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Retirement Plans (Other Post-Retirement Retirement Plan) (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2014 | Dec. 31, 2013
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items] |  |
General Discussion of Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits | The Company has six retirement plans which cover its hourly and salaried employees in the United States: three defined benefit plans (one active / two frozen) and three defined contribution plans. Employees are eligible to participate in the appropriate plan based on employment classification. The Company's funding to the defined benefit and defined contribution plans are governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), applicable plan policy and investment guidelines. The Company policy is to contribute at least the minimum in accordance with the funding standards of ERISA.The Company's subsidiary, L.B. Foster Rail Technologies (Rail Technologies), maintains two defined contribution plans for its employees in Canada, as well as a post-retirement benefit plan. In the United Kingdom, Rail Technologies maintains both a defined contribution plan and a defined benefit plan. These plans are discussed in further detail below |
Other Post-Retirement Benefit Plan [Member] |  |
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items] |  |
General Discussion of Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits | Rail Technologies' operation near Montreal, Quebec, Canada, maintains a post-retirement benefit plan, which provides retiree life insurance, health care benefits, and, for a closed group of employees, dental care. Retiring employees with a minimum of 10 years of service are eligible for the plan benefits. The plan is not funded. Cost of benefits earned by employees is charged to expense as services are rendered. The expense related to this plan was not material for 2014 and 2013. Rail Technologies' accrued benefit obligation was $1,172 and $1,080 as of December 31, 2014 and 2013, respectively. Benefit payments anticipated for 2015 are not material. This obligation is recognized within other long-term liabilities |
Pension and Other Postretirement Defined Benefit Plans, Liabilities, Noncurrent | $ 1,172 us-gaap_PensionAndOtherPostretirementDefinedBenefitPlansLiabilitiesNoncurrent / us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis = fstr_OtherPostRetirementBenefitPlanMember | $ 1,080 us-gaap_PensionAndOtherPostretirementDefinedBenefitPlansLiabilitiesNoncurrent / us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis = fstr_OtherPostRetirementBenefitPlanMember
Projected benefit obligation: Discount rate | 4.00%us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanAssumptionsUsedCalculatingBenefitObligationDiscountRate / us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis = fstr_OtherPostRetirementBenefitPlanMember | 5.00%us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanAssumptionsUsedCalculatingBenefitObligationDiscountRate / us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis = fstr_OtherPostRetirementBenefitPlanMember
Weighted average health care trend rate | 6.20%us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanHealthCareCostTrendRateAssumedForNextFiscalYear / us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis = fstr_OtherPostRetirementBenefitPlanMember | 6.40%us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanHealthCareCostTrendRateAssumedForNextFiscalYear / us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis = fstr_OtherPostRetirementBenefitPlanMember
Defined Benefit Plan, Ultimate Health Care Cost Trend Rate | 4.40%us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanUltimateHealthCareCostTrendRate / us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis = fstr_OtherPostRetirementBenefitPlanMember |
Defined Benefit Plan, Effect of One Percentage Point Increase on Service and Interest Cost Components | 5 us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanEffectOfOnePercentagePointIncreaseOnServiceAndInterestCostComponents / us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis = fstr_OtherPostRetirementBenefitPlanMember |
Defined Benefit Plan, Effect of One Percentage Point Increase on Accumulated Postretirement Benefit Obligation | 66 us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanEffectOfOnePercentagePointIncreaseOnAccumulatedPostretirementBenefitObligation / us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis = fstr_OtherPostRetirementBenefitPlanMember |
Defined Benefit Plan, Effect of One Percentage Point Decrease on Service and Interest Cost Components | 7 us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanEffectOfOnePercentagePointDecreaseOnServiceAndInterestCostComponents1 / us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis = fstr_OtherPostRetirementBenefitPlanMember |
Defined Benefit Plan, Effect of One Percentage Point Decrease on Accumulated Postretirement Benefit Obligation | $ 77 us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanEffectOfOnePercentagePointDecreaseOnAccumulatedPostretirementBenefitObligation1 / us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis = fstr_OtherPostRetirementBenefitPlanMember |

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- Definition The interest rate used to adjust for the time value of money for the plan. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (k)(1) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e1928-114920 + Details
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- Definition Amount of effect of a one-percentage-point decrease in the assumed health care cost trend rates on the accumulated postretirement benefit obligation for health care benefits. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (m) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e1928-114920 + Details
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- Definition Amount of effect of a one-percentage-point decrease in the assumed health care cost trend rates on the aggregate of the service and interest cost components of net periodic postretirement health care benefit costs. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (m) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e1928-114920 + Details
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- Definition The effect of a one-percentage-point increase in the assumed health care cost trend rates on the accumulated postretirement benefit obligation for health care benefits. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (m) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e1928-114920 + Details
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- Definition The effect of a one-percentage-point increase in the assumed health care cost trend rates on the aggregate of the service and interest cost components of net periodic postretirement health care benefit costs. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (m) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e1928-114920 + Details
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- Definition The assumed health care cost trend rate for the next year used to measure the expected cost of benefits covered by the plan (gross eligible charges). This is based upon the annual rate of change in the cost of health care benefits currently provided by the postretirement benefit plan, due to factors other than changes in the composition of the plan population by age and dependency status. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (l) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e1928-114920 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Glossary Health Care Cost Trend Rate -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6514820 + Details
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- Definition The ultimate trend rate for health care costs. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (l) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e1928-114920 + Details
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- Definition Description of and general information regarding the types of plans utilized by the employer. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e1928-114920 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 3 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e2417-114920 Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 2 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e2410-114920 + Details
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- Definition This represents the noncurrent liability for underfunded plans recognized in the balance sheet that is associated with the defined benefit pension plans and other postretirement defined benefit plans. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 210 -SubTopic 10 -Section S99 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (SX 210.5-02.24) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6877327&loc=d3e13212-122682 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 3 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e2417-114920 Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 2 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e2410-114920 Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (c) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35743120&loc=d3e1928-114920 Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 715 -SubTopic 20 -Section 45 -Paragraph 2 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=21915240&loc=d3e1703-114919 + Details
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