AHRI Update

June 27, 2024

AHRI/Industry News

Deadline Approaching to Recognize Outstanding HVACR Colleagues During AHRI’s 2024 Call for Award Nominations!

Do you have a colleague who constantly volunteers for working groups, committees, and task forces to help move our industry forward? Are you eager to have someone you know recognized for the hard work they put in for our association? Well, here’s your chance – don’t miss it!

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AHRI annually recognizes outstanding individuals for contributions that advance the HVACR and water heating industry, so don’t hesitate to nominate someone. Deserving candidates will be the recipients of one of three AHRI awards – the Richard C. Schulze Award, the AHRI Public Service Award, and the AHRI Distinguished Service Award, which will be presented during AHRI’s Leadership Forum in November. AHRI’s Nominating Committee will review nominations and select award recipients.

Please complete this Nomination Form and email it back (instructions on bottom) on or before June 28, 2024. Here are links to past winners of the Schulze Award and the Distinguished Service Award. Please contact Francis Dietz at [email protected], or by phone at 703-969-6444, if you have questions.

Legislative and Regulatory

EPA Issues Decision to Grant Petition for Administrative Reconsideration on the Treatment of R-410A Condensing Units

On June 25, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its decision to grant the petition for administrative reconsideration and initiate a rulemaking on the treatment of R-410A condensing units that AHRI, the Alliance for Responsible Atmospheric Policy, and HARDI submitted to EPA on December 21, 2023. EPA has not indicated a timeline for this rulemaking. Contact: Samantha Slater.

EPA Publishes Proposed Rule on Compliance Date for VRF Systems

On June 26, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published, in the Federal Register, a proposed rule on the compliance date for variable refrigerant flow (VRF) systems. This proposed rule would narrowly amend a provision of the Technology Transitions (TT) regulation published on October 24, 2023. It proposes to allow one additional year, until January 1, 2027, solely for the installation of new VRF systems using hydrofluorocarbons with a global warming potential (GWP) of 700 or more, and where the components were manufactured in the U.S. or imported into the U.S. prior to January 1, 2026.

As anticipated, EPA's proposed rule for installing VRF systems follows the same approach it took for the installation of residential and light commercial air conditioning (AC) and heat pump (HP) systems in its December 2023 Interim Final Rule.

The proposed rule amends 40 CFR 84.84(c)(2) with language allowing the installation of new VRF systems using refrigerants with GWPs of 700 or greater to be installed after January 1, 2026, and before January 1, 2027, provided all specified components used in the installation were manufactured or imported prior to January 1, 2026. Any specified components manufactured after January 1, 2026, using high-GWP refrigerants still must be labeled "for servicing existing equipment only" and may not be used for new installations after January 1, 2026.

Note that, during the 2026 calendar year, new VRF system installations cannot comprise both pre- and post-2026 components. That is, a VRF system must be installed only using high-GWP components manufactured before January 1, 2026, OR only using low-GWP components manufactured after January 1, 2026. This is the same approach taken in the Interim Final Rule for residential and light commercial AC and HP systems. No other changes to the TT Final Rule, meaning all other requirements, such as recordkeeping and reporting, apply as they otherwise would.

EPA will accept public comments until July 26. Contact: Samantha Slater.

OIRA to Offer Public Training on E.O. 12866 Participation in the Rulemaking Process

The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) of the Office of Management and Budget will hold two public training sessions on how to participate in the federal rulemaking process. The training sessions will be held on Tuesday, July 9, from 3:00 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. EDT and Tuesday, July 16, from 1:00 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. EDT.

The training will focus on how members of the public can meet with OIRA during its review of draft proposed and final rules. These meetings, known as Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 meetings, offer an opportunity for attendees to present their views on regulatory actions under review. OIRA also invites representatives from the agency or agencies taking regulatory action to participate in these meetings.

