Retirement Benefits

The Company sponsors several qualified and nonqualified defined benefit and defined contribution pension plans and other postretirement plans for its employees. The following tables provide the components of net periodic benefit cost for its major defined benefit plans and its other postretirement plans.



	Pension Benefits
	Three Months Ended September 30,
	2018						2017
	U.S.			Non-U.S.			U.S.			Non-U.S.
Service cost	$	156		$	520		$	224		$	520
Interest cost	669			341			687			332
Expected return on plan assets	(991		)	(276		)	(986		)	(277		)
Net amortization	664			312			641			418
Net periodic benefit cost	$	498		$	897		$	566		$	993



	Pension Benefits
	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2018						2017
	U.S.			Non-U.S.			U.S.			Non-U.S.
Service cost	$	665		$	1,592		$	732		$	1,496
Interest cost	1,975			1,053			2,008			957
Expected return on plan assets	(2,957		)	(848		)	(2,874		)	(811		)
Net amortization	2,034			964			1,924			1,195
Net periodic benefit cost	$	1,717		$	2,761		$	1,790		$	2,837



	Other Postretirement Benefits
	Three Months Ended September 30,						Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2018			2017			2018			2017
Service cost	$	167		$	152		$	502		$	456
Interest cost	202			203			608			611
Net amortization	(185		)	(198		)	(553		)	(595		)
Net periodic benefit cost	$	184		$	157		$	557		$	472

The Company previously disclosed in its financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017, that it expected to contribute approximately $5.5 million to its defined benefit plans and $0.1 million to its other postretirement benefit plans in 2018. During the first nine months of 2018, the Company contributed a total of $12.6 million to fund these plans and expects to contribute an additional $0.8 million in the remaining three months of 2018. Included in the total of the $12.6 million is a discretionary contribution for $10.3 million to the U.S. pension plan made in the three months ended September 30, 2018.