Consolidated Statements of Income - USD ($) shares in Millions, $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Jan. 02, 2016	Jan. 03, 2015	Dec. 28, 2013
Income Statement [Abstract]
Net Sales	$ 3,509.7	$ 3,257.1	$ 3,095.7
Cost of Sales	2,576.5	2,459.8	2,312.5
Gross Profit	933.2	797.3	783.2
Operating Expenses	600.5	516.3	494.2
Goodwill Impairment	79.9	119.5	76.3
Asset Impairments and Other, Net	0.0	40.0	4.7
Total Operating Expenses	680.4	675.8	575.2
Income from Operations	252.8	121.5	208.0
Interest Expense	60.2	39.1	42.4
Interest Income	4.3	7.9	4.9
Income before Taxes	196.9	90.3	170.5
Provision for Income Taxes	48.4	54.2	44.5
Net Income	148.5	36.1	126.0
Less: Net Income Attributable to Noncontrolling Interests	5.2	5.1	6.0
Net Income Attributable to Regal Beloit Corporation	$ 143.3	$ 31.0	$ 120.0
Earnings Per Share Attributable to Regal Beloit Corporation:
Basic (in dollars per shares)	$ 3.21	$ 0.69	$ 2.66
Assuming Dilution (in dollars per share)	$ 3.18	$ 0.69	$ 2.64
Weighted Average Number of Shares Outstanding:
Basic (in shares)	44.7	45.0	45.0
Assuming Dilution (in shares)	45.1	45.3	45.4