Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

LONG-TERM DEBT (Details)

v3.3.0.814
LONG-TERM DEBT (Details)
$ in Thousands
 12 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2015
USD ($)
LinesofCredit
Sep. 30, 2014
USD ($)
Sep. 30, 2015
EUR (€)
LinesofCredit
Sep. 30, 2014
EUR (€)
LONG-TERM DEBT [Abstract]        
Revolving credit facilities $ 884,254 $ 702,055    
Notes payable to banks 8,506 13,315    
Short-term borrowings 5,199 6,410    
Capital lease obligations 4,995 7,475    
Total debt and capital lease obligations 902,954 729,255    
Less current maturities (11,737) (15,228)    
Total long-term debt and capital lease obligations, excluding current maturities 891,217 714,027    
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Other current assets 77,319 49,456    
Interest rate cash flow hedges [Abstract]        
Unrealized gain (loss) on fair value of interest rate swaps, before tax (3,686) 330    
Unrealized gain (loss) on fair value of interest rate swaps, after tax (2,248) 201    
Unrealized gain (loss) expected to be recognized over the next 12 months (711)      
Domestic Revolving Credit Facility [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Maximum amount of borrowings available $ 900,000 500,000    
Interest rate on borrowings 1.75%   1.75%  
Maximum available for issuance of trade and standby letters of credit $ 30,000      
Outstanding borrowings $ 857,425 $ 680,000    
Weighted-average interest rate on outstanding borrowings 2.41% 2.53% 2.41% 2.53%
Domestic Revolving Credit Facility [Member] | Minimum [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Annual commitment fee range on unused portion 0.15%      
Domestic Revolving Credit Facility [Member] | Maximum [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Annual commitment fee range on unused portion 0.25%      
Domestic Revolving Credit Facility [Member] | LIBOR [Member] | Minimum [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Interest rate on borrowings, based on leverage ratio 0.75%      
Domestic Revolving Credit Facility [Member] | LIBOR [Member] | Maximum [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Interest rate on borrowings, based on leverage ratio 2.00%      
Credit Facility With European Bank [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Maximum amount of borrowings available $ 39,255   € 35,000,000  
Outstanding borrowings $ 26,829 $ 22,055 € 23,900,000 € 17,500,000
Weighted-average interest rate on outstanding borrowings 1.50% 1.35% 1.50% 1.35%
Lines of Credit with Italian Banks [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Outstanding borrowings $ 5,166 $ 6,063 € 4,600,000 € 4,800,000
Letter of Credit [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Other current assets $ 12,925      
Matthews International S.p.A [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Weighted-average interest rate on outstanding borrowings 3.33% 3.15% 3.33% 3.15%
Matthews International S.p.A [Member] | Lines of Credit with Italian Banks [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Maximum amount of borrowings available $ 12,707   € 11,300,000  
Outstanding borrowings $ 4,772 $ 6,922 € 4,300,000 € 5,500,000
Number of lines of credit | LinesofCredit 3   3  
Saueressig [Member] | Credit Facility With European Bank [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Outstanding borrowings $ 824 $ 1,576 € 734,452 € 1,200,000
Weighted-average interest rate on outstanding borrowings 4.04% 3.96% 4.04% 3.96%
Wetzel GmbH [Member] | Credit Facility With European Bank [Member]        
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]        
Outstanding borrowings $ 2,110 $ 3,624 € 1,900,000 € 2,900,000
Weighted-average interest rate on outstanding borrowings 5.96% 5.67% 5.96% 5.67%
Designated as Hedging Instrument [Member] | Interest Rate Swaps [Member]        
Derivatives, Fair Value [Line Items]        
Total derivatives $ (3,686) $ 330    
