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A question for Canadian users - metric or imperial


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#1 Martin Livingston

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Posted 16 December 2020 - 12:03 PM

Hi,

 

Are there any jurisdictions in Canada that require plans to be completed using metric units? The local municipality here is trying to enforce it.

 

Cheers!


Five out of four people are not very good with fractions

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#2 Denis Reis

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Posted 16 December 2020 - 03:50 PM

wow, nope not here in Manitoba!

 

EVERYTHING is imperial...well except for our Building Code Book :D


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#3 Keith Almond

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Posted 16 December 2020 - 09:27 PM

Not in Ontario either. We only use Imperial units ... our code is a metric conversion of imperial units.


Keith

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#4 Gary Wicklund

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Posted 20 December 2020 - 09:01 AM

Not here in BC, unless it’s a government job



#5 Joe Rommel

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Posted 20 December 2020 - 11:22 AM

Some BC jurisdictions require site statistics to be shown in both metric and imperial. Plan dimensions, however, are always shown feet & inches. I suspect that once framers call a 2x4 a 38x89, things may change.



#6 Rob Vanderwoerd

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Posted 21 December 2020 - 07:53 AM

The city of Burlington (Ontario) often requires permit submissions in metric.

Thankfully they only want the dimensions, not lumber sizes and loads so I just change the drawing options to metric and round all dimensions to the nearest mm.



#7 Keith Almond

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Posted 21 December 2020 - 07:58 AM

The main problem with a metric code is that we use IMPERIAL building materials. A sheet of plywood is 4' x 8' not 1200 x 2400, so if you put joists in at 400mm o.c. they miss the end of the plywood. Ontario amended their METRIC code to actually be an IMPERIAL code written in METRIC, so joists are at 406mm (16") o.c. Until the lumber industry works in metric (which won't happen as we export materials to the states) then a metric based code is just not workable.

 

On a related note, Softplan should make their METRIC units actually METRIC, not an imperial conversion to 1/10mm ... !


Keith

There are 10 types of people in this world ....... Those who understand binary, and those who don't.

Softplan user since version 5.5.2.5

www.homehardwarekingston.ca

#8 Kevin Rabenaldt

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Posted 24 December 2020 - 08:19 AM

I wonder what the code books (look like) and material dimensions are in Europe and elsewhere that uses only metric.  Just curious.  I did not realize that Canada used Imperial for so much in the building trades.



#9 Keith Almond

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Posted 24 December 2020 - 08:39 AM

British Building Regulations and the all the materials have been completely METRIC since 1972.

 

I am British, and worked for Architects and Designers in Britain until 1991. I'd NEVER used IMPERIAL units - since I started work in 1974 - until I emigrated to Canada.


Keith

There are 10 types of people in this world ....... Those who understand binary, and those who don't.

Softplan user since version 5.5.2.5

www.homehardwarekingston.ca

#10 Martin Livingston

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Posted 29 December 2020 - 04:14 PM

Thanks for all the feedback! The local building authority is trying to implement metric plan sets for at least the permitting process. I cannot see our trades and/or suppliers getting on board with metric plan sets and I sure don't want to have to produce one of each.

 

Cheers!


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www.cresco.ca


#11 Don Gibbons

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Posted 30 December 2020 - 05:15 AM

Martin, I think that as plan examiners and and building inspectors get younger, it will be more of a push to have plans in metric. I had a kid just out of college to work for me and he didn't know the imperial system, I had to teach it to him. He also couldn't read cursive and asked me not to write instructions or notes for him.



#12 Tim Stockton

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Posted 01 January 2021 - 08:54 AM

Martin, I think that as plan examiners and and building inspectors get younger, it will be more of a push to have plans in metric. I had a kid just out of college to work for me and he didn't know the imperial system, I had to teach it to him. He also couldn't read cursive and asked me not to write instructions or notes for him.

Wow Don!  If the kid can't read or communicate with people better than that, then he needs to find a new occupation!  It's a shame the schools aren't teaching kids any better than that these days.  They really do need to get back to the basics (IMHO).



#13 Don Gibbons

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Posted 02 January 2021 - 04:30 AM

They do Tim. That kid has gone back to school to become a structural engineer as well.



#14 Martin Livingston

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Posted 03 January 2021 - 07:39 AM

One of the major problems we have is with our truss supplier. The platform they use does not support metric as with a lot of American plate manufacturers. And of course 90% of the trades we have cannot/will not work with metric. 


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