![Canadian Metric Movement](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c7/Canadian_Metric_Movement.svg)
Metrication in Canada began in 1970 and ceased in 1985. While Canada has converted to the
metric system
The metric system is a system of measurement that succeeded the decimalised system based on the metre that had been introduced in France in the 1790s. The historical development of these systems culminated in the definition of the Interna ...
for many purposes, there is still significant use of non-metric units and standards in many sectors of the Canadian economy and everyday life today. This is mainly due to historical ties with the United Kingdom, the traditional use of the
imperial system
The imperial system of units, imperial system or imperial units (also known as British Imperial or Exchequer Standards of 1826) is the system of units first defined in the British Weights and Measures Act 1824 and continued to be developed th ...
of measurement in Canada, proximity to the United States, and strong public opposition to metrication during the transition period.
Before conversion
Until the 1970s, Canada traditionally used the
imperial measurement system
The imperial system of units, imperial system or imperial units (also known as British Imperial or Exchequer Standards of 1826) is the system of units first defined in the British Weights and Measures Act 1824 and continued to be developed thro ...
, labelled as "Canadian units of measurement" under Schedule II of the ''
Weights and Measures Act
A weights and measures act is a kind of legislative act found in many jurisdictions establishing technical standards for weights and measures.
Notable acts of this type include:
* Various Weights and Measures Acts (UK) or the various legislative ...
'' (R.S., 1985, c. W-6).
These units have the same names and the same values as
United States customary units, with the exception of capacity measures such as the
gallon
The gallon is a unit of volume in imperial units and United States customary units. Three different versions are in current use:
*the imperial gallon (imp gal), defined as , which is or was used in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Austr ...
. For example, before metrication in Canada, gasoline was sold by the (imperial) gallon (about 4.55
litre
The litre (international spelling) or liter (American English spelling) (SI symbols L and l, other symbol used: â„“) is a metric unit of volume. It is equal to 1 cubic decimetre (dm3), 1000 cubic centimetres (cm3) or 0.001 cubic metre (m3 ...
s). In cross-border transactions with the United States it was often unclear whether values quoted in gallons were referring to United States gallons (3.79 litres) or imperial gallons.
Conversion process
The
Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
federal government of
Pierre Trudeau first began implementing metrication in Canada in 1970 with a government agency dedicated to implementing the project, the
Metric Commission, being established in 1971. By the mid-1970s, metric product labelling was introduced. In 1972, the provinces agreed to make all road signs metric by 1977. During the
Labour Day weekend in 1977, every speed limit sign in the country was changed from mph to km/h. From the same time every new car sold had to have a
speedometer that showed speed in km/h and distance in km. The distances on road signs were changed to kilometres during the next few months. Gasoline pumps changed from imperial gallons to litres in 1979.
There was some resistance to metrication, especially as the sectors of the economy grew in number where the federal Weights and Measures Act required metric to be used. The metrication of gasoline and diesel fuel sales in 1979 prompted 37
Progressive Conservative Members of Parliament to open a "freedom to measure"
gas station in
Carleton Place
Carleton Place is a town in Eastern Ontario, Canada, in Lanark County, about west of downtown Ottawa. It is located at the crossroads of Highway 15 and Highway 7, halfway between the towns of Perth, Almonte, Smiths Falls, and the nation's cap ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
, selling gas in both imperial gallons and litres. The city of
Peterborough, Ontario
Peterborough ( ) is a city on the Otonabee River in Ontario, Canada, about 125 kilometres (78 miles) northeast of Toronto. According to the 2021 Census, the population of the City of Peterborough was 83,651. The population of the Peterborough ...
, was a noted hotbed of opposition to metrication, having been one of the government's three test centres for the metrication process.
Bill Domm, a Member of Parliament representing the
riding of Peterborough, was one of the country's most outspoken opponents of metrication. During this period, a few government employees lost their jobs for their opposition to metrication.
Neil Fraser, an official with
Revenue Canada
The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA; ; ) is the revenue service of the Canadian federal government, and most provincial and territorial governments. The CRA collects taxes, administers tax law and policy, and delivers benefit programs and tax credit ...
who publicly opposed mandatory metric conversion, was dismissed for "conduct unacceptable for a public servant".
