EME Newsletter MEssage #1/2022

NEWSLETTER 

MESSAGE 

NEWSLETTER FROM EUROVENT MIDDLE EAST 

MAY 2022 VOL. 01 

WHAT'S INSIDE 

INTERVIEWS 

th 

Eng. Abdesselam Benyaich 

Technical Regulations Head (GSO) 

Sylvain Courtey 

(Eurovent Certita Certification) 

Markus Lattner 

(Eurovent Middle East) 

FEATURE 

Members weigh in on…Certification 

GUEST ARTICLES 

Systemair: Performance 

Certification of AHUs 

BNC: The Awakening of the Demand 

Demons 

Dr Iyad Al Attar: Why the HVAC 

industry needs to step up 

CASE STUDY 

The importance of ventilation, IAQ in 

combatting TB 

PHOTO STORIES 

Anniversary 

Edition 

Annual Meeting 

International Women's Day 

6th World IEQ Forum 

TECHNICAL PAPERS 

Active Front End Drives (ABB) 

Test methods for VRF 

(Eurovent Certita Certification) 

EVENT SPOTLIGHT 

RAK summit 

www.eurovent.me

NEWSLETTER 

CONTENTS 

01 

Letter to the Industry 

MESSAGE 

02 

5 Years Anniversary Congress 

03 

Interview: Markus Lattner, Managing Director, Eurovent Middle East 

04 

Interview: Eng. Abdesselam Benyaich, Technical Regulations Head 

05 

06 

07 

Interview: Sylvain Courtey, President, Eurovent Certita Certification 

Feature: Members weigh in on…Certification 

Guest Article: Khalil El Ghazzi, Managing Director, Systemair Saudi 

Arabia on performance certification for AHUs 

LETTER 

TO THE INDUSTRY 

08 

09 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

Guest Article: Avin Gidwani, Chief Executive, BNC Network on 

awakening the demand demons 

Case Study: The importance of ventilation, IAQ in combatting TB 

Video: Why Middle East should incentivise ventilation retrofits 

Guest Article: Dr Iyad Al Attar, Associate Consultant, Eurovent Middle 

East on why the HVAC sector needs to step up 

Photo Story: Eurovent Middle East Annual Meeting 

Technical Paper: How can active front-end drives boost energy 

efficiency and save on capital costs? 

Technical Paper: Review of Certification Procedure for Inverter Air 

Conditioner 

Joint Eurovent Webinar on Energy Efficiency of Air Handling Units in 

Hot and Humid Climates. 

Photo Story: International Women’s Day and 6th World IEQ forum 

Event Spotlight: Ras Al Khaimah Municipality to hold inaugural Energy 

Summit 

5 Year Anniversary! 

In January 2017, representatives of 22 HVACR 

manufacturers established Eurovent Middle East as 

the region’s first industry association for heating, 

ventilation, air-conditioning and refrigeration. What 

started as an initiative to enable more coordination 

among industry stakeholders has become a real driver 

for knowledge transfer in energy efficiency and indoor 

air quality. The occasion calls for an outlook to the next 

five years at our upcoming event in September. 

Eurovent Middle East invites government 

representatives and executives of the industry to 

join our 5-Year Anniversary Congress “HVACR Next 

Generation. Rethinking policies and strategies”, taking 

place 13 and 14 September at the LeMeridien Dubai. 

Rather than looking back on our history, we want to 

take our work forward and highlight opportunities to 

support the region’s long-term development goals. 

Energy efficiency is one of the conditions most relevant 

for the prosperity of the Middle East in the future. We 

will outline aspects usually overlooked and showcase 

opportunities which could unlock immediate energy 

savings. As our credo goes: the technology is ready, 

it just needs to be utilised! How we can motivate 

this utilisation will be one of the main topics of the 

congress. 

The transition to low GWP refrigerants is a headache 

for governments and industries all around the globe. 

We will give an update on this transition, shine a 

light on policies from other regions and will outline 

a possible approach for regional governments to 

regulate the transition without limiting the availability 

of products and solutions. 

In the aftermath of the pandemic, it is of greatest 

importance to keep up the focus on Indoor Air Quality. 

The economic fallout from the past two years is too big 

to ignore the looming threat of future viral outbreaks. 

We will look at policies and strategies from various 

countries and discuss ways how to best approach 

ventilation retrofits and improvements in the building 

sector. 

Further topics include an outlook to future cooling 

trends based on patents filed in the past couple of 

years and how to organise market surveillance in the 

region based on transparency and fairness. Still too 

many players are bypassing regulations and manipulate 

conformity certificates. The damage caused to energy 

efficiency policies needs to stop. A level playing 

field for all is the only way to ensure the success of 

sustainability goals. 

