Final answer:
The correct answer is B. A metric in engineering is a measurable value or attribute of a product that correlates with customer needs and is used to assess its performance. The metric system is commonly used to standardize measurements in engineering, providing scalability and ease of comparison between different design options.
Step-by-step explanation:
In the context of engineering requirements, a metric is defined as a measurable value or attribute of the product related to one or more customer needs. Metrics are crucial in the design and evaluation of products as they provide a clear and quantifiable indication of performance or quality. These could include attributes such as the weight, size, or efficiency of a product, and are used to ensure that a product meets certain standards or customer expectations.
Metric units in engineering often adopt the metric system due to its universal acceptance outside of the United States and its ease of scalability. Units such as meters, liters, and grams are used, scaled with metric prefixes like kilo- or milli- to align with the magnitude of what is being measured. This system of measurement simplifies comparing and contrasting design alternatives based on their metrics. Thus, metrics serve as criteria to gauge how well a given design meets the identified requirements and objectives.