Changeover
![MetricatedSpeedLimitSignBoltonON2011](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/MetricatedSpeedLimitSignBoltonON2011.jpg)
Since 1976, the law requires that all prepackaged food products must declare their mass or their volume in
metric units
Metric units are units based on the metre, gram or second and decimal (power of ten) multiples or sub-multiples of these. The most widely used examples are the units of the International System of Units (SI). By extension they include units of e ...
, though Canadian imperial units are still legally permitted on packaging.
Milk
Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Immune factors and immune-modula ...
has been thoroughly metric since 1980. In April 1975,
Fahrenheit
The Fahrenheit scale () is a temperature scale based on one proposed in 1724 by the physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686–1736). It uses the degree Fahrenheit (symbol: °F) as the unit. Several accounts of how he originally defined hi ...
temperatures were replaced by
Celsius. In September 1975,
rainfall
Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...
was first measured in
millimetres and
snow
Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes.
It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...
in
centimetre
330px, Different lengths as in respect to the Electromagnetic spectrum, measured by the Metre and its deriveds scales. The Microwave are in-between 1 meter to 1 millimeter.
A centimetre (international spelling) or centimeter (American spellin ...
s. Since April 1976,
wind speed
In meteorology, wind speed, or wind flow speed, is a fundamental atmospheric quantity caused by air moving from high to low pressure, usually due to changes in temperature. Wind speed is now commonly measured with an anemometer.
Wind speed ...
,
visibility
The visibility is the measure of the distance at which an object or light can be clearly discerned. In meteorology it depends on the transparency of the surrounding air and as such, it is unchanging no matter the ambient light level or time o ...
, and
barometric pressure
Atmospheric pressure, also known as barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1013.25 millibars, 7 ...
have been in metric units, with the pressure in
kilopascals
The pascal (symbol: Pa) is the unit of pressure in the International System of Units, International System of Units (SI), and is also used to quantify internal pressure, stress (physics), stress, Young's modulus, and ultimate tensile strength. T ...
instead of the hectopascals (
millibar
The bar is a metric unit of pressure, but not part of the International System of Units (SI). It is defined as exactly equal to 100,000 Pa (100 kPa), or slightly less than the current average atmospheric pressure on Earth at sea leve ...
s) used in most of the rest of the world. In September 1977, every speed-limit sign in the country was changed from
miles per hour
Miles per hour (mph, m.p.h., MPH, or mi/h) is a British imperial and United States customary unit of speed expressing the number of miles travelled in one hour. It is used in the United Kingdom, the United States, and a number of smaller cou ...
to
kilometres per hour.
Metrication stalled
The election of the Progressive Conservative government of
Brian Mulroney in 1984 resulted in the abolition of the Metric Commission on March 31, 1985. This ended the process of affirmative metrication in Canada, and some regulations requiring metric measurements either have been repealed or are no longer enforced.
Training on metric conversion was not universal. Poor metrication training was a contributing factor to Air Canada Flight 143, the so-called
Gimli Glider
Air Canada Flight 143, commonly known as the Gimli Glider, was a Canadian scheduled domestic passenger flight between Montreal and Edmonton that ran out of fuel on Saturday, July 23, 1983, at an altitude of , midway through the flig ...
, running out of fuel mid-flight on July 23, 1983.
Notwithstanding the end of officially sanctioned metrication in Canada, most laws, regulations, and official forms exclusively use metric measurements. However, imperial measures still have legal definitions in Canada and can be used alongside metric units.
Net quantity declarations on prepackaged products sold to consumers may be stated in metric units.
Common usage today
Daily usage
Canadians typically discuss the weather in degrees Celsius, purchase gasoline in litres, observe speed limits set in kilometres per hour (km/h), and read road signs and maps displaying distances in kilometres. Cars have metric
speedometers and
odometers, although most speedometers include smaller figures in miles per hour (mph).
Fuel efficiency for new vehicles is published by
Natural Resources Canada
Natural Resources Canada (NRCan; french: Ressources naturelles Canada; french: RNCan, label=none)Natural Resources Canada is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of Natural Resources (). is the dep ...
in
litres per 100 kilometres, (''not'' kilometres per litre as an analog of ''miles per gallon'') and miles per (imperial) gallon. Window stickers in dealer showrooms often include "miles per gallon" conversions. The
railways of Canada such as the
Canadian National
The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States.