I believe we have a great mix of interesting subjects to 

discuss on. We are looking forward to seeing you at this 

event and celebrate with you our anniversary in true 

spirit: with professional exchange on the key issues of 

our time! 

Kind greetings, 


Managing Director 

Eurovent Middle East 

www.eurovent.me MAY 2022 VOL. 01

NEWSLETTER 

www.eurovent.me 

MAY 2022 VOL. 01

NEWSLETTER 



NEWSLETTER 

INTERVIEW 

Eurovent Middle East at five 

years: Creating common 

grounds in the chaos of 

competition 

On Eurovent Middle East’s 5th anniversary Markus Lattner, Managing Director, fleshes 

out the long-term impact of an industry association and reflects on the Association’s 

early days, the challenges of fostering a spirit of cooperation, and the need to 

challenge the status quo in the region for the good of the industry. 

5 Years, congratulations on the 

anniversary! What does this 

milestone mean to you? 

To me, this anniversary is an 

excellent moment to briefly 

reflect on how this journey 

began and to remind us of the 

main objective of this initiative: 

Bringing the industry together 

and providing a platform for 

coordination and exchange in an 

environment that is notoriously 

chaotic and driven by competition 

rather than cooperation. 

The big challenges of our time, 

climate change, but also the 

well-being of our society can only 

be addressed by the industry as 

a whole. Governments react to 

these challenges with increased 

regulations, which equally 

demands coordination among 

industry players to ensure 

transparent and balanced stakeholding. 

At just 5 years, Eurovent Middle 

East is still very young, especially 

in terms of an association. But 

reflecting on the past years, 

I am very satisfied with what 

has been achieved and how our 

organisation evolved. Considering 

that the pandemic has significantly 

impacted two out of these five 

years, I think we can be more 

than happy. Perhaps the most 

noteworthy takeaway is that we 

have proven the sustainability 

of the basic idea of having joint 

activities in the region. 

We must thank our members, 

who supported and carried out 

our activities over these years. 

These companies demonstrate 

true commitment toward the 

region and show a high level of 

corporate social responsibility. 

They understand that sustainable 

business depends at large on a 

mature market, rules, and the 

ability to develop sustainable 

guidelines for an industry that 

is relevant to the region and its 

people. 

Speaking about the pandemic. 

In which ways have the last two 

years impacted and influenced 

your work? 

The essence of an association 

lies in its ability to bring all 

members together and find 

common grounds to work on. 

In every aspect of what we do, 

you will see hours of discussion 

and contributions of many people. 

Whether it’s a workshop, a webinar 

or the publication of a position 

paper or a guidebook. It is all based 

on the consensus and input of our 

members, which, naturally, was 

more difficult to manage throughout 

the pandemic. 

We have had so many online 

meetings in the past two years, 

trying to cope with the situation as 

best as possible, and I am glad that 

we managed till now. But online 

meetings can never replace physical 

exchange. It is the networking, the 

personal spirit, which brings life to 

our initiatives. We all hope to see a 

further weakening of the virus and 

be allowed to resume our previous 

style of work. 

But looking back, I am also proud 

of what we managed to do despite 

the restrictions. We reacted very 

quickly. We knew from the beginning 

that COVID-19 was airborne and 

published guidance based on 

this presumption. We pushed for 

governments to include HVACR 

related companies in their list of 

essential businesses to ensure that 

even amid a crisis, our industry 

could deliver crucial services and 

products. 

The pandemic highlighted the 

importance of Indoor Air Quality, 

ventilation, and air filtration 

in a way we could have never 

done ourselves. It begs the 

question now how the public 

and governments cope with this 

experience if we see a change in 

the attitudes regarding our indoor 

environments. This will also be our 

responsibility, our responsibility 

as an industry, to provide solutions 

and recommendations. 

From the start, IAQ has been at 

the forefront of our agenda. That 

shows that the industry was well 

aware of its importance. Only 

very few in the market really 

understood. If we do not see a 

change within the building industry 

and from the government side to 

treat IAQ with the same urgency 

as energy efficiency, then we won’t 

be prepared for the next viral 

outbreak. And that is just a matter 

of time as we have now come to 

fully understand. 

Looking back, what were the 

biggest challenges when you 

started, and how have the 

challenges shifted over the 

years? 

The biggest challenge in the 

region, in the beginning, continues 

to be the main one now, and I am 

afraid, will be the case for a good 

time to come: the understanding 

of the functions of an association. 

Mentalities in the region are very 

much focused on short-term 

profits. Making people understand 

the concept, the benefits, and 

the investment an association 

requires and provides is difficult. 

Our impact will be visible only in 

the future. 

