News & Events
2023: ASHRAE and UNEP Sign 2024-2025 Work Plan | ASHRAE, UNEP Announce Lower GWP Award Selections | Galileo TV Interviews Andrès Sepùlveda, ASHRAE Europe | ASHRAE Pledges Support for World Refrigeration Day | INWIC Launches New Website | Refrigerants and the Environment: Insights from Student Presentations 2022: Cold Chain Link to Food Security and Climate Mitigation – ASHRAE Participates in UNEP Seminar | INWIC Featured in ASHRAE Journal - Women in Cooling | ASHRAE, UNEP Invite Lower GWP Innovation Award Entries | ASHRAE To Observe World Refrigeration Day | ASHRAE Joins Initiative to Support Opportunities for Women in the Cooling Sector 2021: ASHRAE Present Co-Organized World Refrigeration Day Webinars | ASHRAE and UN Environment Programme Launch Three-Year Workplan 2020: ASHRAE UNEP Invite Lower GWP Innovation Award Entries | World Refrigeration Day to Recognize Cold Chain | ASHRAE Supports World Refrigeration Day 2020 2019: ASHRAE, UN Environment Programme Announce Lower GWP Award Selections | Now Free to ASHRAE Members: Refrigerant Training | ASHRAE Members Share How They Built Systems, Their Careers | ASHRAE Celebrates World Refrigeration Day | Lessons Learned from Piloting of Refrigerant Driving License | Installing, operating and servicing A/C systems in the times of COVID-19 Webinar
UNEP and ASHRAE Renew Their Support for Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Sector
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UN Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction and ASHRAE have an ongoing collaboration spanning almost two decades to help developing countries manage an environmentally-responsible, smooth and safe transition to new refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump (RACHP) technologies and practices in support of the goals set by the Montreal Protocol and the Paris Climate Accord: replacing ozone depleting substances (ODS), promoting lower global warming potentials (GWPs), and enhancing energy efficiency. During the 2024 ASHRAE Winter Conference last month, the two organisations launched their new 2024-2025 Work Plan under the theme “Refrigerant Management for Climate Protection and Energy Efficiency in Developing Economies.” Ginger Scoggins, P.E., 2023-2024 ASHRAE President, and James Curlin, Head of UNEP OzonAction, participated in the signing ceremony, which reaffirmed their organisation’s commitment to support the RACHP sector in developing economies. |
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ASHRAE and UNEP Sign 2024-2025 Work Plan
ASHRAE has signed a new agreement with OzonAction under the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) for a 2024-2025 Work Plan, themed “Refrigerant Management for Climate Protection and Energy Efficiency in Developing Economies.” The plan’s emphasis is on making tools and programs for sound management of refrigerants available and accessible to stakeholders in developing countries.
View the Work Plan
ASHRAE, UNEP Announce Lower GWP Award Selections
ASHRAE and UN Environment Programme (UNEP) have announced the project selections for the 2023 ASHRAE-UNEP OzonAction Lower-GWP Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Innovation Awards. The annual international award program promotes innovative design, research and practice by recognizing people who have developed or implemented innovative technological concepts applied in developing countries to promote lower global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants through refrigeration and air-conditioning applications.
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Galileo TV Interviews Andrès Sepùlveda, ASHRAE Europe
Andrès Sepùlveda, ASHRAE Europe, interviews from UNEP-IIR-AREA-CSG 20th European Conference (Milan, 8-9 June 2023).
ASHRAE Pledges Support for World Refrigeration Day
ASHRAE has joined organizations, government agencies and companies worldwide to support World Refrigeration Day, an annual event dedicated to raising awareness about the significant role of refrigeration and air conditioning to modern life. World Refrigeration Day is celebrated on June 26th each year. This year's theme, "Next Generation Cooling," highlights the need for innovative and sustainable cooling solutions that can meet the increasing demands of our rapidly changing world. ASHRAE emphasizes the importance of next generation cooling technologies to address global challenges and promote sustainable practices.
