Metrication and American Society of Civil Engineers

The American Society of Civil Engineers has been organizationally supportive of the metric system as far back as 1876. The background of supportive actions from that time to the present are described in this paper. This background serves to introduce the report that follows prepared by the ASCE Committee on Metrication (COM) for consideration by the ASCE Board of Directors. The report summarized the results of a questionnaire circulated worldwide to determine the extent, Usefulness, and acceptance of the SI metric system and then presents recommendations to the Board of Direction. The world survey, with responses from 51 countries, indicated essentially a unanimous endorsement of SI, and the ASCE board subsequently adopted the recommendations contained in the COM report. This action resulted in a policy statement supporting the SI system in ASCE and all civil engineering activities, including education; pertinent book, cartographic, and geodetic projects; and in all ASCE publications.