While the region’s workforce is 

driven by short term targets and 

is highly volatile, it is difficult to 

find the ones who take a longterm 

view and interest in seeing 

the region develop into a sound 

and sustainable market. Given this 

environment, it is an even greater 

achievement, and our members 

should be praised and thanked 


for their lasting commitment to 

contribute toward the greater 

goals of the region. They are the 

ones carrying the ideals of cocreation 

and cooperation for the 

benefit of all. 

What are the benefits of an 

industry association? And 

what can you do to highlight its 

importance for the industry in 

the long term? 

The Middle East is not a market 

characterised by trust. And 

unsurprisingly so. If everyone is 

out hunting for short term profits, 

quality and reliability fall victim. 

That again leaves everyone 

highly distrustful of each other. 

Government and industry, 

however, need trust as a basis to 

develop a regulatory framework 

that provides fair conditions 

for business while ensuring 

government policies are followed. 

If authorities rely on individual 

companies to assess standards 

and technical implications, 

the process will remain 

untransparent and inefficient. 

An association makes for a 

much better stakeholder, as the 

positions and opinions of the 

industry must first be consented 

to before they are delivered 

to an authority. Secondly, an 

association also ensures a 

balance between various interests 

at play. 

Then, aside from regulatory 

affairs, the industry is very 

interested in educating market 

participants on its technology and 

products. There is a big need for 

constant knowledge exchange 

to make sure new products are 

understood, accepted, and used 

on the market. While this is, of 

course, the responsibility of each 

manufacturer, an association 

can provide such education in 

a neutral, better-organised 

way, and in a highly credible 

environment. 

Can you name some of the 

biggest issues the industry is 

facing in the region? 

This is not specific for the Middle 

east only, rather a general picture 

we face all around the globe. 

• Fixation on prices and 

ignorance of life cycle costs 

• Lack of qualified personnel 

• Proliferation of regulations 

- missing harmonisation and 

market surveillance 

• Lack of knowledge on 

standards 

• Lack of good practice and 

awareness on technical 

solutions 

• Administrative requirements 

without value 

• Copy-paste mentality among 

consultants carrying forward 

old habits and mistakes 

• Ignorance for IAQ and energy 

efficiency 

• Generally, a lack of 

cooperation and coordination 

among all stakeholders 

That gives a good picture and 

clarifies what we are trying to 

work on and achieve. No one 

can possibly work on these 

issues alone. If we want to see 

improvements, we better work 

together. Only then will we have 

the strength and the resources to 

achieve change. 



NEWSLETTER 

INTERVIEW 

INTERVIEW 

GSO: Working 

towards regulatory 

harmonisation in 

the Middle East 

Eng. Abdesselam Benyaich, Technical Regulations Head, 

GCC Standardization Organization (GSO), speaks to 

Eurovent Middle East and provides a comprehensive 

overview of the regulatory landscape in the region, the 

need to buildibridges through international partnerships, 

and opportunities for unification to ensure the safety of 

consumers and sustainability of the member states. 

Eng. Abdesselam 

Benyaich 

Assuming the pandemic is 

now fading, and restrictions 

are dropped, what are your 

plans for this year? 

Eurovent Middle East will 

celebrate its 5th anniversary 

with a major industry event. 

Our Eurovent Middle East 

Industry Summit, “HVACR Next 

Generation, Rethinking policies 

and strategies,” which will take 

place from 13 to 14 September, 

will be an excellent opportunity 

to bring government and 

industry together to highlight 

several of the most pressing 

issues while allowing us to 

celebrate with our members 

and partners appropriately. 

Aside from that, we are 

working on several projects 

in the field of education, IAQ 

and energy efficiency, which 

we plan to roll out later in the 

year. We also look to restart 

our physical workshops across 

the region. AHUs will get some 

more attention, partly due to 

the introduction of the Eurovent 

Certification for hot and humid 

climates and regulatory 

developments that will look at 

the ventilation segment for the 

first time. 

As the one who started this 

project, what is your personal 

takeaway from the last 5 

years? 

It has been very intense, 

challenging, and stressful 

years. However, it has been 

equally rewarding in terms of 

the relationships I have built 

and the tremendous range 

of knowledge I could gather. 

From wet-bulb temperatures 

to leakage rates, from volatile 

organic compounds to 

biodegradable plastic. I could 

not imagine a more diverse 

environment to be active in. 

I am very grateful for this 

experience. 

These five years we owe to 

the dedication, commitment, 

and support of many people. 

The work and time contributed 

by our members, our board 

and staff have made Eurovent 

Middle East a success. I do 

hope that this project will 

flourish and outgrow our initial 

expectations. May it live on 

to become an institution that 

thrives also when the founding 

generation has retired. 

Can you tell us a bit about the 

history of the GSO and the 

role it plays in the regulatory 

development of the Middle East? 

