On May 19, the CEE Board of Directors updated CEE’s Quality Installation Specifications for Residential and Commercial Equipment with the official requirements of a new ANSI Standard for Quality Installation.

CEE members and other stakeholders interested in promoting better HVAC installation practices now have an industry-supported consensus definition of what constitutes a quality installation (QI). On April 19, the Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) announced that its “HVAC Quality Installation Specification,” was formally recognized by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) as a national standard. CEE represented membership interests during this process, which also involved a broad coalition of industry stakeholders and individual CEE members.

CEE’s support to ACCA has facilitated a specification that meets both member and industry needs. Now CEE is adopting this specification to illustrate alignment and facilitate market transformation.

The QI Specification identifies consensus requirements associated with quality installations, acceptable procedures for measuring or verifying the attainment of those requirements, and acceptable forms of documentation to show compliance with requirements.

“Our expectation is that this new ANSI standard will be embraced by HVAC contractors and distributors, leading to enhanced partnerships between CEE members and trade allies in local markets” explained CEE’s John Taylor, who organized CEE’s participation in the project. The Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI) and the Gas Appliance Manufacturers Association (GAMA)—two major trade associations of the HVAC industry—have both endorsed the standard and have taken steps to make it available to their members.

ANSI recognition of the ACCA QI Specification marks the culmination of a four-year process that began with a small meeting of CEE members, manufacturers, and staff from ACCA and ARI. During the meeting the parties agreed that improving HVAC installation practices represented the largest energy-saving opportunity in this sector and was a challenge that stakeholders could address jointly.

ACCA and CEE organized a workshop in March 2005 to discuss market transformation strategies for improving HVAC installation practices. The group of more than 50 manufacturers, HVAC contractors, utilities, efficiency advocates, and government agencies agreed a consensus definition was a necessary first step to a successful partnership. Many of those in attendance volunteered to serve on the QI Specification Committee.

Skip Snyder, president of the Snyder Company (an HVAC contractor) and Chair of ACCA’s Quality Installation Specification Development Committee, said, “Installation of quality HVAC systems is more than just using high-efficiency products and equipment. The QI Specification focuses on elements associated with ensuring that HVAC equipment is properly sized, selected, and installed for residential and commercial applications. These elements have a large impact on occupant satisfaction and energy savings.”

CEE and ACCA have agreed to a license agreement that will allow CEE and its members to copy and distribute the QI Standard for use in voluntary incentive programs. The Standard will soon be available for free download on the CEE Directory of ARI-Verified HVAC Equipment. Taylor explained, “The CEE Equipment Directory is getting more than 300,000 hits per month; offering the QI Standard there will take advantage of all the equity CEE and its members have built on that website.”

Next step: Credible verification of the QI standard
ACCA has formed a new Committee that will develop verification protocols to enable demonstration of compliance with the ANSI/ACCA QI Standard. Items to be addressed include:

      ·Verification approaches and frequency
      ·Dispute resolution
      ·Verifier skill sets/characteristics
      ·Necessary administration and oversight

Credible and cost-effective strategies for verifying when QI is achieved are believed to be necessary for a national program. Representatives of National Grid, NEEP, NSTAR, Oncor Electric Delivery, Southern California Edison, Wisconsin Focus on Energy, and Xcel Energy will be serving on this committee. John Taylor of CEE will represent the CEE HVAC Committee and keep all interested members abreast of important developments. CEE will be updating its HVAC Initiative and will use the ACCA deliberations to inform that process. EPA has indicated they will look to the outcomes of this effort to inform development of an ENERGY STAR program for QI.

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