Basis Of Presentation	3 Months Ended
Apr. 04, 2015
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Basis Of Presentation	BASIS OF PRESENTATION The accompanying (a) condensed consolidated balance sheet of Regal Beloit Corporation (the “Company”) as of January 3, 2015, which has been derived from audited financial statements, and (b) unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements as of April 4, 2015 and for the three months ended April 4, 2015 and March 29, 2014, have been prepared pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Certain information and note disclosures normally included in annual financial statements prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States ("GAAP"), have been condensed or omitted pursuant to those rules and regulations, although the Company believes that the disclosures made are adequate to make the information not misleading. It is suggested that these condensed consolidated financial statements be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto included in the Company’s 2014 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 4, 2015. In the opinion of management, all adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation of financial results have been made. Except as otherwise discussed, such adjustments consist of only those of a normal recurring nature. Operating results for the three months ended April 4, 2015 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the entire fiscal year ending January 2, 2016. The condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with GAAP, which require the Company to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and revenues and expenses during the periods reported. Actual results could differ from those estimates. The Company uses estimates in accounting for, among other items, allowance for doubtful accounts; excess and obsolete inventory; share-based compensation; acquisitions; product warranty obligations; pension assets and liabilities; derivative fair values; goodwill and other asset impairments; health care reserves; retirement benefits; rebates and incentives; litigation claims and contingencies, including environmental matters; and income taxes. The Company accounts for changes to estimates and assumptions when warranted by factually based experience. The Company operates on a 52/53 week fiscal year ending on the Saturday closest to December 31. Accounting for Highly Inflationary Economies The Company has a subsidiary in Venezuela using accounting for highly inflationary economies. Currency restrictions enacted by the Venezuelan government have the potential to impact the ability of the Company's subsidiary to obtain U.S. dollars in exchange for Venezuelan bolivares fuertes ("Bolivars") at the official foreign exchange rate. In 2014, the Venezuelan government announced the expansion of its auction-based foreign exchange system (SICAD1). The Venezuelan government also introduced an additional auction-based foreign exchange system (SICAD2) which permits all companies incorporated or domiciled in Venezuela to bid for U.S. dollars. Effective January 3, 2015, the Company concluded that it was appropriate to apply the SICAD2 exchange rate of 51.0 Bolivars per US Dollar as management believes that this rate best represents the economics of the Company's business activity in Venezuela at that time. On February 12, 2015, the Venezuelan government replaced SICAD 2 with a new foreign exchange market mechanism (“SIMADI”). The Company expects to be able to access U.S. dollars through the SIMADI market. SIMADI has significantly higher foreign exchange rates than those available through the other foreign exchange mechanisms. In the three-month period ended April 4, 2015, the Company recorded a $1.5 million foreign exchange loss resulting from the remeasurement of monetary assets and liabilities of the Company's Venezuelan subsidiary at the SIMADI rate of 193 Bolivars per U.S. dollar. New Accounting Standards On April 15, 2015, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued Accounting Standard Update ("ASU")2015-04, Practical Expedient for the Measurement Date of an Employer's Defined Benefit Obligation and Plan Assets, which permits a reporting entity with a fiscal year-end that does not coincide with a month-end to measure defined benefit plan assets and obligations using the month-end that is closest to the entity's fiscal year-end and apply that practical expedient consistently from year to year. The standard is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, and interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted. The new guidance should be applied on a prospective basis. The adoption of this standard is not expected to have a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements. On April 7, 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-03, Simplifying the Presentation of Debt Issuance Costs, which requires debt issuance costs to be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the associated debt liability. The standard is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, and interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted for financial statements that have not been previously issued. The new guidance will be applied on a retrospective basis. The adoption of this standard is not expected to have a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements. In May 2014, the FASB issued Revenue from Contracts with Customers ASU 2014-09, a comprehensive new revenue recognition standard that will supersede nearly all existing revenue recognition guidance under U.S. GAAP. This update requires the Company to recognize revenue at amounts that reflect the consideration to which the Company expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services at the time of transfer. In doing so, the Company will need to use more judgment and make more estimates than under today’s guidance. Such estimates include identifying performance obligations in the contracts, estimating the amount of variable consideration to include in the transaction price and allocating the transaction price to each separate performance obligation. The Company can either apply a full retrospective adoption or a modified retrospective adoption. The Company is required to adopt the new requirements in the first quarter of 2017. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of the new requirements to its consolidated financial statements.