GCC Standardization 

Organization (GSO) is a nonprofit, 

inter-governmental 

Standardization Organization 

that was established by the 

resolution of the GCC Supreme 

Council (22nd Session, Muscat, 

Oman, 30-31 December 2001). 

GSO assumed its operation in 

May 2004 with the membership 

of the governments of The State 

of the United Arab Emirates, 

The Kingdom of Bahrain, The 

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, The 

26524 Gulf Standard and 

Technical Regulations so far 

Sultanate of Oman, The State of 

Qatar, and The State of Kuwait. 

Furthermore, by resolution of 

the Board of directors in its 11th 

session (Doha, 22 November 

2009), pursuant to the decision 

of the GCC Supreme Council 

in its 29th session (Muscat, 

30 December 2008), GSO 

announced the official accession 

of the Republic of Yemen 

to the GCC Standardization 

Organization starting from 01 

January 2010. 

GSO aims to unify the various 

standardisation activities and 

follow up their implementation 

and commitment to them in 

cooperation and coordination 

with the standardisation bodies 

in the member states. We 

want to do this in a way that 

contributes to the development 

of their production and 

services sectors, supports the 

development of trade among 

them, ensures consumer 

protection, safeguards the 

environment and public health, 

and encourages Gulf industries, 

products and services in order 

to achieve support for the Gulf 

economy and preserve the gains 

of countries within the Council, 

which contributes to reducing 

technical barriers to trade in 

line with the objectives of the 

Customs Union. 

What would you name as the 

most significant regulations 

the GSO has pushed forward in 

relation to HVACR? 

GSO seeks mainly to address 

hazards and risks to safety arising 

from use of consumer products. 

Therefore a set of standards 

and technical regulations have 

been issued so far. In relation 

with HVACR, we can mention the 

following: 

• The General Product Safety 

Regulation (BD09100504): The 

purpose of this regulation is to 

ensure a high level of protection 

of the health and safety of 

consumers and to establish a 

legislative framework for any 

product placed on the market 

or supplied or made available 

or intended for consumers, or 

likely to be used by consumers 

under reasonably foreseeable 

conditions even if not intended 

for them. It also aims to ensure 

the safety of local or imported 

products placed on internal 

markets of the Member 

States. 



NEWSLETTER 

INTERVIEW 

• GSO Technical Regulation for 

Low Voltage Equipment and 

Appliances (BD142004-01): 

The regulationapplies to 

all electrical and electronic 

devices, appliances and fixtures 

that contain electrical and/ 

or electronic components 

designed for use with a voltage 

rating of between 50 and 1000 

V for alternating current and 

between 75 and 1500 V for 

direct current. The regulation 

lays down the mandatory 

requirements for the safety and 

electromagnetic compatibility 

of electrical equipment with 

which all electrical equipment 

must comply before their 

placing on the market, and 

free movement within the 

Member States markets. This 

is the second edition of the GSO 

Technical Regulation on Low 

Voltage Electrical Equipment and 

Appliances, which includes an 

amendment and update of the 

first edition (BD07070503) dated 

on 27/11/2007. 

The most important amendments 

and updates are: (a) Clear 

definition and determining 

obligations of economic operators, 

Conformity Assessment 

Procedures and obligations of the 

Notified Bodies; (b) Obligation to 

the Manufacturers to carry out a 

risk analysis of all hazards that the 

electrical equipment may present, 

as well as an assessment of the 

potential exposure to such hazards; 

(c) Additional requirements related 

to electromagnetic compatibility of 

low-voltage electrical equipment; 

(d) Another important aspect is the 

presumption of conformity given to 

the IECEE-CB Scheme as per the 

technical aspects. 

This second edition has been 

approved by the GSO Board of 

Directors in its 20th meeting 

(Riyadh, 5th November 2014). The 

enforcement started from the 1st 

of June 2015 in an experimental 

way, while the full enforcement 

was on the 1st of July 2016. 

The Technical Regulation deals 

with safety essential requirements 

and EMC; while non covered aspects, 

such as Energy Efficiency are left to 

national Technical Regulations for 

some products including HVACR. 

GSO Standard for Energy Labelling 

and Minimum Energy Performance 

Requirements for Air-Conditioners 

(GSO2530:2016): This regulation 

specifies the energy labelling 

requirements and the Minimum 

Energy Performance Standard 

(MEPS) requirements for singlepackage 

of window type, splitsystem 

non-ducted air conditioners 

using air-cooled condensers, splitsystem 

ducted air-conditioners 

using air-cooled condensers, 

and heat pumps using air-cooled 

condensers for the residential, 

commercial, and industrial sector 

as applicable in accordance with 

GSO SASO Standards. It is applied 

to units designed to operate in AC 

single phase or three-phase circuits 

according to GSO 1899/2009 "GCC 

Standard voltages and frequencies 

for AC transmission and distribution 

systems". It covers units with 

capacities up to and including 70000 

Btu/h (20 kW). This standard is 

applied to the Sultanate of Oman and 

Yemen, while it does not apply to the 

rest of GSO Member States. 