CN ...
and
Canadian Pacific
The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...
as well as
commuter rail
Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Downtown, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter r ...
services, continue to measure their trackage in miles and speed limits in miles per hour (although urban railways including
subways and
light rail have adopted metres and kilometres for distances and kilometres per hour for speed limits). Canadian railcars show weight figures in both imperial and metric. Canadian railways also maintain exclusive use of imperial measurements to describe train length and height in feet and train masses in
short tons.
Canadians typically use a mix of metric and imperial measurements in their daily lives. The use of the metric and imperial systems varies according to generations. Newborns are measured in kilograms at hospitals, but the birth weight and length is also announced to family and friends in pounds, ounces, feet and inches. Although
Canadian driver's licences give height in centimetres, many Canadians also use feet, inches and pounds to indicate their height and weight. Most kitchen appliances in Canada are labelled with both degrees Celsius and Fahrenheit, and metric cooking measures are widely available; but Fahrenheit is often used for cooking, as are imperial
cooking measurements, due to the import of kitchen appliances and recipes from the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. Canadians also occasionally use Fahrenheit outside of the kitchen, such as when measuring the water temperature in a pool. Stationery and photographic prints are also sold in sizes based on inches and the most popular
paper size
Paper size standards govern the size of sheets of paper used as writing paper, stationery, cards, and for some printed documents.
The ISO 216 standard, which includes the commonly used A4 size, is the international standard for paper size. I ...
s,
letter
Letter, letters, or literature may refer to:
Characters typeface
* Letter (alphabet), a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech; any of the symbols of an alphabet.
* Letterform, the graphic form of a letter of the alphabe ...
and
legal
Law is a set of rules that are created and are law enforcement, enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. ...
, are sized in imperial units, though many agendas and notebooks are sold in
ISO 216 sizes.
Canadian football
Canadian football () is a sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's scoring area ( ...
games continue to be played on fields measured in
yard
The yard (symbol: yd) is an English unit of length in both the British imperial and US customary systems of measurement equalling 3 feet or 36 inches. Since 1959 it has been by international agreement standardized as exactly ...
s (with a gridiron layout with a length of 100.6 metres, or 110 yards, from one goal line to the other); golfers also expect courses to be measured in yards.
Experience
The use of metric or imperial measurements varies by age and region. Canadians who have received only metric instruction in school (from the early 1970s) are more familiar with metric measurements.
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
has implemented metrication more fully. The use of imperial units is more common in rural areas than in the rest of the country, where opposition to metrication was strongest, rather than in urban areas.
Canadians are exposed to both metric and imperial units, and it is not unusual for there to be references to both metres and feet, square metres and acres, or grams and ounces in the same conversation.
Temperature
Despite the exclusive use of degrees Celsius in weather reports, some Canadians still use Fahrenheit. Most outdoor thermometers display temperatures in both Fahrenheit and Celsius. Additionally, outdoor signs usually display Celsius with occasional references to Fahrenheit. Inside newer buildings, digital and analog thermostats display temperature settings in degrees Celsius or Fahrenheit.
Environment Canada still offers an imperial unit option beside metric units.
Products and retail
Many food and retail products are sold according to metric units, though this is not always the case. The price of a piece of meat, for example a steak, is typically advertised per pound, but the price printed on the package is per kilogram; the latter is calculated. The prices of fruits and vegetables are usually advertised in pounds, although the price per kilogram is also displayed, usually in smaller type. More expensive items such as deli, meats, and fish are often advertised per 100 grams. Many, but not all, products are sold in imperial sizes, but labelled in metric units. An example of this is butter, which is sold in a 454
gram
The gram (originally gramme; SI unit symbol g) is a unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI) equal to one one thousandth of a kilogram.
