General	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2011
General [Abstract]
GENERAL	NOTE 1. GENERAL Nature of Operations Baker Hughes Incorporated (“Baker Hughes,” “Company,” “we,” “our” or “us”) is engaged in the oilfield services industry. We are a leading supplier of wellbore-related products and technology services and provide products and services for drilling, pressure pumping, formation evaluation, completion and production, and reservoir development services to the worldwide oil and natural gas industry. We also provide products and services to the downstream refining and process and pipeline industries. Basis of Presentation Our unaudited consolidated condensed financial statements included herein have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission for interim financial information. Accordingly, certain information and disclosures normally included in our annual financial statements have been condensed or omitted. These unaudited consolidated condensed financial statements should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K/A for the year ended December 31, 2010 (“2010 Annual Report”). We believe the unaudited consolidated condensed financial statements included herein reflect all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring adjustments) necessary for a fair presentation of the interim periods. The results of operations for the interim periods are not necessarily indicative of the results of operations to be expected for the full year. In the notes to the unaudited consolidated condensed financial statements, all dollar and share amounts in tabulations are in millions of dollars and shares, respectively, unless otherwise indicated. Accounting Standards Updates In May 2011, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued an update to Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 820, Fair Value Measurement. The Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) conforms certain sections of ASC 820 to International Financial Reporting Standards in order to provide a single converged guidance on the measurement of fair value. This update also expands the existing disclosure requirements for fair value measurements. This ASU is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2011. We will adopt this ASU prospectively in the first quarter of 2012. We currently do not expect this ASU to have a material impact, if any, on our consolidated condensed financial statements. In June 2011, the FASB issued an update to ASC 220, Comprehensive Income. This ASU requires entities to present components of comprehensive income in either a continuous statement of comprehensive income or two separate but consecutive statements that would include reclassification adjustments for items that are reclassified from other comprehensive income to net income on the face of the financial statements. This ASU is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2011. We will adopt the new presentation requirements of this ASU retrospectively in the first quarter of 2012. In September 2011, the FASB issued an update to ASC 350, Intangibles — Goodwill and Other. This ASU amends the guidance in ASC 350-20 on testing for goodwill impairment. The revised guidance allows entities testing for goodwill impairment to have the option of performing a qualitative assessment before calculating the fair value of the reporting unit. The ASU does not change how goodwill is calculated or assigned to reporting units, nor does it revise the requirement to test annually for impairment. The ASU is limited to goodwill and does not amend the annual requirement for testing other indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment. The ASU is effective for annual and interim goodwill impairment tests performed for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2011. We will adopt this ASU for our 2012 goodwill impairment testing. We do not expect this ASU to have a material impact, if any, on our consolidated condensed financial statements.

NOTE 1. GENERAL

Nature of Operations

Baker Hughes Incorporated (“Baker Hughes,” “Company,” “we,” “our” or “us”) is engaged in the oilfield services industry. We are a leading supplier of wellbore-related products and technology services and provide products and services for drilling, pressure pumping, formation evaluation, completion and production, and reservoir development services to the worldwide oil and natural gas industry. We also provide products and services to the downstream refining and process and pipeline industries.

Basis of Presentation

Our unaudited consolidated condensed financial statements included herein have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission for interim financial information. Accordingly, certain information and disclosures normally included in our annual financial statements have been condensed or omitted. These unaudited consolidated condensed financial statements should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K/A for the year ended December 31, 2010 (“2010 Annual Report”). We believe the unaudited consolidated condensed financial statements included herein reflect all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring adjustments) necessary for a fair presentation of the interim periods. The results of operations for the interim periods are not necessarily indicative of the results of operations to be expected for the full year. In the notes to the unaudited consolidated condensed financial statements, all dollar and share amounts in tabulations are in millions of dollars and shares, respectively, unless otherwise indicated.

Accounting Standards Updates

In May 2011, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued an update to Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 820, Fair Value Measurement. The Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) conforms certain sections of ASC 820 to International Financial Reporting Standards in order to provide a single converged guidance on the measurement of fair value. This update also expands the existing disclosure requirements for fair value measurements. This ASU is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2011. We will adopt this ASU prospectively in the first quarter of 2012. We currently do not expect this ASU to have a material impact, if any, on our consolidated condensed financial statements.

In June 2011, the FASB issued an update to ASC 220, Comprehensive Income. This ASU requires entities to present components of comprehensive income in either a continuous statement of comprehensive income or two separate but consecutive statements that would include reclassification adjustments for items that are reclassified from other comprehensive income to net income on the face of the financial statements. This ASU is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2011. We will adopt the new presentation requirements of this ASU retrospectively in the first quarter of 2012.

In September 2011, the FASB issued an update to ASC 350, Intangibles — Goodwill and Other. This ASU amends the guidance in ASC 350-20 on testing for goodwill impairment. The revised guidance allows entities testing for goodwill impairment to have the option of performing a qualitative assessment before calculating the fair value of the reporting unit. The ASU does not change how goodwill is calculated or assigned to reporting units, nor does it revise the requirement to test annually for impairment. The ASU is limited to goodwill and does not amend the annual requirement for testing other indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment. The ASU is effective for annual and interim goodwill impairment tests performed for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2011. We will adopt this ASU for our 2012 goodwill impairment testing. We do not expect this ASU to have a material impact, if any, on our consolidated condensed financial statements.