What do you see as the bigger 

obstacles in harmonizing standards 

and regulations in the GCC? 

Harmonising standards and 

technical regulation is a longterm 

action calling for a clear 

vision as well as relevant tools for 

harmonisation. While the strategic 

and institutional framework 

including the GCC chart, which calls 

for integration between member 

states, and the economic agreement 

which aims at setting up a single 

market between member states and 

a single-entry point for customs, 

it is however much more difficult 

to reach a full harmonization of 

standards and technical regulations, 

This is due to a set of factors 

including: (a) the differences of 

economies among member states; 

(b) consequently, the institutional 

role and importance of national 

standardisation institutions, as 

well as the GSO; (c) consequences 

of the international crisis, which 

apparently did not help to support 

the trend to opening markets and 

integration. 

Opportunities for integration and 

harmonization still exist, further 

reinforced by the post-crisis 

situation, as the best response to 

the need for establishing the most 

suitable infrastructure system in 

the region while optimising costs 

and allowing for the best economic 

results. 

The GSO is cooperating among 

others with CEN/CENELEC. What 

are your impressions of this 

cooperation so far and what are 

your expectations for the future? 

65 MoUs and Cooperation 

Agreements 

GSO seeks to strengthen and 

sustain cooperation with its 

partners to exchange expertise; 

transfer international knowledge 

and practices in the field of 

standardization and related 

activities; link and integrate the 

work programmes of the GSO 

and Member States with those 

of relevant Parties. GSO has 

signed several of Memorandum 

of Understandings and Technical 

Cooperation Agreements with 

Standardization Bodies at national, 

regional, and international 

levels. The technical cooperation 

agreements with CEN / CENELEC 

open the door for large cooperation 

to facilitate the exchange of 

information and support alignment 

and harmonisation in the 

standardisation activities. The main 

objectives are: (1) to foster closer 

cooperation between GSO and 

ISO and IEC for the development 

of regional and international 

standards; (2) to provide European 

contribution to the development/ 

revision/implementation of future 

Gulf technical regulations based on 

European legislation (such as Low 

Voltage, Toys, etc…); (3) to gather 

intelligence and exchange 

information on specific sectors. 

924 EU Standards adopted 

as Gulf Standards 

GSO is working closely with 

CEN/CENELEC to further 

strengthen this partnership 

and support key objectives 

and strategies, including 

the adoption of standards, 

harmonisation of technical 

committees, sharing of 

knowledge, experience, best 

practices, and other mutual 

benefits. 

Are there any regulations for 

HVACR in the pipeline at the 

moment? 

GSO is currently conducting 

consultation with member 

states to develop a harmonized 

single standard for Energy 

Labelling and Minimum Energy 

Performance Requirements 

for Air-Conditioners, which 

could allow for harmonising 

conformity assessment 

procedures based on their 

requirements. 

How do you decide to get 

active on a specific topic? How 

does the development process 

of a regulation look like? 

Developing Technical 

Regulations is one of the 

regulatory means of dealing 

with situations where consumer 

safety is at stake. Therefore the 

GSO's regulatory process is in 

accordance with the guidance 

document approved by the GSO 

Board of Directors. According 

to the said guidance document, 

GSO Technical Regulations 

are developed for high priority 

product categories for Member 

States. These are identified 

using feedback from the 

relevant activities such as the 

market monitoring by member 

states as well as the conformity 

assessment of products and 

other information from member 

states. 

The process includes: (a) 

preparing a draft of TRs by 

Working Groups under the 

Gulf Committee on Conformity 

Assessment (GCCA); (b) 

examining the draft by GCCA; 

(c) validation of the draft by the 

Technical Council (TC); (d) final 

approval of the draft by the Board 

of directors (BD). 

It is important to note that the 

process includes notification 

to the WTO once the draft is 

submitted to the TC, as to allow 

for receiving comments from WTO 

signatories and revision. 

Product quality, safety and 

energy performance are clearly 

the most important aspects, 

regulations must address. What 

industry segments in your mind 

are the most critical, or do you 

consider to be susceptible to 

poor quality and of potential risk 

to consumers? 

GSO established: 

• GCC Accreditation 

Center (GAC) 

• Gulf Metrology 

Association (GulfMet) 

• GCC Lab 

• GCC Standardization 

Training Center 

Considering the recent 

experience of member states 

in developing their quality 

infrastructure to support strong 

monitoring of products safety in 

the region, and mainly the various 

legal frameworks for safety and 

market monitoring, we should 

confirm that safety aspects in all 

fields, and energy performance 

to a lesser extent, are most 

important for the regulatory 

process. We may consider that 

quality aspects could be dealt 

with by voluntary tools, such as 

non-mandatory standards as well 

as awareness and education. 