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INWIC Launches New Website
The International Network for Women in Cooling (INWIC) recently launched its website, http://www.inwic.org. The website contains information on membership, news, events and partnerships related to promoting the role of women in the refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump (RACHP) sector across the globe. ASHRAE is a founding partner of INWIC.
Visit INWIC.org
Refrigerants and the Environment: Insights from Student Presentations
This video series features short glimpses from student presentations on the scheduling of a UNEP-developed, full-semester university course, "Refrigerants and Environment", offered in Spring 2022 at Capital University of Science and Technology in Islamabad, Pakistan. The course is distributed by ASHRAE. More details about the course including how instructors can request course materials can be found in the University Course tab.
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Cold Chain Link to Food Security and Climate Mitigation – ASHRAE Participates in UNEP Seminar
AHMEDABAD – The Cold Chain sector is playing a crucial role in managing the world's food systems from production to consumption or “from Farm to Fork”. Absent or inefficient cold chain processes immediately contribute to food loss in different segments of cold chain operations.
On December 8, ASHRAE participated in a technical seminar “Sustainable Cold Chain – Towards Food Security and Climate Mitigation” at the REFCOLD Exposition in Ahmedabad (India).
The Cold Chain is the series of actions and equipment applied to maintain a product within a specified low-temperature range from harvest/production to consumption, including farming/fishing, food processing, cold storage, transportation, food services, and domestic uses, as well as specialized products like medicinal products and vaccines.
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INWIC Featured in ASHRAE Journal - Women in Cooling
NUREMBERG, GERMANY - World Refrigeration Day (WRD) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction described the new International Network for Women in Cooling (INWIC) at the Chillventa trade fair in Nuremberg, Germany.
INWIC aims to help address the qualified worker shortage by making the field more attractive to women. This recently launched initiative connects women currently working in the sector, empowering them to progress in their career and to become visible role models to attract the next generation of female engineers and technicians.
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ASHRAE, UNEP Invite Lower GWP Innovation Award Entries
ATLANTA/PARIS (October 28, 2022) – Entries are now being accepted for the ASHRAE and OzonAction of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) 2022 Lower GWP Refrigeration & Air-Conditioning Innovation Award. The award promotes innovative design, research and practice by recognizing people who have developed or implemented innovative technological concepts applied in developing countries to minimize global warming potential (GWP) through refrigeration and air-conditioning applications. The award is part of the ASHRAE-UNEP OzonAction joint workplan for 2021-2023 under the global cooperation agreement established by both parties in 2007.
Due to the global pandemic, judging of submissions received for the 2020 award was not completed. However, entries submitted for the 2020 award will be automatically entered into consideration for the 2022 award. Those who submitted entries for 2020 will be allowed and encouraged to update those entries if desired.
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ASHRAE To Observe World Refrigeration Day
ATLANTA (June 21, 2022) – On June 26, ASHRAE, along with government and industry organizations, will highlight the impact of refrigeration technologies on everyday life by observing World Refrigeration Day. World Refrigeration Day is an international initiative that raises the awareness of cooling’s benefits and inspires development and adoption of innovative and sustainable cooling solutions.
This year’s theme, “Cooling Matters,” stresses the importance of cooling in a wide variety of daily areas like food, data centers, medicine and air conditioning.
“We witnessed the importance of refrigeration in helping to mitigate a global pandemic by keeping vaccines cold and their efficacy high, among other uses that are critical to health, comfort, and the welfare of humanity.” said 2021-22 ASHRAE President Mick Schwedler, P.E., Fellow ASHRAE, LEED AP. “ASHRAE has always provided trusted technical expertise and leadership in refrigeration and cooling technologies and is pleased to support World Refrigeration Day.”
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ASHRAE Joins Initiative to Support Opportunities for Women in the Cooling Sector
ATLANTA (April 18, 2022) – ASHRAE, along with other key international organizations, has launched an initiative to advance career opportunities for women in the cooling sector.
