Debt (Details)			3 Months Ended			3 Months Ended
	Nov. 30, 2011 USD ($)	Aug. 31, 2011 USD ($)	Nov. 30, 2011 Bank Facility [Member] USD ($)	Aug. 31, 2011 Bank Facility [Member] USD ($)	Aug. 31, 2011 Bank Facility [Member] GBP (£)	Nov. 30, 2011 Credit Facility Bpp [Member] USD ($)	Nov. 30, 2011 Credit Facility Bpp [Member] GBP (£)	Aug. 31, 2011 Credit Facility Bpp [Member] USD ($)	Dec. 20, 2011 Credit Facility Bpp [Member] Subsequent Event [Member] GBP (£)	Nov. 30, 2011 Capital Lease Obligations [Member] USD ($)	Aug. 31, 2011 Capital Lease Obligations [Member] USD ($)	Nov. 30, 2011 Other Debt [Member] USD ($)	Aug. 31, 2011 Other Debt [Member] USD ($)	Nov. 30, 2011 Other Debt Variable [Member] USD ($)	Aug. 31, 2011 Other Debt Variable [Member] USD ($)	Nov. 30, 2011 Other Debt Fixed [Member] USD ($)	Aug. 31, 2011 Other Debt Fixed [Member] USD ($)
Debt [Line Items]
Total debt	$ 114,337,000	$ 599,009,000	$ 0	$ 493,322,000		$ 40,434,000		$ 47,603,000		$ 40,752,000	$ 36,512,000	$ 33,151,000	$ 21,572,000	$ 8,000,000	$ 9,100,000	$ 10,500,000	$ 12,500,000
Short-term borrowings and current portion of long-term debt	(27,598,000)	(419,318,000)
Long-term debt	86,739,000	179,691,000
Borrowing capacity			500,000,000			80,700,000	52,000,000		39,000,000
Expansion feature			250,000,000
Term length and expiration			five years and will expire on January 4, 2013
British Pounds denominated debt				$ 103,200,000	£ 63,000,000
Fees			12.5 to 17.5 basis points
Fees for borrowings			LIBOR + 50.0 to 82.5 basis points			LIBOR + 250 to 325 basis points	LIBOR + 250 to 325 basis points
Weighted average interest rate				2.80%	2.80%	4.10%	4.10%	4.00%				5.20%	6.10%