The children's toys are considered 

one of the critical products to 

address, given the proportion 

of young under 14 in the Gulf 

population (above 30 %); the 

electrical products come in the 

second position as important for 

harmonizing safety requirements. 

Other fields include cosmetics, then 

machineries, 

Other fields that are not 

less important, but from the 

environmental point of view 

first and safety as well, includes 

energy performance for electrical 

products, water conservation 

devices, and the restriction of 

the use of Hazardous Substances 

in Electrical and Electronic 

Equipment. 

For more information: 

www.gso.org.sa 



NEWSLETTER 

INTERVIEW 

“Fostering trust 

is at the core of 

what we do” 

Sylvain Courtey, President, Eurovent Certita Certification, 

outlines the function of certification, how they differ 

from other schemes in the HVACR market and the 

organisation’s move to become more inclusive in 

accommodating conditions in warmer climates. 

Eurovent is one of the globally 

recognised certification 

schemes in HVACR. What 

functions does certification fulfil 

in our industry? 

The function of certification 

is to promote fairness in the 

industry - our core value is 

truthfulness. We are encouraging 

manufacturers to provide correct 

values to their customers. As we 

know, the HVACR industry can 

be very competitive, and even 

for an excellent product, it can 

be complicated, especially when 

it comes to navigating price. 

There are a lot of temptations 

to play a little bit with figures 

and numbers and be vague with 

technical specifications. 

We are here to make sure 

customers of the HVACR industry 

receive the correct performance 

data and are armed with the right 

figures to design and evaluate 

the energy efficiency of buildings 

effectively. Having accurate 

information is also essential 

for achieving better indoor air 

quality (IAQ), a crucial objective 

for Eurovent Certita Certification 

and the industry. With what we 

are doing, the customers will be 

empowered by having correct 

values that allow them to design 

and choose the right product for 

buildings that exactly match their 

requirements - not too small, not 

too big. 

Certification will also help them to 

better evaluate the performances 

of products in the market. There 

is a natural trade-off between 

price and quality depending on 

the building they want to have. 

Sometimes, buying decisions 

are price-driven. Sometimes 

they are quality driven. But with 

certification, quality-driven 

selections can be backed with 

factual data checked by a third 

party. 

How does Eurovent stand out from 

other certification schemes? 

As Eurovent, we have included 

unique and specific features 

across our programmes. For 

example, our certification takes 

into account sound power levels. 

As a European organisation, we 

have a long tradition of building 

equipment and buildings with good 

indoor environmental quality (IEQ), 

with a strong emphasis on comfort 

in terms of sound insulation, 

temperature, and humidity. 

Energy efficiency, of course, is 

a core priority. Europe has the 

highest standards in terms of 

Sylvain Courtey 

energy efficiency, and we have 

implemented energy labels to 

help customers select units based 

on their energy efficiency quickly 

and straightforwardly. 

Our proposed energy labels are a 

way for customers buying these 

products to compare energy 

performance quickly. The energy 

labels, from A+ to E, are evaluated 

under strict conditions, and we 

go to great lengths to ensure our 

energy labels have real value. In 

fact, only 1% of the best units can 

have the A+ classification, and 

only 5% can be A. 

Another feature that sets the 

Eurovent Certification apart is our 

tradition of implementing factory 

audits within our programme. It’s 

vital to check how the products 

are manufactured and ensure 

that what is delivered to the 

customers is the same product. 

We test independently as a third 

party while using independent 

laboratories. This is something 

that can be considered unique to 

us and not in other certification 

schemes, which tend to rely on 

participant laboratories, which 

are the laboratories in the factory 

of the participant. There are 

cases where we rely on those 

laboratories, but not as the sole 

source. We also ask for tests in 

independent laboratories to validate 

performances; we use a network of 

laboratories in Europe and we look 

forward to have strong partnerships 

with laboratories outside of Europe. 

As an organisation that is based in 

Europe, which is a region that is 

leading in activities related to energy 

efficiency and indoor air quality we 

bring the knowledge and expertise 

of our members to the further 

inform our activities. 

The Middle East lacks market 

surveillance; thus, regulatory 

bodies usually require premarket 

testing to ensure compliance with 

their regulations. Is that a safe way 

to go? 

Although premarket testing can 

be considered a traditional way of 

testing things, we don’t believe this 

is an efficient approach to ensuring 

the quality of the product that enters 

the market. When you test one 

product one time, it is not always 

the case the same product will have 

the same value and performance 

years afterwards. Because when 

you test one product one time, there 

is a possibility that the product 

tested was only a prototype or 

an item delivered straight from 

the R&D department. It does not 

guarantee that the same product 

will be provided to the market years 

afterwards. 

