10th Jun 2011 - 00:00
Abstract
All UK buildings with air conditioning systems that have a capacity of over 12kW should have been inspected for energy efficiency by 4 January 2011.
The Heating and Ventilating Contractors' Association (HVCA) has received information from the Department for Communities and Local Government which indicates that the majority of such installations have still not been inspected and building owners are now breaking the law. Apart from the potential penalties companies face, they are almost certainly paying higher energy bills by failing to have their systems inspected by experts who can advise on efficiency improvements. Under the regulations all air conditioning systems with a cooling capacity over 12kW must be inspected. All new systems put in place on or after 1 January 2008 are to be inspected within five years of installation, while all other air conditioning systems over 250kW output should have been inspected by 4 January 2009. Any air conditioning systems above 12kW should have been inspected by 4 January 2011. The air conditioning report (ACR) produced by an accredited air conditioning assessor following the inspection will include recommendations about what changes should be made to the installation or how the system(s) could be run more efficiently. By implementing these recommendations, businesses can save money and cut their carbon emissions – and meet many of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) goals. Rod Pettigrew, deputy chief executive of the HVCA, commented: "Non-compliance has real costs; it costs the environment, it will cost the UK any chance of meeting its emissions targets and it costs companies the opportunity to lower their costs – and in the difficult trading conditions being experienced by most businesses that must be sufficient incentive alone. "It's worth emphasising that the inspection is not just a tick box exercise; it gives building owners and managers useful information about how their systems are running and how they could be improved both to reduce harmful carbon emissions and save them money on their energy bills." For more information visit: www.hvca.org.uk