The International Network for Women in Cooling (INWIC) has been created to advance engagement, promote career opportunities and increase overall participation of women in the cooling sector, which includes refrigeration, air-conditioning, and heat pumps (RACHP). The initiative is led by the World Refrigeration Day (WRD) Secretariat and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction, in cooperation with the following influential international organizations representing the building industry worldwide: AIRAH (Australia), AREA (Europe), ASHRAE (Global), CAR (China), FAIAR (Latin America), IIR (Global), IOR (UK), ISHRAE (India), JSRAE (Japan), U-3ARC (Africa), and Women in HVAC&R (North America).
“ASHRAE is committed to providing a welcoming environment to all people and celebrates its diverse culture through an active global membership,” said 2021-22 ASHRAE President Mick Schwedler, P.E., Fellow ASHRAE, LEED AP. “The INWIC initiative aligns with our Society’s deeply valued diversity, equity and inclusion principles and we enthusiastically support efforts to expand the landscape for women to participate fully in the research and development of emerging cooling technologies.”
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ASHRAE Present Co-Organized World Refrigeration Day Webinars
ATLANTA (June 18, 2021) – ASHRAE will present two co-organized webinars to mark the observation of World Refrigeration Day 2021. World Refrigeration Day, June 26, is an international awareness day to celebrate applications of refrigeration technology and its impact on the quality of life.
“Refrigeration and cold chain technologies offer invaluable and often life-saving resources to our day-to-day lives,” said 2020-21 ASHRAE President Charles E. Gulledge III, P.E. “ASHRAE is pleased to participate in this year’s World Refrigeration Day activities, further highlighting our long-term commitment to advancing the science of refrigeration technology and its application for all.”
Sixteen webinars describing career paths available to students and practitioners in the refrigeration, air-conditioning and heat pumps industry will take place during the week before and after World Refrigeration Day. Highlighting the day’s 2021 campaign theme “Cooling Champions: Cool Careers for a Better World,” the webinars will describe trends and opportunities in the technologies that deliver comfort, support the cold chain that provides food and life-saving vaccines, and stabilize the Earth’s climate.
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ASHRAE and UN Environment Programme Launch Three-Year Workplan
ATLANTA (April 15, 2021) – ASHRAE and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) announced the launch of its 2021-23 workplan. The workplan’s theme is “Refrigeration Management for Developing Economies” and was signed by Charles E. Gulledge III, P.E., 2020-21 ASHRAE President and James S. Curlin, Acting Head of UNEP OzonAction Programme.
In 2007, ASHRAE and UNEP OzonAction, signed an agreement aimed at promoting the adoption of state-of-art technologies and practices in developing countries, that avoid the use of ozone depleting substances and promote the deployment of lower global warming potential (Lower-GWP) refrigerants. The two global organizations also worked to offer tools and knowledge to help in eliminating emissions of refrigerants while servicing refrigeration and air conditioning applications. Both parties renewed their commitment of the continuing strategic partnership through a new umbrella MOU signed in 2019, replacing the original 2007 agreement. This is the fifth joint workplan.
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ASHRAE UNEP Invite Lower GWP Innovation Award Entries
ATLANTA/PARIS (May 14, 2020) – Entries are now being accepted for the 2020 ASHRAE and OzonAction of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Lower GWP Innovation Awards. The award promotes innovative design, research and practice by recognizing people who have developed or implemented innovative technological concepts applied in developing countries to minimize global warming potential (GWP) through refrigeration and air-conditioning applications. The award, offered for the second year, is part of ASHRAE-UNEP OzonAction joint workplan for 2019-2020 under the global cooperation agreement established by both parties in 2007.
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World Refrigeration Day to Recognize Cold Chain
Coolest Day of the Year – 26 June
The “coolest” day of year is on 26 June. That is when individuals, governments, organizations and companies worldwide celebrate World Refrigeration Day.
World Refrigeration Day raises awareness and understanding of the significant role that the refrigeration, air-conditioning and heat-pump industry and its technology play in modern life. The science, engineering, and application of cooling touches our lives in many ways, making hot climates habitable, allowing for storage and delivery of fresh food, giving us productive work and learning spaces, enabling the manufacture of products and the operation of data centers in thermally controlled environments, and preserving medicines and other essentials for healthy living. June 26th is the birthdate of Lord Kelvin, after whom the absolute temperature scale is named.