We believe in systems where 

there is a long-term and regular 

surveillance activity. For this reason, 

we have annual surveillance activity; 

there are tests and audits to ensure 

products delivered to the market 

remain compliant with what is 

declared. That is why it might not be 

sufficient to rely only on type tests 

for years. 

Would certification schemes like 

Eurovent be a viable option to 

ensure compliance, given the 

recurrent testing and auditing? 

What we do is a voluntary 

certification. It must be understood 

that manufacturers voluntarily 

come to us to be checked and 

evaluated and get a third 

party to verify their data. It’s 

not mandatory; we don’t want 

it to be mandatory. It is our 

mission to promote a part of the 

industry that make an effort to 

undergo voluntary certification, 

and we think our activities 

and initiatives would be of 

great value and help market 

surveillance authorities. 

Market surveillance authorities 

can rely on our activities, 

underpinned by technical 

expertise and a robust 

evaluation process, regular 

tests, and audits. As a result, 

these organisations can look 

at the demographic that is 

not certified to focus on their 

evaluation. Because certified 

products already undergo 

stringent processes, market 

surveillance can focus on 

specific areas of the industry 

which is not certified, which 

might need more attention. 

In the past, it was often argued 

that certificates would usually 

be based on T1 conditions and 

have less relevance in the 

Middle East. Eurovent is now 

shifting to an additional hot 

and humid condition. What 

are the reasons behind this 

decision, and what do you 

expect from this move? 

We are doing our part to 

be more inclusive of all the 

regions. Our decision to have 

the “summer label”, which 

includes hot and humid 

conditions in the air handling 

unit programme, was driven 

by this. It allows us to evaluate 

how efficient a unit can be in 

energy recovery in regions 

with a greater requirement for 

cooling and humidity recovery. 

We already include T3 condition 

in our certification programmes 

for chillers and VRF. Step by 

step, we are moving to include 

additional conditions that are 

relevant for those markets and 

these regions. 

There are still widespread 

misconceptions in the market 

when it comes to certification. 

What can be done to develop 

better awareness and 

understanding of product 

certification and what it actually 

stands for? 

It is our duty to communicate 

more about what we are doing to 

the market. There are inherent 

challenges when it comes to 

communicating the importance 

of certification. Often people 

think there is no need because 

it is evident manufacturer must 

provide the best performance. 

Still, people don’t realise the level 

of complexity of the products 

we are working with and how 

difficult they are to assess, 

individually and when comparing 

products. It’s not only a matter 

of avoiding cheating in terms of 

wrong or inaccurate data, it’s also 

about trying to help the market 

understand in an easier manner 

what’s behind these very intricate 

products. 

We work with standards that 

make it possible to compare 

products with each other, which 

is essential. As a certification 

body, we try to disseminate these 

standards and benchmarks so 

the industry can rely on them. 

Additionally, we provide the added 

value as a third party to verify 

these claims. 

We must communicate the 

value of certification to every 

stakeholder. Thanks to the 

certified manufacturers' efforts 

to raise awareness, the message 

is slowly coming through. Still, 

we must help them when it 

comes to educating markets. 

Certification provides confidence 

in products. This is relevant to 

not only the manufacturers but 

is also essential to all other 

stakeholders, from consultants to 

investors, contractors, the enduser 

and also the government. 



NEWSLETTER 

FEATURE 

Members weigh in on… 

Certification 

Manufacturers weigh in on the ROI of investing in certification and what bodies need 

to do to raise awareness among consultants on what they stand for…. 

Lubna Shaikh, Senior Manager - 

Business Development, Trosten: 

Product certification enhances 

confidence among all 

stakeholders. For a seller, the 

certification demonstrates 

standards of competence and 

provides competitive advantages 

on numerous parameters based 

on the certified results. For a 

buyer, the certification assures 

reliability and confirms that the 

products have passed and met 

the requirements of specific 

performance tests. Standards 

and certifications are available 

for holistic and component 

performance, and we need 

to choose appropriate ones 

recognised by the respective 

industry. Along with the product 

certification, it is also essential 

for the organization to have 

an active Quality Management 

System (ISO 9001:2015) in place 

to demonstrate the commitment 

to consistency and sustainable 

quality. 

