Earnings per share (Details) - shares shares in Thousands	3 Months Ended	6 Months Ended
Jul. 31, 2017	Jul. 31, 2016	Jul. 31, 2017	Jul. 31, 2016
Earnings per share [Line Items]
Weighted Average Number of Shares Outstanding, Basic	7,679	7,481	7,645	7,416
Dilutive effect of equity incentive plans	0	122	0	0
Weighted average common shares outstanding assuming full dilution	7,679	7,603	7,645	7,416
Stock options not included in the computation of diluted earnings per share of common stock because the option exercise prices exceeded the average market prices of the common shares	163	356	163	378
Stock options with an exercise price below the average market price	255	248	255	226

Securities (including those issuable pursuant to contingent stock agreements) that could potentially dilute basic earnings per share (EPS) or earnings per unit (EPU) in the future that were not included in the computation of diluted EPS or EPU because to do so would increase EPS or EPU amounts or decrease loss per share or unit amounts for the period presented.

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- Definition

Line items represent financial concepts included in a table. These concepts are used to disclose reportable information associated with domain members defined in one or many axes to the table.

+ References

No definition available.

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- Definition

Additional shares included in the calculation of diluted EPS as a result of the potentially dilutive effect of share based payment arrangements using the treasury stock method.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 260
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6371337&loc=d3e3550-109257

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 260
-SubTopic 10
-Section 45
-Paragraph 28A
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=96947427&loc=d3e1500-109256

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- Definition

The sum of dilutive potential common shares or units used in the calculation of the diluted per-share or per-unit computation.

+ References

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- Definition

The average number of shares or units issued and outstanding that are used in calculating diluted EPS or earnings per unit (EPU), determined based on the timing of issuance of shares or units in the period.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 260
-SubTopic 10
-Section 45
-Paragraph 16
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=96947427&loc=d3e1505-109256

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 260
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6371337&loc=d3e3550-109257

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- Definition

Number of [basic] shares or units, after adjustment for contingently issuable shares or units and other shares or units not deemed outstanding, determined by relating the portion of time within a reporting period that common shares or units have been outstanding to the total time in that period.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 260
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6371337&loc=d3e3550-109257

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 260
-SubTopic 10
-Section 45
-Paragraph 10
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=96947427&loc=d3e1448-109256

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