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SELECTED FINANCIAL STATEMENT INFORMATION | 9 Months Ended
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Jul. 31, 2017
Selected Financial Statement Information [Abstract] |
Selected Financial Statement Information [Text Block] | SELECTED FINANCIAL STATEMENT INFORMATION Accounts Receivable
(in thousands) |  | July 31, 2017 |  | October 31, 2016
Accounts receivable |  |  | $209,873 |  |  |  | $205,386 |
Less: Allowance for doubtful accounts |  | (3,468 | ) |  | (3,159 | )
Accounts receivable, net |  |  | $206,405 |  |  |  | $202,227 |
Costs and Estimated Earnings on Uncompleted Percentage-of-Completion Contracts
(in thousands) |  | July 31, 2017 |  | October 31, 2016
Costs incurred on uncompleted contracts |  |  | $24,114 |  |  |  | $19,086 |
Estimated earnings |  | 17,463 |  |  | 13,887 |
|  | 41,577 |  |  | 32,973 |
Less: Billings to date |  | (43,652 | ) |  | (39,142 | )
|  |  | ($2,075 | ) |  |  | ($6,169 | )
Included in the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets under the following captions: |  |  |  |
Accounts receivable, net (costs and estimated earnings in excess of billings) |  |  | $3,730 |  |  |  | $4,839 |
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities (billings in excess of costs and estimated earnings) |  | (5,805 | ) |  | (11,008 | )
|  |  | ($2,075 | ) |  |  | ($6,169 | )
Changes in estimates pertaining to percentage-of-completion contracts did not have a material effect on net income from consolidated operations for the nine and three months ended July 31, 2017 and 2016. Inventories
(in thousands) |  | July 31, 2017 |  | October 31, 2016
Finished products |  |  | $171,587 |  |  |  | $131,008 |
Work in process |  | 39,893 |  |  | 36,076 |
Materials, parts, assemblies and supplies |  | 126,246 |  |  | 117,153 |
Contracts in process |  | 3,536 |  |  | 3,253 |
Less: Billings to date |  | (791 | ) |  | (1,188 | )
Inventories, net of valuation reserves |  |  | $340,471 |  |  |  | $286,302 |
Contracts in process represents accumulated capitalized costs associated with fixed price contracts. Related progress billings and customer advances (“billings to date”) are classified as a reduction to contracts in process, if any, and any excess is included in accrued expenses and other liabilities. Property, Plant and Equipment
(in thousands) |  | July 31, 2017 |  | October 31, 2016
Land |  |  | $5,099 |  |  |  | $5,090 |
Buildings and improvements |  | 86,592 |  |  | 79,205 |
Machinery, equipment and tooling |  | 189,577 |  |  | 171,717 |
Construction in progress |  | 9,887 |  |  | 10,453 |
|  | 291,155 |  |  | 266,465 |
Less: Accumulated depreciation and amortization |  | (161,250 | ) |  | (144,854 | )
Property, plant and equipment, net |  |  | $129,905 |  |  |  | $121,611 |
Accrued Customer Rebates and Credits The aggregate amount of accrued customer rebates and credits included within accrued expenses and other current liabilities in the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets was $11.9 million as of both July 31, 2017 and October 31, 2016. The total customer rebates and credits deducted within net sales for the nine months ended July 31, 2017 and 2016 was $8.1 million and $8.3 million, respectively. The total customer rebates and credits deducted within net sales for the three months ended July 31, 2017 and 2016 was $2.7 million and $3.1 million, respectively. Research and Development Expenses The amount of new product research and development ("R&D") expenses included in cost of sales for the nine and three months ended July 31, 2017 and 2016 is as follows (in thousands):
|  | Nine months ended July 31, |  | Three months ended July 31,
|  | 2017 |  | 2016 |  | 2017 |  | 2016
R&D expenses |  |  | $33,889 |  |  |  | $32,666 |  |  |  | $11,420 |  |  |  | $12,674 |
Redeemable Noncontrolling Interests The holders of equity interests in certain of the Company's subsidiaries have rights ("Put Rights") that may be exercised on varying dates causing the Company to purchase their equity interests through fiscal 2025. The Put Rights, all of which relate either to common shares or membership interests in limited liability companies, provide that the cash consideration to be paid for their equity interests (the "Redemption Amount") be at fair value or a formula that management intended to reasonably approximate fair value based solely on a multiple of future earnings over a measurement period. Management's estimate of the aggregate Redemption Amount of all Put Rights that the Company could be required to pay is as follows (in thousands):
|  | July 31, 2017 |  | October 31, 2016
Redeemable at fair value |  |  | $83,244 |  |  |  | $85,574 |
Redeemable based on a multiple of future earnings |  | 43,637 |  |  | 13,938 |
Redeemable noncontrolling interests |  |  | $126,881 |  |  |  | $99,512 |
As discussed in Note 2, Acquisitions, the Company, through the FSG, acquired an 80.1% equity interest in A2C in April 2017. As part of the purchase agreement, the Company has the right to purchase the noncontrolling interest in the subsidiary over a two-year period beginning in fiscal 2022, or sooner under certain conditions, and the noncontrolling interest holder has the right to cause the Company to purchase the same equity interest over the same period. Pursuant to the purchase agreement related to the acquisition of an 80.1% equity interest in a subsidiary by the FSG in fiscal 2011, the holders of the 19.9% noncontrolling interest in the subsidiary exercised their option during fiscal 2016 to cause the Company to purchase their interest over a two-year period ending in fiscal 2017. During the second quarter of fiscal 2017, the Company acquired the remaining 9.95% noncontrolling interest in the subsidiary effective March 2017. The purchase price of the redeemable noncontrolling interest acquired was paid using cash provided by operating activities. Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss Changes in the components of accumulated other comprehensive loss for the nine months ended July 31, 2017 are as follows (in thousands):
|  | Foreign Currency Translation |  | Pension Benefit Obligation |  | Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss
Balances as of October 31, 2016 |  |  | ($23,953 | ) |  |  | ($1,373 | ) |  |  | ($25,326 | )
Unrealized gain |  | 16,737 |  |  | — |  |  | 16,737 |
Amortization of unrealized loss on defined benefit pension plan, net of tax |  | — |  |  | 22 |  |  | 22 |
Balances as of July 31, 2017 |  |  | ($7,216 | ) |  |  | ($1,351 | ) |  |  | ($8,567 | )

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