Brass & Indian Units Converter
Convert brass to sq ft, m², sq yd, cft and m³ — with the area and volume senses kept firmly apart, because mixing them is how estimates and bills go wrong. Exact metre-based arithmetic: 1 ft = 0.3048 m.
Area sense: plastering, painting, flooring, formwork. Volume sense: earthwork excavation, filling, concrete.
Each dimension takes its own unit — mixed ft/m/inch entries are converted before the take-off.
Live conversion
brass
Dimensions take-off
brass
- sq yd
Brass is a colloquial site unit — not a statutory or IS unit. You will not find "brass" defined in any Indian Standard or in the Weights & Measures rules that govern trade units. It survives because it is convenient shorthand on Indian sites: area sense 1 brass = 100 sq ft for plastering, painting, flooring and formwork; volume sense 1 brass = 100 cft for earthwork excavation, filling and concrete. Contract documents, BOQ item descriptions and measurement books should carry sq ft / m² or cft / m³ — record brass only as a site convenience alongside the base unit, never instead of it.
How this is calculated
Every conversion is exact arithmetic on the definition of the foot: 1 ft = 0.3048 m exactly, so 1 sq ft = 0.09290304 m² exactly, 1 cft = 0.028316846592 m³ exactly, and 1 sq yd = 9 sq ft exactly. One brass is 100 of the base unit — 100 sq ft (= 9.290304 m²) in the area sense, 100 cft (= 2.8316846592 m³) in the volume sense. The only rounded figure shown is 1 m³ = 35.3147 cft (4 decimal places of the exact ratio).
The dimensions take-off converts each of L, W (and D) from its own unit — ft, m or inch — to feet first, multiplies, and divides by 100. That is all a brass figure ever is: a hundred-count of square feet or cubic feet.
Worked example
Given: an earthwork excavation pit 20 ft × 15 ft × 6 ft (volume sense).
Volume = 20 × 15 × 6 = 1,800 cft → 1,800 / 100 = 18 brass
In metric: 1,800 cft × 0.028316846592 = 50.9703 m³ (or 18 × 2.8316846592 — same answer)
Area sense for contrast: a 10 ft × 10 ft plaster patch = 100 sq ft = 1 brass = 9.290304 m² — same word, completely different quantity.
Quick reference
| Sense | 1 brass equals | Related exact facts |
|---|---|---|
| Area (plaster, paint, flooring, formwork) | 100 sq ft · 9.290304 m² · 11.1111 sq yd | 1 sq ft = 0.09290304 m² · 1 sq yd = 9 sq ft · 1 m² = 10.7639 sq ft |
| Volume (earthwork, filling, concrete) | 100 cft · 2.8316846592 m³ | 1 cft = 0.028316846592 m³ · 1 m³ = 35.3147 cft (4 dp) · 1 ft = 0.3048 m |
- Excavation and earth filling: sites quote brass in the volume sense — the 20 ft × 15 ft × 6 ft pit above is 18 brass of excavation.
- Plastering and painting: the same word means area — 1 brass = 100 sq ft of finished surface, with each face measured separately as the specification directs.
- Billing: record brass alongside sq ft/m² or cft/m³ in the measurement book; the base unit is what a contract can enforce.
FAQ
Is brass defined in any IS code?
No. Brass is informal Indian site language with no definition in any Indian Standard or statutory weights-and-measures rule. It is useful shorthand — 100 sq ft or 100 cft depending on the trade — but contract documents should name sq ft/m² or cft/m³, and this tool always shows those units beside any brass figure.
Why do a plaster quote and an excavation quote both say "brass"?
Because the word carries two senses. Plastering, painting, flooring and formwork use the area sense (1 brass = 100 sq ft); earthwork excavation, filling and concrete use the volume sense (1 brass = 100 cft). Always confirm which sense a rate refers to before comparing or billing — a "rate per brass" means something nine-times different in area terms versus volume terms.
How much concrete is 1 brass?
In the volume sense, 1 brass = 100 cft = 2.8316846592 m³ ≈ 2.83 m³. An M20 nominal-mix pour of 1 brass needs roughly 8 cement bags per m³ — about 23 bags — but use the nominal mix or mix design calculators for the exact bill of materials.
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Visualisation
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Results are computed from formulae and reference values cited to Indian Standards and other published codes as named on this page, using nominal default assumptions; clause and table references are given in good faith for study and preliminary checks. Always verify the current edition and amendments of any cited standard in the BIS catalogue before relying on it. Final mix proportions, structural checks and construction decisions must be confirmed by a qualified engineer against the project design brief, drawings and site conditions. ConcreteInfo accepts no liability for design, procurement or construction decisions taken on the basis of these tools. Code references & rights: Indian Standards are the property of the Bureau of Indian Standards (© BIS) — official PDFs at bis.gov.in. Shared in good faith as technical reference for the civil engineering fraternity — always verify against the official publication.