“World Refrigeration Day is an opportunity to celebrate the wide range of temperature applications from cryogenics and superconductors through to sustainable heating, thermal energy storage and heat recovery,” said Steve Gill, Head of WRD Secretariat.
“The inaugural World Refrigeration Day in June 2019 was a monumental success,” Gill said. “More than 800 physical events in at least 153 countries were held last year along with numerous online activities.”
The theme chosen for World Refrigeration Day in 2020 celebrates the importance of the food cold chain in sustaining life. The cold chain links producers and growers across the world to the domestic refrigerator in our kitchens, and it is essential for so much more than food. Vaccines must remain chilled until they are used by medical professionals around the world, and the cold chain is essential for blood transfusions and organ donor transport and storage.
The organisers of the ColdChain4Life campaign are the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), ASHRAE, European Partnership for Energy and Environment (EPEE), International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR), and the WRD Secretariat.
“World Refrigeration Day is a great opportunity for all of us to celebrate the tremendous contribution that refrigeration and air conditioning makes to our societies. This includes enabling our agricultural and food systems to harvest, store, transport and sell the foods that nourish us all. The cold chain is what makes this possible," said James Curlin, Acting Head of UNEP OzonAction. "We encourage everyone to organize their own national or local World Refrigeration Day celebrations on 26 June to shine light on great work of the refrigeration and air conditioning sector, which is so vital for the success of the Montreal Protocol.”
Darryl K. Boyce, P.Eng. ASHRAE President, said, “We are proud to partner with other global organizations to support World Refrigeration Day in this its second year as we celebrate refrigeration’s vital role to the modern world.”
“Our sector is essential for our health, for our productivity, for our wellbeing. And it does not stop there. Cooling can play a major role to support the decarbonisation of our economy by ensuring energy savings and supporting the shift to renewable energies, for example, with solutions such as heat recovery, thermal storage and demand response,” said Andrea Voigt, EPEE Director General.
Our food supply relies on a seamless ‘cold chain’ of refrigerated warehouses and vehicles that stretch from the farm or sea to the supermarket display cabinet. “Reducing food losses is one of the most important challenges concerning food security in the future as well as reducing global warming,” said Didier Coulomb, Director General of IIR. “Building good cold chains worldwide is the best answer.” According to the IIR, around 475 million tonnes of lost food could be saved every year which could feed 950 million people a year. Cold chains are also vital for the safe supply of vaccines and medicines as well as for healthcare applications.
Among activities planned by the organizers are a free webinar on 26 June presenting an opportunity to reach out to the public, government, and end users describing the value of the cold chain. The aim of the webinar along with development of ColdChain4Life promotional materials is to motivate adoption of best practices that minimize food waste and loss in the supply chain process, stimulate wise technology selections, and enhance operations for minimizing leakage of refrigerants and maximizing energy efficiency.
All professionals in the cooling sector and users of refrigeration technology are invited to support World Refrigeration Day and promote the ColdChain4Life campaign. To date, more than 300 companies and professional, scientific, and trade associations are supporters, and the number is growing. To be involved or share ideas for initiatives visit www.worldrefrigerationday.org.
Connect with the cold chain campaign at #COLDCHAIN4LIFE and with World Refrigeration Day at #WREFD20.
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ASHRAE Supports World Refrigeration Day 2020
ATLANTA (March 30, 2020) – ASHRAE has joined with associations and societies around the world in pledging support for World Refrigeration Day 2020 on June 26.
Called the “Coolest Day of the Year,” World Refrigeration Day is an international awareness campaign created to raise the profile of the refrigeration, air-conditioning and heat-pump sector and focuses attention on the significant role that the industry and its technology play in modern life and society. This year’s theme will be Cold Chain 4 Life.