Originally defined as of 1795 as "the absolute weight of a volume of pure water equal to th ...
package (and labelled as such), even though it represents one
pound (and in many cases is also labelled with the imperial unit). This is known as "soft metric" (as opposed to a "hard metric" system, where packages and measures are generally sold in "
round number
A round number is an integer that ends with one or more " 0"s (zero-digit) in a given base. So, 590 is rounder than 592, but 590 is less round than 600. In both technical and informal language, a round number is often interpreted to stand for a ...
s"; in a hard metric system, butter might come in a 500 g package). Mandatory nutrition facts labelling (the Nutrition Facts Table) uses metric units for several basic nutrients, although serving sizes can be described in any form of unit (can, cup, quantity, etc.).
In restaurants, wine is usually served by the litre, or bottle, but a wine glass is measured in ounces. A 750-millilitre bottle of hard liquor is referred to as a
"twenty-sixer" or "two-six", referring to its volume in imperial fluid ounces, rounded down from 26.4. Similarly,
fast food restaurants (e.g.
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hambur ...
''
Quarter Pounder
The Quarter Pounder is a hamburger sold by international fast food chain McDonald's, so named for containing a patty with a precooked weight of 4 oz, a quarter of a pound (113.4 g). It was first introduced in 1971. In 2013, the Qua ...
'') often advertise measurements of food and drink in US customary units, but converted to metric units, because either the containers are made to US standards, or the franchise is US-based and uses a standard size for its products. Thus in Canada a 20 US
fluid ounce
A fluid ounce (abbreviated fl oz, fl. oz. or oz. fl., old forms â„¥, fl â„¥, fâ„¥, Æ’ â„¥) is a unit of volume (also called ''capacity'') typically used for measuring liquids. The British Imperial, the United States customary, and the United ...
bottled soft drink is labelled as 591 mL (or occasionally rounded up to 600 mL). Beer in bottles continues to be 12 imperial fluid ounces (labelled as 341 mL), but beer in cans is filled to 12 US fluid ounces (labelled as 355 mL).
There is also a
larger sized beer bottle which is labelled as containing .
Some of these package sizes have been introduced since Canadian metrication began; for example, the traditional Canadian soft drink can was 10 imperial fluid ounces (284 mL), later marketed as 280 mL. Only in the early 1990s did the US-derived 355 mL size displace it.
Display size
On 2D displays, such as computer monitors and TVs, the display size (or viewable image size or VIS) is the physical size of the area where pictures and videos are displayed. The size of a screen is usually described by the length of its diago ...
s for screens on television sets and computer monitors almost always have their
diagonal
In geometry, a diagonal is a line segment joining two vertices of a polygon or polyhedron, when those vertices are not on the same edge. Informally, any sloping line is called diagonal. The word ''diagonal'' derives from the ancient Greek δΠ...
s measured in inches, although most boxes also state the size in centimetres. Bicycle frames and car wheel diameters are also usually described in inches; tire inflation is in pounds per square inch (psi). Standard and special fasteners like alloys, nuts, bolts, washers, studs, self-tapping, self drilling screws and socket screws are often quoted in both imperial and metric; products range from diameter up to .
Commercial usage
Supermarkets will often advertise foods such as meats and
produce
Produce is a generalized term for many farm-produced crops, including fruits and vegetables (grains, oats, etc. are also sometimes considered ''produce''). More specifically, the term ''produce'' often implies that the products are fresh and g ...
"per pound", and small businesses are exempt from having metric scales and legally sell by the pound. While most supermarket scales display both metric and imperial units, products advertised by the pound in a supermarket
flyer are invariably sold to the customer (at the point of sale) based on a price "per 100 grams" or "per kilogram".
Construction materials, including construction lumber and drywall, continue to be sold in imperial measurements; retrofitting metric-sized (designed for 400 mm centres) wallboard on old spaced studs is difficult. In English-speaking Canada commercial and residential spaces are mostly (but not exclusively) constructed using imperial units and advertised accordingly, while in French-speaking Quebec commercial and residential spaces are constructed in metres and advertised using both metric and imperial units as equivalents. However, the zoning by-laws and building codes that govern construction are in metric, although most building codes will also contain imperial equivalents. In addition, rural areas in
Western Canada
Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West or the Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a Canadian region that includes the four western provinces just north of the Canada†...
(
Canadian Prairies
The Canadian Prairies (usually referred to as simply the Prairies in Canada) is a region in Western Canada. It includes the Canadian portion of the Great Plains and the Prairie Provinces, namely Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. These provin ...
