What do you need to do to be ready for 2010?
June 21st 2009 Building owners and operators must now have air conditioning systems inspected. To ensure high standards of inspection and reports it is vital to employ suitably qualified, accredited and experienced inspectors who deliver good value air conditioning inspection reports
Since January 2009, the Energy Performance of Buildings Regulations* require that air conditioning systems with a cooling capacity over 250 kW must be inspected.By the end of 2010 all systems over 12kW will need to be inspected.Air conditioning systems can use over a quarter of electrical demand. of a building, so a poorly performing system wastes a large amount of money and energy. A competent and experienced air conditioning inspector can identify poor performance and simple, cost effective improvements.
Air conditioning inspections offer a means to improve the performance of systems and deliver savings:in some cases CIBSE assessors have identified measures which repay the cost of the inspection within months, and then continue delivering real savings to the building operators.
Inspectors must be competent and accredited persons belonging to an approved scheme. CIBSE Certification accredits air conditioning inspectors for both complex and simple systems throughout the UK. However, there are growing concerns that inspections are being carried out by people who lack the breadth of experience needed to provide the required service.
CIBSE TM44, produced with HVCA, IoR and other industry bodies, describes how to carry out an inspection. The first step is to review system records. More recent buildings should have a building log-book to meet Building Regulations, or commissioning records may give plant types, sizes and locations.
Reviewing maintenance records and examining installed equipment confirms that plant matches the records, which should be updated if required.Where systems are already well maintained and controlled, then wider physical inspection may be limited. However, where maintenance is lacking, or information is missing, the inspector needs to investigate further. Examining system controls and settings offers the greatest potential for low or no cost adjustments, improvements and savings.
Rules of thumb are used to estimate the cooling load, current occupancy, solar and other heat gains, so that size of the system can be assessed in relation to the current load, and opportunities to reduce these loads identified. There may also be opportunities to use more efficient equipment such as variable speed fans with relatively short payback times, or the manager may be informed of the availability of higher efficiency cooling plant to consider when systems are renewed.
Facilities Managers should be aware of the requirements for Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) and Display Energy Certificates (DECs). EPCs are now required whenever a building is built, sold or rented, while public buildings over 1,000m2 and frequently visited by the public need to display a DEC (or an EPC in Scotland). These certificates must also be produced by approved energy assessors such as those accredited by CIBSE Certification: see www.cibsecertification.co.uk
* Parallel regulations apply in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
CIBSE TM44: Inspection of Air Conditioning Systems gives guidance on practical inspection of airconditioning systems,ways to save energy, cut carbon emissions, and reduce energy budgets. Guide L: Sustainability: a Sustainability Toolkit comprising Guide L, an Introduction to Sustainability and an Online Tool to help you to ensure your buildings and projects are genuinely sustainable.
See www.cibse.org/bookshop | 
