Borrowings (Narrative) (Details)	0 Months Ended	3 Months Ended	0 Months Ended		3 Months Ended	0 Months Ended	3 Months Ended	0 Months Ended	3 Months Ended				3 Months Ended						3 Months Ended			3 Months Ended
	Dec. 06, 2010 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 USD ($)	Jun. 09, 2010 2.58% Senior Euro Notes [Member] USD ($)	Jun. 09, 2010 2.58% Senior Euro Notes [Member] EUR (€)	Mar. 31, 2012 2.58% Senior Euro Notes [Member]	Dec. 09, 2011 4.2% Senior Notes [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 4.2% Senior Notes [Member]	Dec. 06, 2010 4.5 % Senior Notes [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 4.5 % Senior Notes [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Other Borrowings [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 IDEX UK Ltd [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 IDEX UK Ltd [Member] GBP (£)	Mar. 31, 2012 Letters Of Credit [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Swing Line Loans [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Revolving Credit Facility [Member] USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2011 Revolving Credit Facility [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2012 Minimum [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Minimum [Member] Other Borrowings [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Minimum [Member] Revolving Credit Facility [Member] 2.58% Senior Euro Notes [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Maximum [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Maximum [Member] Other Borrowings [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Maximum [Member] Revolving Credit Facility [Member] 2.58% Senior Euro Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Revolving facility closing date		June 27, 2011
Replaced credit facility due to expire		$ 600,000,000
Revolving facility principal amount		700,000,000											75,000,000	25,000,000
Revolving facility expiration date		June 27, 2016
Aggregate commitments of designated borrowers under the Credit Facility		950,000,000
Current borrowings under revolving facility											3,200,000	2,000,000	7,000,000
Applicable margin over LIBOR		1.05%															0.875%			1.70%
Annual credit facility fee basis point rate spread over LIBOR		20
Net available borrowing under Revolving Facility		681,800,000
Principal amount of private placement			96,800,000	81,000,000		350,000,000
Stated interest rate			2.58%	2.58%		4.20%		4.50%										1.50%			5.20%
Debt instrument maturity period			June 9, 2015	June 9, 2015		December 15, 2021		December 15, 2020
Debt instrument maximum amount outstanding			750,000,000
Repayment, minimum percentage outstanding					5.00%
Debt instrument face amount								300,000,000
Net proceeds from debt offering						346,200,000		295,700,000
Debt offering initial discount						900,000		1,600,000
Leverage ratio		3.25																				3.25
Debt offering underwriting commission						2,300,000		1,900,000
Estimated offering expenses						600,000		800,000
Outstanding repayment of indebtedness	250,000,000					306,000,000
Contingent percentage of principal amount plus accrued and unpaid interest							101.00%		101.00%
Revolving Facility															11,181,000	50,798,000
Other borrowings										$ 7,000,000
Interest coverage ratio																			3.0