ࡱ> QSP7 AbjbjUU b7|7|!l4< < < < $` Df nppp<@$ 5Nq   i     n  n : ZZ J$" < FZZ0Z Z  THIS IS A METRIC JOB Metric facts: n The metric system is the international system of measurement B 94 percent of the people on earth use it all the time. n The rest of us buy cola in liters, video tape in millimeters, light bulbs in watts, and aspirin in milligrams. We use metric tools on our cars, trucks, and power equipment. n Our largest trading partners and closest neighbors, Canada and Mexico, are metric countries. n Most major U.S. industries B including the automobile, construction equipment, machine tool, electronics, soft drink, liquor, pharmaceutical, and health care industries B are primarily or completely metricated. n The metric system is based on decimal arithmetic, just like dollars and cents. Once learned, it=s simpler to use and less prone to error. n In 1988, Congress made the metric system the preferred system of measurement in the United States. n Since 1994, billions of dollars of federal, state, and local construction projects of all kinds have been built using the metric system with no cost or schedule problems. n Metric construction is performed in the same way as conventional construction by the same people with the same skills and the same experience and with almost all of the same tools, products, and equipment. Little changes but the measurement units. n Sometimes it=s hard for experienced construction personnel to gain the kind of Afeel@ for metric units that they have for inches and feet, but with on-the-job practice, thousands have made the change successfully. n Adopting the metric system is a good deal for the construction industry. Metrication increases both efficiency and quality and will help American workers stay technologically competitive with their foreign counterparts. n Construction metrication brings a large and important part of our economy into the world standard of measurement to benefit all Americans. n We only need to make the change once. The benefits are perpetual. 8 Construction Metrication Council of the National Institute of Building Sciences, 1998. For more information, visit our web site at www.nibs.org. The reproduction and distribution of this handout is encouraged provided the Council receives attribution. An electronic copy is available at www.nibs.org/cmc1.htm. THIS IS A METRIC JOB Metric Q and A: The construction industry is primarily a domestic industry. Why should it convert? It must convert to stay competitive. Although we don=t export buildings and highways and bridges, we can=t ignore global competition for construction services and products. Some basic products like brick, block, concrete, asphalt, and stone aggregates are produced and used locally but almost everything else can be and often is traded internationally, including glass, coatings, finishes, fasteners, structural steel, wood, wood composites, and electrical, mechanical, plumbing and conveying equipment. U.S. architect/engineer/contractor services, which have been exported worldwide for decades, also represent an important part of the industry's revenues. Like it or not, we are all part of the global construction market. If construction converts to the metric system, won't that eliminate one more barrier to imported products? Yes, but the alternative is restricting more of our products and services to within our own borders while the rest of the world goes about its business . What has been the construction industry's response to metrication? On the whole, it=s positive. Everyone reads the newspapers and knows we have to stay competitive. So the message from the industry largely is, "We understand the need to change B just don't drag it out." How about the trades? Trades organizations have been very supportive, saying "Tell us what you want and we'll build it!" Many are including metric measures in their educational programs or are offering special metric training. Do building professionals like using the metric system? People who gain a working knowledge of the metric system come to prefer it. Gone are dimension strings made up of fractions, inches, and feet B with the metric system it's all millimeters. And gone are a multitude of other conversions. For example, which has the greater thermal capactity, a 22 million Btu/hour boiler or a 1000 ton chiller? Using metric units, you can tell instantly: the boiler is 6.4 MW and the chiller is 3.5 MW. What about product conversion? Except for a handful of modular products, very few products change size. Instead, they simply are relabeled in metric units. A 2-3/4 x 4-1/2 inch wall switch face plate might be relabeled 70 x 115 mm and a 10 horsepower motor, 7500 W. The products themselves don=t change In any way. But how about modular products? Most change size to fit into a 100 millimeter module. Drywall, plywood, and rigid insulation widths change slightly, from 48 inches to 1200 mm, although their thicknesses remain the same. Concrete block, suspended ceiling systems, and raised flooring systems also change size, but that=s about it. What happens to the traditional 2-by-4? As we all