SI units only, please

Since graduating I have not once used imperial units in my day to day life as an engineer

I read your piece about McLaren’s Applied Technologies division with interest (PE Jan 2013), and was thinking about passing on the article to my father who is keen F1 fan. That was until I came across a description of a tube/steerer assembly which embarrassingly tapered from 1 1/8in to 1 3/8in!

My father is not an engineer, yet he has successfully grappled with SI units since the UK adopted its metrication programme some 40 years ago, and I know that seeing inches featuring in the engineering profession’s monthly journal would cause much mirth.

It was therefore pleasing to discover in the same edition of PE, my tutor of fluid mechanics, Em Prof Escudier, writing to express his horror at seeing imperial units in a previous edition of PE.

Since graduating in 1994 I have not once used imperial units in my day to day life as an engineer. Furthermore, I would reprimand anyone in my company for doing so.

The IMechE is an ambassador for our profession, and as such it is disappointing to see that its editorial staff don’t have a strict policy on the adoption of the SI system in its publications.

James Tait

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