This report includes a discussion of SI metric units, with examples of the conventions regarding their use adopted in other countries to illustrate the nature of the decisions that must be made by the U.S. building industry. It discusses the relationship of dimensional coordination to the metric conversion effort and its impact on the U.S. building regulatory system. Some of the organizational problems required to involve all segments of the industry in this decision-making process and to implement these decisions in a coordinated way on a national scale are also discussed. (Author/MN)