) were mapped and segmented using the
Dominion Land Survey
The Dominion Land Survey (DLS; french: links=no, arpentage des terres fédérales, ATF) is the method used to divide most of Western Canada into one-square-mile (2.6 km2) sections for agricultural and other purposes. It is based on the layout ...
. This based most rural roads on a mile measurement which when viewed from the air has the appearance of a checkerboard or grid. Because of this historical reason, it is still common to refer to distance in miles. In contrast, in much of
southern Ontario
Southern Ontario is a primary region of the province of Ontario, Canada, the other primary region being Northern Ontario. It is the most densely populated and southernmost region in Canada. The exact northern boundary of Southern Ontario is disp ...
the basic survey grid was based on a mile-and-a-quarter (1.25 mi), which corresponds almost exactly to a 2-kilometre grid and which makes miles no more natural than kilometres. 1.25 mi is equal to 100
chains
A chain is a serial assembly of connected pieces, called links, typically made of metal, with an overall character similar to that of a rope in that it is flexible and curved in compression but linear, rigid, and load-bearing in tension. A c ...
(or 10
furlong
A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hor ...
s) and it was that sized grid that was used in the original surveys and thus would have been more familiar.
Free trade
Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econ ...
with the United States has resulted in continued exposure to the US system. Since the United States is Canada's largest trading partner and vice versa, Canadian exporters and importers must be accustomed to dealing in US customary units as well as metric.
Agriculture
Canada uses an Avery or imperial
bushel
A bushel (abbreviation: bsh. or bu.) is an imperial and US customary unit of volume based upon an earlier measure of dry capacity. The old bushel is equal to 2 kennings (obsolete), 4 pecks, or 8 dry gallons, and was used mostly for agric ...
(36.369 litres) when selling oats, wheat, and other grains. When dealing with the US oat markets though, special attention must be paid to the definition of bushel weight because US uses a
Winchester bushel
A bushel (abbreviation: bsh. or bu.) is an imperial and US customary unit of volume based upon an earlier measure of dry capacity. The old bushel is equal to 2 kennings (obsolete), 4 pecks, or 8 dry gallons, and was used mostly for agric ...
(35.239 litres). In livestock auction markets, cattle are sold in dollars per
hundredweight
The hundredweight (abbreviation: cwt), formerly also known as the centum weight or quintal, is a British imperial and US customary unit of weight or mass. Its value differs between the US and British imperial systems. The two values are distingu ...
(short), whereas hogs are sold in dollars per hundred kilograms.
Health care
In the health care system, metric units are often given precedence, although actual metric units may still be different than the United States (for example, for measurements of blood
cholesterol
Cholesterol is any of a class of certain organic molecules called lipids. It is a sterol (or modified steroid), a type of lipid. Cholesterol is biosynthesized by all animal cells and is an essential structural component of animal cell mem ...
, the units are
millimole
The mole, symbol mol, is the unit of amount of substance in the International System of Units (SI). The quantity amount of substance is a measure of how many elementary entities of a given substance are in an object or sample. The mole is define ...
per litre, whereas they are
milligram
The kilogram (also kilogramme) is the unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI), having the unit symbol kg. It is a widely used measure in science, engineering and commerce worldwide, and is often simply called a kilo colloquially. ...
per
decilitre in the United States). Most physicians chart patient height and weight in imperial units, and while most growth charts display both systems of measurement, the majority of hospitals officially document such parameters in metric. Dieticians still use
kilocalories, and doctors use
millimetres of mercury.
While these units are metric derivatives, they are not metric units.
Engineering
Because most fasteners, machine parts, pumps, piping, and all building materials are sold in imperial or US customary units, many mechanical and civil engineers in Canada mainly use imperial units for these items. Overall building dimensions for new construction are usually in SI units. Many chemical, nuclear and electrical engineers and engineering physicists employ metric units. Unlike in the United States, Canadian engineers are not always educated in both systems but those who are not become keenly aware of the differences between the imperial, metric and US customary systems once they enter the workforce.
