Accounts Receivable - Additional Information (Detail) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Accounts Notes And Loans Receivable [Line Items]
Retainages expected to be collected in 2018	$ 121,000,000
Retainages expected to be collected in 2019	6,000,000
Allowance for doubtful accounts	$ 0	$ 0
Maximum [Member]
Accounts Notes And Loans Receivable [Line Items]
Employee receivables expected collection months	12 months

Employee receivables collection period.

No definition available.

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Namespace Prefix:	mdr_
Data Type:	xbrli:durationItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

- Definition

Line items represent financial concepts included in a table. These concepts are used to disclose reportable information associated with domain members defined in one or many axes to the table.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

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Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

- Definition

For an unclassified balance sheet, a valuation allowance for receivables due a company that are expected to be uncollectible.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 310
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 4
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=66008989&loc=d3e5074-111524

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 210
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.5-02.4)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6877327&loc=d3e13212-122682

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_AllowanceForDoubtfulAccountsReceivable
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	credit
Period Type:	instant

- Definition

Amount billed to customers under long-term contracts or programs that have been withheld because of retainage provisions in a contract to be collected in the second fiscal year following the latest fiscal year. Excludes interim and annual periods when interim periods are reported on a rolling approach, from latest balance sheet date.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 910
-SubTopic 310
-Section 50
-Paragraph 4
-Subparagraph (b),(c)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=68065756&loc=d3e49370-109356

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 210
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.5-02.3(c)(4))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6877327&loc=d3e13212-122682

+ Details

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Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	instant

- Definition

Amount billed to customers under long-term contracts or programs that have been withheld because of retainage provisions in a contract to be collected in the third fiscal year following the latest fiscal year. Excludes interim and annual periods when interim periods are reported on a rolling approach, from latest balance sheet date.

+ References

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_ContractReceivableRetainageDueTwoToThreeYears
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	instant

- Details

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