At the training sessions, OIRA will describe:

what an E.O. 12866 meeting is;
how members of the public may request and schedule a meeting;
the format of E.O 12866 meetings;
what type of information or input is most helpful to receive during an E.O. 12866 meeting; and
what makes for an effective presentation during an E.O. 12866 meeting.

Information on how to access the virtual training sessions will be provided upon registration. Those interested can register by emailing [email protected], noting which session they would like to attend.

Additionally, to facilitate E.O. 12866 meeting requests, OIRA modified its website to simplify the request form and provide several avenues through which the public can request meetings. It also offers detailed, step-by-step instructions in English and Spanish on its website and a video (also translated into Spanish) about how to schedule a meeting.

See the Office of Advocacy’s Regulatory Alert on this topic: OIRA Announces Public Training on Participating in the Rulemaking Process. Contact: Samantha Slater.

Upcoming DOE Building Energy Codes Program Webinars

The Department of Energy (DOE) announced plans to host several webinars as part of its Building Energy Codes Program (BCEP) Webinar Series. Several of the topics, including the two listed below, are of interest to the HVACR industry.

Refrigerants and Codes: Understanding the Impact of Refrigerants Requirements on Building Codes and Standards on the Path to Net Zero Greenhouse Gas Emissions

August 15, 1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. EDT
Register here
Speakers: Tom Deary, Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI); Aanchal Kohli, California Air Resources Board (CARB); Kristen Taddonio, Consultant
Description: The pursuit of decarbonization of the U.S. economy by 2050 will require a multi-pronged approach. Among the two most popular options are increasing the mechanical efficiency requirements of equipment like air conditioners and water heaters and incentivizing replacing traditional refrigerants with low global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants. However, several of the lowest-GWP refrigerant options have higher flammability or toxicity ratings and may require updated state and local building codes to enable usage. This session will provide an overview of current refrigerant codes and standards and explore new approaches that could overcome barriers to the adoption of low-GWP refrigerants.

What’s in the Latest Residential Model Energy Code: Preparing for the 2024 IECC

September 19, 1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. EDT
Register here
Description: Learn what’s new in the Residential 2024 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC). Experts will highlight major differences between the 2024 IECC-R and the 2021 IECC-R and help practitioners understand new and updated requirements throughout the code, including the building thermal envelope, energy credits, compliance paths, and more. This session will also unpack the many new appendices and describe how jurisdictions can support their adoption.

Contact: Tom Deary.

SBA to Host Chemicals Roundtable

On Monday, July 1 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. EDT, the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Office of Advocacy (Advocacy) will host a Small Business Chemicals Roundtable. The session will include experts in the regulation of chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and other federal statutes and small business representatives. The goal is to raise awareness of ongoing regulatory efforts and seek small business feedback.

Future regulations may affect small businesses that use targeted chemicals, products containing targeted chemicals, or products made using targeted chemicals. The roundtable will provide information to small entities and their representatives to aid their participation in these rulemakings, the chance to interact with TSCA subject matter experts, and help inform Advocacy’s activities on their behalf. Those interested in attending can register online here. Contact: Samantha Slater.

AHRI and CAA Webinar on EPR Available Online

A recording of AHRI’s webinar with the Circular Action Alliance (CAA) discussing Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws, held May 30, is now available online. In this hour-long session, CAA’s John Hite outlined how to comply with this new type of packaging regulation, including details on the scope of the law, how the HVACR and water heating industry will be impacted, ways to ease compliance and reporting, and remaining questions on how the laws will be implemented.

In recent years, several states passed EPR laws, creating a new waste and recycling management system in California, Oregon, Colorado, Minnesota, and Maine by putting the costs of the programs on producers of packaging and plastics entering the states. These EPR laws require that brand holders whose packaging enters the state register with a producer responsibility organization (PRO), which will then charge fees to producers based on factors such as weight and recyclability of packaging.