BASIS OF PRESENTATION

The accompanying (a) condensed consolidated balance sheet of Regal Beloit Corporation (the “Company”) as of January 3, 2015, which has been derived from audited financial statements, and (b) unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements as of April 4, 2015 and for the three months ended April 4, 2015 and March 29, 2014, have been prepared pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Certain information and note disclosures normally included in annual financial statements prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States ("GAAP"), have been condensed or omitted pursuant to those rules and regulations, although the Company believes that the disclosures made are adequate to make the information not misleading.

It is suggested that these condensed consolidated financial statements be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto included in the Company’s 2014 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 4, 2015.

In the opinion of management, all adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation of financial results have been made. Except as otherwise discussed, such adjustments consist of only those of a normal recurring nature. Operating results for the three months ended April 4, 2015 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the entire fiscal year ending January 2, 2016.

The condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with GAAP, which require the Company to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and revenues and expenses during the periods reported. Actual results could differ from those estimates. The Company uses estimates in accounting for, among other items, allowance for doubtful accounts; excess and obsolete inventory; share-based compensation; acquisitions; product warranty obligations; pension assets and liabilities; derivative fair values; goodwill and other asset impairments; health care reserves; retirement benefits; rebates and incentives; litigation claims and contingencies, including environmental matters; and income taxes. The Company accounts for changes to estimates and assumptions when warranted by factually based experience.

The Company operates on a 52/53 week fiscal year ending on the Saturday closest to December 31.

Accounting for Highly Inflationary Economies

The Company has a subsidiary in Venezuela using accounting for highly inflationary economies. Currency restrictions enacted by the Venezuelan government have the potential to impact the ability of the Company's subsidiary to obtain U.S. dollars in exchange for Venezuelan bolivares fuertes ("Bolivars") at the official foreign exchange rate. In 2014, the Venezuelan government announced the expansion of its auction-based foreign exchange system (SICAD1). The Venezuelan government also introduced an additional auction-based foreign exchange system (SICAD2) which permits all companies incorporated or domiciled in Venezuela to bid for U.S. dollars. Effective January 3, 2015, the Company concluded that it was appropriate to apply the SICAD2 exchange rate of 51.0 Bolivars per US Dollar as management believes that this rate best represents the economics of the Company's business activity in Venezuela at that time.

On February 12, 2015, the Venezuelan government replaced SICAD 2 with a new foreign exchange market mechanism (“SIMADI”). The Company expects to be able to access U.S. dollars through the SIMADI market. SIMADI has significantly higher foreign exchange rates than those available through the other foreign exchange mechanisms. In the three-month period ended April 4, 2015, the Company recorded a $1.5 million foreign exchange loss resulting from the remeasurement of monetary assets and liabilities of the Company's Venezuelan subsidiary at the SIMADI rate of 193 Bolivars per U.S. dollar.

New Accounting Standards

On April 15, 2015, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued Accounting Standard Update ("ASU")2015-04, Practical Expedient for the Measurement Date of an Employer's Defined Benefit Obligation and Plan Assets, which permits a reporting entity with a fiscal year-end that does not coincide with a month-end to measure defined benefit plan assets and obligations using the month-end that is closest to the entity's fiscal year-end and apply that practical expedient consistently from year to year. The standard is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, and interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted. The new guidance should be applied on a prospective basis. The adoption of this standard is not expected to have a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements.

On April 7, 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-03, Simplifying the Presentation of Debt Issuance Costs, which requires debt issuance costs to be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the associated debt liability. The standard is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, and interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted for financial statements that have not been previously issued. The new guidance will be applied on a retrospective basis. The adoption of this standard is not expected to have a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements.

In May 2014, the FASB issued Revenue from Contracts with Customers ASU 2014-09, a comprehensive new revenue recognition standard that will supersede nearly all existing revenue recognition guidance under U.S. GAAP. This update requires the Company to recognize revenue at amounts that reflect the consideration to which the Company expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services at the time of transfer. In doing so, the Company will need to use more judgment and make more estimates than under today’s guidance. Such estimates include identifying performance obligations in the contracts, estimating the amount of variable consideration to include in the transaction price and allocating the transaction price to each separate performance obligation. The Company can either apply a full retrospective adoption or a modified retrospective adoption. The Company is required to adopt the new requirements in the first quarter of 2017. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of the new requirements to its consolidated financial statements.