Designated as Hedging Instrument [Member] | Interest Rate Swaps [Member] | Current assets: Other Current Assets [Member]        
Derivatives, Fair Value [Line Items]        
Assets derivatives 0 324    
Designated as Hedging Instrument [Member] | Interest Rate Swaps [Member] | Long-term assets: Other Assets [Member]        
Derivatives, Fair Value [Line Items]        
Assets derivatives 0 2,133    
Designated as Hedging Instrument [Member] | Interest Rate Swaps [Member] | Current liabilities: Other current liabilities [Member]        
Derivatives, Fair Value [Line Items]        
Liability derivatives (1,165) (1,808)    
Designated as Hedging Instrument [Member] | Interest Rate Swaps [Member] | Long-term liabilities: Other liabilities [Member]        
Derivatives, Fair Value [Line Items]        
Liability derivatives $ (2,521) (319)    
Interest Rate Swap 1 [Member]        
Derivative [Line Items]        
Effective Date October 2011      
Amount $ 25,000      
Fixed Interest Rate 1.67%   1.67%  
Interest Rate Spread 1.75%   1.75%  
Maturity Date October 2015      
Interest Rate Swap 2 [Member]        
Derivative [Line Items]        
Effective Date June 2012      
Amount $ 40,000      
Fixed Interest Rate 1.88%   1.88%  
Interest Rate Spread 1.75%   1.75%  
Maturity Date June 2022      
Interest Rate Swap 3 [Member]        
Derivative [Line Items]        
Effective Date August 2012      
Amount $ 35,000      
Fixed Interest Rate 1.74%   1.74%  
Interest Rate Spread 1.75%   1.75%  
Maturity Date June 2022      
Interest Rate Swap 4 [Member]        
Derivative [Line Items]        
Effective Date September 2012      
Amount $ 25,000      
Fixed Interest Rate 3.03%   3.03%  
Interest Rate Spread 1.75%   1.75%  
Maturity Date December 2015      
Interest Rate Swap 5 [Member]        
Derivative [Line Items]        
Effective Date September 2012      
Amount $ 25,000      
Fixed Interest Rate 1.24%   1.24%  
Interest Rate Spread 1.75%   1.75%  
Maturity Date March 2017      
Interest Rate Swap 6 [Member]        
Derivative [Line Items]        
Effective Date November 2012      
Amount $ 25,000      
Fixed Interest Rate 1.33%   1.33%  
Interest Rate Spread 1.75%   1.75%  
Maturity Date November 2015      
Interest Rate Swap 7 [Member]        
Derivative [Line Items]        
Effective Date May 2014      
Amount $ 25,000      
Fixed Interest Rate 1.35%   1.35%  
Interest Rate Spread 1.75%   1.75%  
Maturity Date May 2018      
Interest Rate Swap 8 [Member]        
Derivative [Line Items]        
Effective Date November 2014      
Amount $ 25,000      
Fixed Interest Rate 1.26%   1.26%  
Interest Rate Spread 1.75%   1.75%  
Maturity Date June 2018      
Interest Rate Swap 9 [Member]        
Derivative [Line Items]        
Effective Date March 2015      
Amount $ 25,000      
Fixed Interest Rate 1.49%   1.49%  
Interest Rate Spread 1.75%   1.75%  
Maturity Date March 2019      
Interest Rate Swap 10 [Member]        
Derivative [Line Items]        
Effective Date September 2015      
Amount $ 25,000      
Fixed Interest Rate 1.39%   1.39%  
Interest Rate Spread 1.75%   1.75%  
Maturity Date September 2020      
Interest Rate Swap 11 [Member]        
Derivative [Line Items]        
Effective Date December 2015      
Amount $ 25,000      
Fixed Interest Rate 1.59%   1.59%  
Interest Rate Spread 1.75%   1.75%  
Maturity Date December 2020      
Cash Flow Hedging [Member] | Interest Rate Swaps [Member] | Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Member]        
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]        
Amount of loss recognized in AOCI on derivatives $ (4,841) (1,879)    
Cash Flow Hedging [Member] | Interest Rate Swaps [Member] | Interest Expense [Member]        
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]        
Amount of loss recognized in income on derivatives (3,922) (4,318)    
Amount of gain or (loss) reclassified from AOCI into Income (effective portion) $ (2,392) [1] $ (2,634) [1]    
[1] There is no ineffective portion or amount excluded from effectiveness testing.