The CAA, a non-profit formed by industry stakeholders, serves as the PRO for California, Oregon, and Colorado. It has asked producers to register with the organization by July 1, 2024, to comply with these laws. Reporting begins March 1, 2025, in Oregon. Contact: Chris Bresee.

Standards

AHRI Publishes Revised Standard

After approval by the Commercial Unitary Standards Technical Committee (STC) and the Standards Subcommittee (StdC), AHRI published the revised AHRI Standard 1340-2024 (I-P), Performance Rating of Commercial and Industrial Unitary Air-Conditioning and Heat Pump Equipment, which is available here. Contact: Antonio Romeo.

AHRI Standards Open for Public Review and Comment

Technical Review

AHRI invites public comments on the technical content of the following draft AHRI standard. Based upon comments received, the Commercial Unitary Standards Technical Committee (STC) will decide whether to make changes. A copy of the draft and list of revisions are available at the link below.

Document Designation/Title: BSR/AHRI Standard 370-202x (SI/I-P), Sound Performance Rating of Large Air-Cooled Outdoor Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Equipment
STC: Waterside and Refrigeration
Public Review Deadline: July 1
Contact: Panos Fykas

Maintenance Review

The Industrial Refrigeration STC proposed that the following published AHRI standards be reaffirmed and requests public comment on whether they should be reaffirmed or revised/withdrawn.

Document Designation and Title: AHRI Standard 460-2005 (SI/I-P), Performance Rating of Remote, Mechanical-Draft Air-Cooled Refrigerant Condensers
Public Review Deadline: July 15
Contact: Greg Kalinyak

Document Designation and Title: AHRI Standard 490-2011 (I-P), Performance Rating of Remote Mechanical-Draft Evaporatively-Cooled Refrigerant Condensers
Public Review Deadline: July 15
Contact: Greg Kalinyak

Document Designation and Title: AHRI Standard 491-2011 (SI), Performance Rating of Remote Mechanical-Draft Evaporatively-Cooled Refrigerant Condensers
Public Review Deadline: July 15
Contact: Greg Kalinyak

Please see more information regarding the public review process for these documents here.

AHRI Seeks Participants for New STC

The AHRI MENA team is forming a new standards technical committee (STC), the MENA Evaporative Cooling STC, which intends to develop a standard for methods for testing direct, indirect, and hybrid evaporative cooling units under laboratory conditions, following the test methods of ASHRAE 133, Method of Testing Direct Evaporative Air Coolers, and ASHRAE 143, Method of Testing Direct Evaporative Air Coolers.

Out of scope for this STC are units covered under AHRI Standard 340/360 (I P), Performance Rating of Commercial and Industrial Unitary Air Conditioning and Heat Pump Equipment; AHRI Standard 430 (I-P), Performance Rating of Central Station Air-Handling Unit Supply Fans; and AHRI Standard 1350 (I-P), Mechanical Performance Rating of Central Station Air-Handling Unit Casings. Anyone is welcome to join this STC in accordance with the current AHRI Policy & Procedures for the Development of Standards. Contact: Dalip Singh

Weekly Update from ASHRAE, ANSI, and SCC

This week’s summary of standards activities at ASHRAE, ANSI, and SCC that is relevant to AHRI’s work is available here. Current and previous standards activities for ASHRAE can be found here. Current and previous standards activities for ANSI can be found here.

International

AHRI Participates in Alfa Laval India Webinar

On May 20, AHRI Senior Technical Analyst Dalip Singh participated as a speaker and panelist in a webinar titled, “Thermal Performance Guaranteed: Alfa Laval - AHRI Certified Plate Heat Exchangers,” hosted by Alfa Laval India.

The webinar provided detailed information on AHRI’s liquid-to-liquid heat exchangers (LLHE) certification program. Regional demand for the LLHE program is expected to rise due to the recent increase in district cooling applications. More than 110 people participated in the webinar, representing regions of Europe, the Middle East, and India. Contact: Dalip Singh.

Talk to the Public Affairs Team

Reach out to our team members with your questions.