Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2019	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2019	Sep. 30, 2018
Income Statement [Abstract]
Net sales	$ 1,204.0	$ 1,179.7	$ 3,487.7	$ 3,337.6
Cost of goods sold	842.0	830.7	2,461.0	2,357.8
Gross profit	362.0	349.0	1,026.7	979.8
Selling & administrative expenses	189.1	185.2	566.0	559.5
Operating income	172.9	163.8	460.7	420.3
Gain on disposition of business (Note 3)	21.7	0.0	21.7	0.0
Multi-employer pension charge (Note 15)	0.0	0.0	(22.9)	0.0
Interest expense, net	(17.0)	(18.4)	(51.7)	(54.5)
Other expense, net	(9.6)	(2.9)	(18.2)	(13.5)
Total other expense	(4.9)	(21.3)	(71.1)	(68.0)
Income before income taxes	168.0	142.5	389.6	352.3
Provision for income taxes	35.4	27.8	85.3	75.4
Net income	132.6	114.7	304.3	276.9
Less: Net income attributable to noncontrolling interest	1.9	1.1	5.3	4.7
Net income attributable to Hubbell	$ 130.7	$ 113.6	$ 299.0	$ 272.2
Earnings per share
Basic (USD per share)	$ 2.40	$ 2.07	$ 5.48	$ 4.96
Diluted (USD per share)	2.38	2.06	5.45	4.93
Cash dividends per common share (USD per share)	$ 0.84	$ 0.77	$ 2.52	$ 2.31