“Since 1904, ASHRAE’s contributions to refrigeration research and technology continue to advance the cold chain industry and benefit the public in profound ways,” said 2019-20 ASHRAE President Darryl K. Boyce, P.Eng. “We are proud to partner with other global organizations to support World Refrigeration Day, in this its second year, as we celebrate refrigeration’s vital role to the modern world.”
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ASHRAE, UN Environment Programme Announce Lower GWP Award Selections
ATLANTA (Nov. 6, 2019) – ASHRAE and UN Environment Programme (UNEP) have announced the project selections for the 2019 ASHRAE-UNEP OzonAction Lower-GWP Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Innovation Awards. The annual international award program promotes innovative design, research and practice by recognizing people who have developed or implemented innovative technological concepts applied in developing countries to promote lower global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants through refrigeration and air-conditioning applications.
“The projects selected represent long-term, global and energy efficient solutions to lessen the impact of ozone depleting substances,” said ASHRAE Presidential Member and co-chair of the judging committee Sheila J. Hayter, P.E. “We congratulate the selected project teams and look forward to witnessing their innovative concepts set a benchmark for sustainability in developing countries.”
The projects in each category were selected based on delivering innovative solutions to meet refrigeration and air-conditioning needs by using lower-GWP technologies. The selection criteria included:
- Extent of need;
- Innovative aspects in transforming conventional practices;
- Technical replicability to developing countries; and
- Economy feasibility to developing countries.
“We are living at a watershed moment under the Montreal Protocol when developing countries must find long-term solutions to replace HCFC refrigerants while simultaneously minimizing climate impacts,” said James S. Curlin, Acting Head/Network and Policy Manager OzonAction and co-chair of the judging committee. “It is vital to empower the research community to identify new approaches and alternative refrigerants that work for those countries. UNEP OzonAction is proud to join with ASHRAE to recognize these winners who are proposing approaches that address the ozone, climate and energy dimensions.”
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Now Free to ASHRAE Members: Refrigerant Training
From HVAC&R Industry News, September 12, 2019
ASHRAE and United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) have a dedicated web portal where jointly developed resources are available. Included are the Internet-delivered training courses “Refrigerant Literacy” and “Sound Management of Refrigerants” and a full semester university-level course on refrigerant technology. The courses are available for free access to ASHRAE members as a benefit of the ASHRAE-UNEP partnership and to enable ASHRAE members to assist in promoting the transition to lower GWP refrigerants. To assist the Air Conditioning and Refrigeration (RAC) industry in developing countries, ASHRAE also makes the training freely available to UNEP’s OzonAction network of policy officers and UNEP clients, including government officials.
ASHRAE and UNEP collaborate under a Cooperation Agreement first signed in 2007. The agreement enables UNEP to access industry experts in all fields relating to refrigerant development and application, air conditioning and refrigeration. The second benefit of the collaboration is that the products produced inspire confidence and global acceptance because of their reliance on ASHRAE standards, research and other ASHRAE resources. Thirdly, ASHRAE’s presence through members, chapters and associate societies covering more than 130 nations, provides a multi-national platform, especially in developing countries, for development of locally relevant technical guidance.
The ASHRAE-UNEP Portal is a joint activity included in the organizations’ 2019/2020 Work Plan, the latest in a series of biennial plans agreed to by an ASHRAE and UNEP leadership team. The 2019/2020 plan is themed “Refrigerant Management for Developing Countries.” The Cooperative Agreement and current Work Plan are also in the portal.
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Women in ASHRAE ASHRAE Members Share How They Built Systems, Their Careers
August 2019
The featured ASHRAE members are Roshini Rebecca Easow, Ph.D., Member ASHRAE; Fotouh Al-Ragom, Member ASHRAE; Angela Barreto, Associate Member ASHRAE; Ilana Koegelenberg, Associate Member ASHRAE; Katherine Hammack, Fellow ASHRAE; Sheila Hayter, P.E., Presidential Member/Fellow ASHRAE; Julia Keen, Ph.D., P.E., BEAP, HBDP, Fellow ASHRAE; and Sarah Maston, P.E., BCXP, Member ASHRAE.
