Plant And Equipment

12 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2011

Plant And Equipment [Abstract]

Plant And Equipment

9.  PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

The major classes of plant and equipment are as follows:

30 September	Average Useful Life		2011		2010
Land				$173.2		$172.3
Buildings		30 years		919.5		886.2
Production facilities (A)
Merchant Gases		15 years		3,256.4		3,346.3
Tonnage Gases		15 to 20 years		6,266.5		5,691.4
Electronics and Performance Materials		10 to 15 years		1,862.3		2,061.2
Equipment and Energy		5 to 20 years		165.9		296.5
Total production facilities				11,551.1		11,395.4
Distribution equipment (B)		5 to 25 years		3,092.4		2,918.6
Other machinery and equipment		10 to 25 years		252.3		248.0
Construction in progress				1,238.6		689.2
Plant and equipment, at cost				17,227.1		16,309.7
Less accumulated depreciation				9,815.1		9,258.4
Plant and equipment, net				$7,412.0		$7,051.3

^(A)  Depreciable lives of production facilities related to long-term customer supply contracts are matched to the contract lives.

^(B)  The depreciable lives for various types of distribution equipment are 10 to 25 years for cylinders, depending on the nature and properties of the product; 20 years for tanks; 7.5 years for customer stations; and 5 to 15 years for tractors and trailers.

Depreciation expense was $851.0, $837.7, and $815.9 in 2011, 2010, and 2009, respectively.