Condensed Consolidated Statement of Income - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2017	Mar. 31, 2016
Income Statement [Abstract]
Net sales	$ 265,765	$ 279,268
Cost of products sold	146,043	158,563
Gross profit	119,722	120,705
Selling, general and administrative	75,983	79,195
Research and development	10,998	10,363
Restructuring charges (Note 4)	12,739	470
Currency exchange losses, net	580	1,950
Operating income	19,422	28,727
Interest expense	3,591	3,902
Other income, net	(655)	(888)
Total other expense, net	2,936	3,014
Income from continuing operations before income taxes	16,486	25,713
Provision for income taxes (Note 10)	1,796	12,511
Income from continuing operations	14,690	13,202
Loss from discontinued operations (Note 19)	0	(1,129)
Net income	14,690	12,073
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	(277)	(322)
Net income attributable to MSA Safety Incorporated	14,413	11,751
Amounts attributable to MSA Safety Incorporated common shareholders:
Income from continuing operations	14,413	12,683
Loss from discontinued operations (Note 19)	0	(932)
Net income attributable to MSA Safety Incorporated	$ 14,413	$ 11,751
Basic
Income from continuing operations, basic (dollars per share)	$ 0.38	$ 0.34
(Loss) income from discontinued operations, basic (dollars per share) (Note 19)	0.00	(0.03)
Net income, basic (dollars per share)	0.38	0.31
Diluted
Income from continuing operations, diluted (dollars per share)	0.37	0.34
(Loss) income from discontinued operations, diluted (dollars per share) (Note 19)	0.00	(0.03)
Net income, diluted (dollars per share)	0.37	0.31
Dividends per common share (dollars per share)	$ 0.33	$ 0.32