2,143	3,935	7,908	8,828
Operating profit	46,181	46,461	129,604	126,532										(73)	794	440	1,268
Business Acquisition, Transaction Costs									250
TransWeb contingent earn-out, included in Other long-term liabilities	1,255		1,255		1,123	1,255	1,123						1,018
TransWeb contingent earn-out, Contingent Consideration, Accounting Treatment													The contingent liability for the earn-out payment will continue to be accounted for and measured at fair value until the contingency is settled
TransWeb contingent earn-out, Contingent Consideration, Settlement Date													Nov. 30, 2016
Acquired Finite-lived Intangible Asset, Amount											400	50
Acquired Finite-lived Intangible Asset, Weighted Average Useful Life											5 years	3 years
Business Acquisition, Purchase Price Allocation, Current Assets, Inventory										80
Business Acquisition, Purchase Price Allocation, Goodwill Amount								5,339
Business Acquisition, Purchase Price Allocation, Amortizable Intangible Assets								2,552
Business Acquisition, Purchase Price Allocation, Current Liabilities										$ 200