know, "2-by-4" is a name, not a finished size. Neither wood nor light gage steel framing change size in cross-section, but they are spaced at 400 mm intervals instead of 16 inches C about 1/4 inch closer together. Are there other products in the same category? Yes. A 2-inch pipe has neither an inside nor an outside diameter of 2 inches. A 2-inch sprinkler head contains no actual 2-inch dimension. A 24-inch structural steel section contains no actual 24-inch dimension. Since these products are not really produced in rounded inch-pound dimensions, there is no reason to change their sizes to rounded metric dimensions. Instead, they are just relabeled in metric units as, for example, 50 mm pipe, 13 mm sprinkler heads, and 610 mm beams. As mentioned, almost all construction products fall within this "relabeling" category. Celsius temperature rhyme: 30 is hot (86 EF) 20 is nice (68 EF) 10 is cool (50 EF) 0 is ice (32 EF)  Smart Metrication Tips: P Obtain a metric tape measure right away. So equipped, you readily can adapt to metric usage. Unequipped, you can=t do your job. Some advocate dual unit tapes, others metric-only tapes. Take your pick. P You won=t need many other metric tools. There is no such thing as a metric hammer, saw, screwdriver, chisel, pliers, power drill, level, or trowel. You probably already have a set of metric wrenches. P If you scale dimensions off drawings, use a metric scale. One 3-sided metric scale can be used for both architectural and engineering drawings. Don=t use an inch scale B you=ll make mistakes. P Try to use only metric measures right from the start. It will be hard at first but you=ll soon get the hang of it. Talk Ametric-only@ on the work site and adopt a pro-metric tone. Experience has shown that a positive, professional attitude about metrication minimizes problems. P Do not convert metric drawings and specs back to conventional units. This Ashortcut@ invariably leads to mistakes, so resist the temptation. Execute all work in metric units with metric tape measures and you=ll learn faster, too. P Conversions are unnecessary except, perhaps, when dealing with some suppliers or comparing costs. Double check any conversions you do make. P Be prepared to submit shop drawings and product information in metric units. Commonly Used Units on the Job Site: Unit prefixes: milli (m) = 1/1000; kilo (k) = 1000; mega (M) = 1 000 000 Quantity Unit Symbol length meter, millimeter m, mm area square meter m5 volume liter, cubic meter L, m; mass (weight) kilogram megagram, metric ton kg Mg, t slope percent vertical:horizontal ratio % mm:m, mm:mm, m:m pressure pascal, kilopascal, megapascal Pa, kPa, MPa power watt, kilowatt, megawatt W, kW, MW Metric Rules-of-Thumb: If you can remember these first four rules-of-thumb, you will be able to read metric drawings. The rest are for specifications.. # 1 mm = about 1/25 inch = thickness of a dime # 25 mm = about 1 inch (1" = 25.4 mm) # 300 mm = about 1 foot (12" = 304.8 mm) # 1000 mm = 1 m = about 3 feet + 10% more (very roughly, a yard) # 1 m5 = roughly 10 square feet (1m5 = 10.76 ft5) # 1 L = about 1 quart (1L = 1.06 qt) # 1 m; = about 35 cubic feet (about 30% more than a cubic yard) # 1 kg = about 2.2 pounds # 1000 kg = 1Mg = 1 metric ton = about 2200 pounds # 100 kPa = about 15 psi; 1 MPa = about 150 psi *,.HLN@Bfh  2 4  $ ^ `   $ & 8 @ ` h RXZvx 0Ժ԰԰԰԰԰԰ԨԨ>*CJOJQJ6CJOJQJ]5CJOJQJ\ CJOJQJCJ$OJQJaJ$ CJOJQJ5CJ$OJQJ\aJ$ CJOJQJCJ8OJQJaJ8CJ8OJQJaJ8=,.JL>@df  0 2 \ ^ VX  vx A08~EQ#$y~hj LN  )"G"s"w"$$,$p$&&&'Z'b'(((>)ż㢔㢔㢔㢔㢔㢔6CJOJQJ]^JaJ5CJOJQJ\^JaJCJOJQJ^JaJ56CJOJQJ\]^JCJOJQJaJCJ<OJQJaJ<5CJOJQJ\aJCJOJQJaJCJOJQJaJ CJOJQJ56CJOJQJ\]4xz|S$)",$&(,,-.2. `0^`0P`  >))):*<*,,..*.,.T.V.z.|......//T0V0h0j0113 3H3J3R3T3x3z3,4.4r4t4445555L6N6^6`666X7Z77788H999.:ݜCJOJQJ^J6CJOJQJ]^JaJ>*CJOJQJ^JaJCJOJQJaJ<CJOJQJ^JaJCJOJQJaJ56CJOJQJ\]^JCJOJQJaJCJOJQJ^JaJ=2.\....T01x3578F9H99*:,:.:@:B:L:N:\: $:$Ifa$ d$IfP `0^`0`\:^:`:n:p::::::::::::::d:$If d$IfW$$IfTxF Gb    4 xa.:`:::;;o<<<<>>`>b>>>????????????B@D@N@P@@@@@dAfAA 56CJOJQJ\]^JaJ56CJOJQJ\]^JCJOJQJaJCJOJQJ^JaJ5CJOJQJ\^JaJ&::;;;; ;<;>;P;z;|;;;;;;$IfW$$IfTxF Gb    4 xa:$If d$If;;;;;;<<<<<1<2<?<@<A<G<W$$IfTxF Gb    4 xa:$If$If d$IfG<H<a<b<l<m<n<o<<=`>>???B@@PW$$IfTxF Gb    4 xa:$If d$If@@dAA+0P/ =!"#$%h+0P/ =!"#$%D 00P/ =!"#$% P0dhd i@@@ Normal1$7$8$H$_HaJmH sH tH <A@< Default Paragraph Font4&@4 Footnote Reference !b-bZb%&QR./+,tuS    $ f o k]jkUq\<=b   !'()78AVWZ`abhiq$ g !!S!!00000000000000000000000000000000@0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000>).:A$'),x2.\::;G<@A%(*+-./0A&}9=EQ cnT^ej%*?EBHrwAIqZ!]!i!l!p!s!!!!&,RX/8,8uz+ 2 c n (U[qv\j  )-8@AIWYbgipq$ + g k !!!&!S!Y!!333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333 Pam TownsS:\jobsiteh.wpd  '(7V`ah!@Acrobat PDFWriterLPT1:Acrobat PDFWriterAcrobat PDFWriterAcrobat PDFWriter$ od,,Acrobat PDFWriter$ od,,kl 44 !pppp p pppp(@pp0@pp<@p pD@p$p&p(p*pX@p.p0p2p4p6p8p:px@p>p@Unknown G:Times New Roman5Symbol3& :ArialI& Swis721 BlkEx BTIXerox Serif WideA& Arial NarrowKWP IconicSymbolsASWP TypographicSymbols9WP MathA"A hHfHfHf:# xx2!  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