Eight ASHRAE members shared their successes, challenges and lessons learned in a UN Environment publication, "Women in the Refrigeration and Air-conditioning Industry: Personal Experiences and Achievements." From being the first female president of a Region-at-Large ASHRAE chapter to starting her own firm, the members discuss how they demonstrated their potential and have created results in a male-dominated technical field. The publication highlights 107 female refrigeration and air-conditioning professionals from 50 countries.
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ASHRAE Celebrates World Refrigeration Day
ATLANTA (June 26, 2019) – ASHRAE is celebrating the important role refrigeration and air conditioning play globally across many aspects of modern life on World Refrigeration Day, June 26.
World Refrigeration Day was established in 2018 to serve as a means of raising awareness and understanding to the general public of the significant role that refrigeration and refrigerants play in modern life and society.
“ASHRAE has been pioneering refrigeration research and advancing the development of refrigeration technologies for close to 125 years,” said Darryl K. Boyce, P.Eng., 2019-20 ASHRAE President. “We are proud to support World Refrigeration Day and look forward to working with partnering organizations to celebrate the important contributions that refrigeration makes toward our daily well-being around the world.”
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Lessons Learned from Piloting of Refrigerant Driving License
June 2019
Panelists present perspectives on the first phase pilot for the Refrigerant Driving License
held in six countries.
AHRI and United Nations Environment have announced the completion of the first phase of a pilot in six countries for the industry’s Refrigerant Driving License (RDL) technician qualification program. “Important lessons are being learned that allow us to meet the needs for a global roll out after more pilots are completed,” said Jim Walters, AHRI’s vice president of international affairs. “Some confirmed what we expected, but we also became aware of areas where further exploration is required in order to meet the RDL’s global objectives.”
The RDL is an international program led by AHRI and United Nations Environment-OzonAction with the support of key HVAC&R industry associations, including ASHRAE, ABRAVA, the Alliance for Responsible Atmospheric Policy, EPEE, AREA, JRAIA, ACAIRE and Refrigerant Australia.
An industry-led qualification program, the RDL offers a benchmarking tool for safe and sound handling of refrigerants by technicians, taking into account the dynamics associated with the industry passing through a period of global policies and commitments especially in relation to the Montreal Protocol. The RDL program is supported by the Multi-Lateral Fund of the Montreal Protocol through UNEP-OzonAction.
In the margins of the 31st Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol held in Rome, AHRI announced that Grenada, the Maldives, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago were pioneers in piloting the RDL program. National OzonAction Units from the pilot countries provided feedback. They highlighted the necessity of training AC technicians especially because of the move, under the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, to alternative refrigerants that can be flammable or toxic.
The RDL is targeted for experienced technicians to become qualified to properly handle these alternative refrigerants during a three-day program. The first two days are dedicated to training (both theoretical and practical), while the third day is the theoretical exam and the practical assessment.
The RDL program’s aim is to help prepare A5 countries for a smooth transition to the new refrigerants, increasing the safety of practitioners and consumers, promoting cost effective services across the HVAC&R supply chain network, and reducing ozone depleting substances (ODS), as well as greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
AHRI, UNEP and the supporting groups are using the lessons learned from the first pilots to evaluate processes that will result in an acceptable qualification program that can be used by different institutions, such as government, industry, or institutes, to develop minimum requirements for the proper and safe management of refrigerants in equipment. “The pilot program enables us to engage the industry before the RDL is launched,” said Walters. “That will create momentum, improve the technical documentation, and establish the final RDL operating scheme.”’
Among the lessons learned was recognizing that while English may be one of a country’s official languages, technicians in the field may speak a variety of languages, which complicates the decision of which language the exam should be in. Others were to continue to explore the possibility of policy drivers and incentives for technicians to seek out the RDL qualification in their specific countries, mixtures of SI and Imperial units, how to ensure technicians remember RDL training once alternative refrigerants are available, and how the administrating organization will be funded.
A second round of pilot trainings are planned for early 2020.