Legislation

IRS help retail, commercial and industrial organisations comply with TM44 legislation and save on energy costs.

Since January 4th 2011 all organisations in England and Wales with air-conditioning systems over 12kW are required by Article 9 of the Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates and Inspections) Regulations 2007, to carry out an independent energy inspection of their units.

The Directive has been implemented in two phases and the second phase applying to all units over 12kW is now in force. If you have air-conditioning systems over 12KW, you must have this inspection carried out independently and inspections should be repeated at least every five years.

One or more air-conditioning units within a building controlled by a single person are considered to comprise of a single air-conditioning system for the purposes of the regulations. All units should therefore be calculated together to give the effective rated output. For example if a building has 10 single split systems rated at 5KW each, the effective rated output would equal 50KW and an Air Conditioning Energy Assessment (ACEA) would be required.

At IRS Ltd, Air Conditioning Energy Assessors undertake these assessments and offer independent inspection reports to our clients.  As part of our process, clients are able to see the report before it is finalised and lodged, allowing them to carry out any remedial work that is identified in the assessment.

This assessment ensures compliance with local authority inspections, ISO14001 and other environmental standards. Plus it improves the energy rating of the building, it helps reduce energy costs and fines for non-compliance can be avoided.

In addition to the standard TM44 CLG report and certificate, IRS Ltd provide a free of charge supplement which includes information on weekly energy consumption, maintenance regime, F-Gas Regulations and R22 phase out. 

While international efforts have been made to phase out ozone-depleting CFC and HCFC gases like R22, there are now also strict regulations controlling the use, maintenance, and containment of HFCs (fluorinated or F-Gases) due to their high Global Warming Potential (GWP). These gases are widely used in air conditioning, refrigeration, and process chilling systems – compliance to the EU F-Gas Regulation is mandatory.

The phase down of HFCs is designed to steadily reduce the Global Warming Potential of all gasses placed on the market within the European Union. The target is to reduce the CO2 equivalent of all gasses in use to 21% of the baseline by 2030. Individual producers and importers will receive a quote based on their 2009-12 baseline.

This is not a ban on any particular type of F-Gas, and operators can continue to use the equipment that they have at present. However, the higher the GWP of a particular gas – the more expensive it will become. In 2020, a service ban will come into force; meaning equipment with a charge in CO2 equivalent or greater than 40 tonnes will no longer be able to be refilled or serviced with virgin GFCs with a GWP > 2,500.

If organisations do not comply, you can expect to receive a fine of up to £200,000.

To find out more about what you can do to ensure you are compliant, click here: (link to F-Gas news article with further information). Or get in touch with our friendly team of experts: https://www.irs.co.uk/contact-us/

Timeline:

More details of the regulations can be found at the UK Government's F Gas Support group site here.