The economics of metric conversion for small manufacturing firms in the United States

Several major aspects of the metric conversion process occurring in the United States are examined by comparing a group of sample companies that have converted to metric production with a control group of nonconverting companies. Data files were used to relate several explanatory variables to the degree or percentage of metric production for individual companies and to compare the financial characteristics of converting and nonconverting companies. Smaller companies, on average, did more metric work for a single customer than large firms. In addition, as the percentage of metric work performed by companies increased, their dependence on a single buyer of their products tended to decrease. The analysis of the conversion process as a function of financial variables concluded that the conversion process was positively and significantly related to 1) long-term profitability, 2) liquidity, and 3) the size of firms as represented by the number of employees. Additional documentation is needed on the metric conversion process in distinct industries by firm size to more fully understand whether the process of technological diffusion is translated from large to small firms or begins in small firms themselves.