Process cooling specialist IsoCool is delighted to announce that its Service division has been awarded the full F-gas Company Certificate, a full year ahead of the official deadline.
By 4th July, 2011, all businesses employing operatives who undertake work within the scope of the F-gas regulations are legally required to hold the certificate. This includes companies that install, maintain or service stationary refrigeration, air-conditioning and/or heat pump equipment containing or designed to contain F gas refrigerants.
Despite having more than 11 months in which to apply, Joe Apostolou, Service Director at IsoCool, wanted to gain accreditation as early as possible. He explains: “the objective of the F-gas certificate is to make sure engineers are trained in the handling of fluorinated greenhouse gases. This ensures they have the knowledge to minimise leakage, which not only contributes directly to global warming but also causes inefficiency which contributes to it indirectly. For us, getting this certificate was more than just best practice. As a company built upon environmental cooling solutions, we want to show our support for the regulations and its aims.”
In order to gain the certificate, which is also known as the stationary equipment qualification company certificate, IsoCool had to demonstrate that they have the appropriate recovery systems and refrigeration handling procedures in place to meet new F-gas standards. They also had to prove that all of their SRAC engineers have one of the new industry qualifications – either Construction Skills J11-J14 or City & Guilds 2079 award in F-gas regulations.
This is another good reason to get the process started early, says Joe: “at the moment, training places are readily available, but as time gets on they will become harder to secure. This could put some companies in danger of missing the deadline, which means they will not be able to trade legally.” Besides this more cautionary note, Joe believes firms can really benefit from gaining the F-Gas certificate early: “the new qualifications are an asset to any engineer, even those with years of experience, and will also demonstrate that the company takes the environmental impact of its business seriously,” he said.
