Name:	schn_BookOverdrafts
Namespace Prefix:	schn_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	credit
Period Type:	instant

Letters of credit obtained from customers to guarantee payment of open accounts receivable as of the reporting date.

No definition available.

Name:	schn_CustomerIssuedLettersOfCredit
Namespace Prefix:	schn_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	instant

The maximum number of days (from original maturity) used to determine short term highly liquid investments treated as cash equivalents.

No definition available.

Name:	schn_NumberofDaysUsedToDetermineShortTermHighlyLiquidInvestmentsTreatmentAsCashEquivalents
Namespace Prefix:	schn_
Data Type:	xbrli:durationItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

[Line Items] for Schedule of asset impairments

No definition available.

Name:	schn_ScheduleofAssetImpairmentsLineItems
Namespace Prefix:	schn_
Data Type:	xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

- References

No definition available.

Name:	us-gaap_AccountingPoliciesAbstract
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

Amount of assets held-for-sale that are not part of a disposal group.

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 360
-SubTopic 10
-Section 15
-Paragraph 4
-Subparagraph (b)(2)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6390208&loc=d3e400-110220

Name:	us-gaap_AssetsHeldForSaleNotPartOfDisposalGroup
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	instant

The amount of cash deposited in financial institutions as of the balance sheet date that is insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

No definition available.

Name:	us-gaap_CashFDICInsuredAmount
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	instant

Number of operating segments. An operating segment is a component of an enterprise: (a) that engages in business activities from which it may earn revenues and incur expenses (including revenues and expenses relating to transactions with other components of the same enterprise), (b) whose operating results are regularly reviewed by the enterprise's chief operating decision maker to make decisions about resources to be allocated to the segment and assess its performance, and (c) for which discrete financial information is available. An operating segment may engage in business activities for which it has yet to earn revenues, for example, start-up operations may be operating segments before earning revenues.

No definition available.

Name:	us-gaap_NumberOfOperatingSegments
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:integerItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

Number of segments reported by the entity. A reportable segment is a component of an entity for which there is an accounting requirement to report separate financial information on that component in the entity's financial statements.

No definition available.