Trades
Trades associated with machine work, such as
machinists, automotive, and heavy duty technicians, frequently use both metric and imperial. Machines made in Canada often incorporate parts from other countries and thus the finished product may have both metric and imperial parts. Farm and industrial equipment manufactured in Canada will most often use inch system fasteners and structural steel, but fluid capacities are always listed in metric.
Building trades such as
plumbing
Plumbing is any system that conveys fluids for a wide range of applications. Plumbing uses pipes, valves, plumbing fixtures, tanks, and other apparatuses to convey fluids. Heating and cooling (HVAC), waste removal, and potable water deliv ...
and
carpentry often use imperial units. Rough timber, drywall, plywood, fasteners, pipes, and tubing are all sold in imperial units. Nails in hardware stores are measured in inches but sold in metric weight packages.
Electricians in every country use metric units such as volts and amperes, but motors and engines in Canada are still often quoted in
horsepower
Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are t ...
. Electric car motors are rated in
kilowatts. However, Canada uses, among other things, the US
American wire gauge standard instead of the
square millimetre (mm
2) used in the
IEC 60228
IEC 60228 is the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)'s international standard on ''conductors of insulated cables''. the current version is Third Edition 2004-11
Among other things, it defines a set of standard wire cross-sectional a ...
standard of the
International Electrotechnical Commission. Conduit sizes are in inch diameters, although some manufacturers include the metric size printed on the conduits – for example, , , .
Firearms
Imperial units remain in common use in firearms and ammunition on the international market.
Cartridges may have either commercial or military descriptions. In the former, the manufacturer will choose a name for proprietary reasons, perhaps to associate the name with a brand or designer, or otherwise distinguish it from comparable cartridges. Typical terms include bullet or bore diameter, cartridge length or capacity, a proper name or company. Designs are registered with
Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute
The Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute (SAAMI, pronounced "Sammy") is an association of American manufacturers of firearms, ammunition, and components. SAAMI is an accredited standards developer that publishes several Am ...
(SAAMI) or
(CIP) for standardization. Canadian industry follows both conventions, but there is little appetite in the Canadian firearms industry or hobby to pursue metrification simply for the sake of conformity when the trade is global.
Military designations use technical nomenclature to avoid confusion or misrouting of supplies. There are several examples of similar names and similar design dimensions. For example, the civilian cartridge
.303 Savage
The .303 Savage is a rimmed, .30 caliber rifle cartridge developed by the Savage Arms Company in 1894 which was designed as a short (as short as the .30-30 Winchester) action cartridge for their Savage Model 1895 later 1899 hammerless lever-ac ...
was introduced by the
Savage Arms
Savage Arms is an American gunmaker based in Westfield, Massachusetts, with operations in Canada. Savage makes a variety of rimfire and centerfire rifles, as well as Stevens single-shot rifles and shotguns. The company is best known for the ...
Company in 1894, but is incompatible with the
.303 British
The .303 British (designated as the 303 British by the C.I.P. and SAAMI) or 7.7×56mmR, is a calibre rimmed rifle cartridge. The .303 inch bore diameter is measured between rifling lands as is the common practice in Europe which follows th ...
used throughout the Commonwealth. The
.308 Winchester
The .308 Winchester is a smokeless powder rimless bottlenecked rifle cartridge widely used for hunting, target shooting, police, military, and personal protection applications globally. It is similar but not identical to the 7.62×51mm NATO ...
cartridge derived from the
7.62×51mm NATO cartridge in the 1950s, with slight variations in production but not in external dimensions. All four examples are common small arms cartridges in Canada.
Imperial measures are often encountered in the description of
cartridges, even when the cartridge is of a relatively recent product introduction (e.g.
.204 Ruger
The .204 Ruger is a centerfire rifle cartridge developed by Hornady and Ruger. At the time of its introduction in 2004, the .204 Ruger was the second-highest velocity commercially produced ammunition and the only centerfire cartridge produc ...
,
.17 HMR
.17 Hornady Magnum Rimfire, commonly known as the .17 HMR, is a rimfire rifle cartridge developed by Hornady in 2002. It was developed by necking down a .22 Magnum case to take a .17 caliber (4.5 mm) projectile. Commonly loaded with a 1 ...
, where the calibre is expressed in decimal fractions of an
inch). Ammunition which is classified in metric already is still kept metric (e.g.
