Air Conditioning Inspector accreditation

[nevgee]

The Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates and Inspections)(England and Wales) Regulations 2007 require inspection of all air conditioning systems with rated outputs over 12 kW at intervals not greater than 5 years.

I was wondering if anyone had considered seeking accreditation to be an Air Conditioning Inspector. My initial sortie into this brought me up against an application form (CIBSE) that appeared to be very daunting and probably needed special training just to fill it out.

Would be very interested in anyone’s views on this and if they have completed said form, how on earth did you manage to do it.

</H2>

[fridge doctor]

Hi,

Short answer is no. Interested though. Can you post a link to the site mentioned... thanks.

[freezetech]

i am going to do this course through quidos another string to the bow

[nevgee]

Here's the CIBSE link .....


http://www.cibseenergycentre.co.uk/a...inspector.html


Good luck.

[Ecotempltd]

Looking at doing the course in 2011, as I understand currently the assessment applies to systems with 250kg or over of refrigerant and in 2011 this drops to systems containing 12kg. This is more in the region of the plant we work with. There was an advert that dropped through my door about the assessment course though, but can't find it now, will be in ACR mag I think!

[TRASH101]

I am a little unclear on the airconditioning assessment. The reasons are -

1) The "system" capacity refers to combined charge of all units that the operator has control over in one building.

2) It is required by law to have the assessment.

3) The maximum fine is £300

4) You are not required to act on any advice given by the assessor.

Is it just a job creation scheme?

[Grizzly]

As my good friend and work colleague has passed and is now an accredited Assessor.
I will correct the above as to my understanding of how it has been explained to me.
1) A "system" ( as trash points out!)
Is a term meaning Under one roof. An area enclosed by 4 walls and 1 single roof.
Not as we Fridge engineers would describe it. I.E. A/C Systems are referred to as Units for the purposes of the assessment.
2) The Qualifying amount is expressed in KW's not KGS.
So if you add up the KW duty of all the "units" within the particular Building (Read SYSTEM).
Excluding any that are not supplying "Comfort Cooling" and this totals more than the 12Kw's or 250Kw.
Then they require an assessment within the time lines mentioned above.
Once it has been determined whether a "System" needs an assessment.
The assessor need to list all equipment but only carry out a survey on either 2 or 10% of the total Units.
Whichever is the greater.
Apparently so far approximately 1100 surveys have been carried out of the 40,000 buildings already needing assessment!

So far something like 70% of the guys put through by my company have either dropped out or failed to reach the required standard.
These assessments are potentially a huge Taxable resource for our cash strapped government.
So guess where this is leading....
For those who are unsure, think of this as HIPS for non residential premises.
This is all creeping along at the moment. But it will take off some time!
Incidentally most of the big companies are not waiting for the 2012 deadline but having all their A/C Assessed.
I hope this clarifies a little and I accept it may not be word perfect, but it is close!
Cheers Grizzly.

[El Padre]

I cannot see any companies sweating over this one for a while, I think the fine for non-compliance is two or three hundred pounds, I started the pre-apel paperwork with CIBSE, and as I have been accepted I could take it further but apart from being far too busy, I am not sure if the returns would warrant the initial investment in time and money.

Interesting thread though, and to hear your thoughts, its certainly something else for us to slip into a sales pitch!

Cheers

[lomb]

Shows whats wrong with this country. Modern Refrigerants are harmless to the environment. Yes there is greenhouse potential supposedly but so is there from vans driving the length of the country 'assessing' systems.

[tmm]

I'm accredited to Level 4 and whilst I agree with the comments surrounding the application the problem that CIBSE face is that they are subject to external audit to prove their compliance with the conditions of the act.
The real problem took place with Energy Performance Certificates & Display Energy Certificates which allowed people with no prior history to pass having attended a short course. I think that the results produced, and some are frankly dubious, have caused Local Communities & Government to review the process hence the in-depth application form.
To anyone who reads this post however my advice is not to persue the training in the belief that you will reach the land of 'milk and honey' as has been promoted in certain areas. At the end of the day this is generally received as 'extra costs' for a sector which is generally strapped.
If I was asked to overview I would say that nothing much will happen until Trading Standards start checking but with the stated cuts in local government I cannot see that happening quickly.
If you have a large client base I suggest that you attempt to sell the idea on the basis of its energy saving rather than many who concentrate on the mandatory viewpoint. I tend to make the following comparison: vehicle insurance is also mandatory but as we all know many people do not have the cover.
A good client will support your application but don't give up the day job!

tmm

[frank]

I understand that the Certificates have to be pre-purchased en block and then the assessor has to pay to register each inspection report at a cost of £30 - is this true?

[tmm]

Frank, I'm with CIBSE and there is no charge currently. The reports are forwarded, usually via e-mail, and they retained by CIBSE.
The confusion might have resulted from EPC's & DEC's which are forwarded to a central data base hence they charge for the process.
I believe that the A/C Inspections will follow suit as this will then enable Trading Standards to follow-up and check compliance but no indication of time scales as yet.

tmm