9 mm,
7.62 mm). In the manufacture of ammunition, bullet and powder weights are expressed in terms of
grains
A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and legumes ...
for both metric and imperial cartridges. The popular
.30-30 Winchester
The .30-30 Winchester/.30 Winchester Center Fire cartridge was first marketed in 1895 for the Winchester Model 1894 lever-action rifle.[smokeless gunpowder
Finnish smokeless powderSmokeless powder is a type of propellant used in firearms and artillery that produces less smoke and less fouling when fired compared to gunpowder ("black powder"). The combustion products are mainly gaseous, compared to a ...]
.
Print
Canada uses the
inch-based paper standard e.g. the
US Letter
Letter or ANSI Letter is a paper size standard defined by the American National Standards Institute, commonly used as home or office stationery in the United States, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Panama, Guatemala, the Dominican ...
(8.5 inches × 11 inches), rather than the metric-based
A4 paper
ISO 216 is an international standard for paper sizes, used around the world except in North America and parts of Latin America. The standard defines the "A", "B" and "C" series of paper sizes, including A4, the most commonly available paper size ...
size (210 mm × 297 mm) used throughout most of the world. The government, however, uses a combination of ISO paper sizes, and CAN 2-9.60M "Paper Sizes for Correspondence" specifies P1 through P6 paper sizes, which are the US paper sizes rounded to the nearest 5 mm.
Air transportation
Luggage restrictions and limits at Canadian airports are in metric values with soft imperial conversion values. Runway lengths are given in feet and speed in knots
[1.8. Units of Measure](_blank)
/ref> as in the US. Like a number of metric countries altitude
Altitude or height (also sometimes known as depth) is a distance measurement, usually in the vertical or "up" direction, between a reference datum and a point or object. The exact definition and reference datum varies according to the context ...
is given in feet.
Fuel is nowadays measured in metric units. The Gimli Glider
Air Canada Flight 143, commonly known as the Gimli Glider, was a Canadian scheduled domestic passenger flight between Montreal and Edmonton that ran out of fuel on Saturday, July 23, 1983, at an altitude of , midway through the flig ...
incident in July 1983 is a famous case of a kilogram–pound mistake, in which the miscalculation of the amount of fuel in an Air Canada airplane with a malfunctioning fuel gauge caused the plane to run out of fuel mid-flight.
Education regarding the imperial system
In 2005, the Ontario government announced changes to the secondary school mathematics curriculum that would allow imperial units to be taught along with metric units. This marked a departure from previous governments' efforts to make sure that the curriculum used only the metric system. This was done in light of the refusal or reluctance of much of the private sector to metricate; thus students had been leaving school unprepared for the units used in the workplace. Many other provinces and territories also include the imperial system of measurements as part of their educational curriculum.
See also
* Chronology and status of metrication by country
* Metrication opposition
* Change management
Change management (sometimes abbreviated as CM) is a collective term for all approaches to prepare, support, and help individuals, teams, and organizations in making organizational change. It includes methods that redirect or redefine the use of ...
, a field studying how changes can be efficiently implemented in modern communities
* Myanmar units of measurement
The traditional Burmese units of measurement were a system of measurement used in Myanmar (also known as Burma).
According to the 2010 CIA Factbook, Myanmar is one of three countries that have not adopted the International System of Units (SI ...
* Metrication in the United States
Metrication (or metrification) is the process of introducing the International System of Units, also known as SI units or the metric system, to replace a jurisdiction's traditional measuring units. U.S. customary units have been defined in ...
*
* Weights and Measures Acts (UK)
Weights and measures acts are acts of the British Parliament determining the regulation of weights and measures. It also refers to similar royal and parliamentary acts of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland and the medieval Welsh states. T ...
* Metrication Ordinance (Hong Kong)
* Metrication in the United Kingdom
Metrication, the process of introducing the metric system of measurement in place of imperial units, has made steady progress in the United Kingdom since the mid-20th century but today remains equivocal and varies by context. Most of government, ...
References
External links
Canadian ''Weights and Measures Act'' (R.S., 1985, c. W-6) Re-accessdate = 2011-08-04
at CBC Digital Archives
Canada's incomplete metrication
{{Systems of measurement