Acceptance from the consumers 

is the major driving force for 

all manufacturers to get their 

products certified. A reputable 

certification trademark is a clear 

indicator that the product has 

gone through proper evaluation 

as per international standards 

and practice and tested to verify 

that the product will perform 

to the selected conditions. For 

HVAC equipment manufacturers, 

product certification is a 

prerequisite to starting the 

marketing campaign with the 

MEP consultants/clients. To prequalify 

the products, it is essential 

Lubna Shaikh 

manufacturers carry the right 

certification for their products 

However, certification bodies 

need to create more awareness 

of the certification and its scope 

through seminars and knowledge 

programmes, quality is generally 

ignored in the certification, and 

we strongly feel that quality 

should be considered as 

a vital parameter in the 

product performance 

certifications. It would 

provide more confidence 

to the customers and 

improve the level of 

competence in the 

market. Certification 

bodies should create 

awareness on how to 

verify the certification 

of a brand and its 

products online on 

a real-time basis. 

This is the only way 

the certification bodies 

can work along with 

the MEP consultants/ 

clients avoiding abuse of any 

certified claims. 

Good certification and 

accreditation come at a cost 

and consume more time with 

their audits and recurring tests. 

Respective certified bodies 

should bring these topics 

for discussion in a group of 

HVAC forums, which includes 

HVAC manufacturers and 

MEP Consultants to arrive at 

a consensus. We should try 

to reach such an agreement 

among HVAC professionals, 

starting from UAE and then 

can take up with the entire Gulf 

region. 

Nodirjon Rasulov, Business 

Development Manager, Camfil 

Middle East FZC: 

Air filters without proper 

certification to verify 

their claims could have a 

devastating effect on the 

indoor environment and 

the health of people. So, 

ensuring safety is a critical 

component of investing in 

product certification. However, 

compliance should not only be 

confined to the requirements 

of the certification scheme. 

The certification of products 

must also consider certain 

industry guidelines defined 

by experiences in a similar 

industry. There are standards 

and regulations set by the 

country’s government to 

protect employees and the 

environment from harmful 

dust, mist, and fumes. 

Lack of education on 

certification programs 

and differences between 

certification bodies create 

many drawbacks in the 

Nodirjon Rasulov 

industry, leading to the selection 

of products being solely based on 

certificate brands, instead of a clear 

understanding of what it stands 

for. In air filtration, there are also 

distinctive certifications preferred 

by those used in different parts 

of the world. Hence, people who 

come from different regions go with 

preferred or familiar certification 

brands during their product 

selection. Lack of awareness of the 

scope and criteria of the basis of 

certification is a big problem that 

leads to confusion in the market. 

The confusion in the market, 

further aggravated by the high 

number of different certifications, 

also gives way to some suppliers' 

unethical or abusive use of 

product certifications. To avoid 

this, each country’s standard and 

meteorology association should 

have a separate department to 

investigate and upgrade local 

standards as per the latest 

innovations. Eurovent Middle 

East can play an essential role in 

synergising all necessary actions 

and delivering them to the local 

government bodies. 

Essentially, the certification 

process of any product should be 

based on a thorough analysis that 

considers future requirements 

and not only on existing issues. If 

certification of products is based 

on the latest scientific innovation 

or has a futuristic approach, it 

would be beneficial for humanity. 

It can help us prevent devastating 

effects on human life and the 

environment. 



NEWSLETTER 

GUEST ARTICLE 

Let´s get the facts straight 

regarding performance 

certification for AHUs 

Khalil El Ghazzi, Managing Director, Systemair Saudi Arabia, discusses misconceptions 

related to performance certification circulating in the market, factors stakeholders 

should keep in mind when assessing existing schemes, and what lies behind the 

Eurovent mark… 

Are tests conducted by third-part certification bodies? 

This marks the difference whether the performance 

tests are conducted in independent laboratories or the 

manufacturers’ laboratory. 

Is the certification body accredited? 

Same as a laboratory, the certification body should 

also be accredited to fulfil the ISO/CEI 17065 standard 

requirements. 

What are the test parameters for mechanical 

performance? 

The certification body’s website should include information 

on whether test parameters consider, for example, EN 

1886 mechanical performance classes such as deflection 

and leakage classes. 

Are regular software selection audits conducted as 

part of the certification process? 

This is important to ensure that manufacturers 

do not change data or software outputs. If such a 

process is in place, any change in software and the 

addition of new equipment must be approved by the 

certifying body. The software check also takes into 

consideration the allowed deviations in the certified 

data coming from the software. 

Does the certification programme offer an energy 

labelling scheme? 

An energy labelling scheme serves as a useful 

means to identify better performing units instead of 

solely verifying published performance values. This 

means, for example, that a unit can be ranked on A+ 

(best) to E (worst) scale. 

Performance certification schemes are valuable tools as 

they help empower customers with the correct data by 

validating the information declared by manufacturers. 

This is useful for customers choosing Air Handling 

Units (AHUs) with specific requirements in mind. 

However, there are misconceptions and flaws related to 

certification circulating throughout the Middle East that 

need to be addressed. 

When it comes to performance certification, it is essential 

to remember the following: 

• Being certified does not guarantee a high-quality AHU. 

It simply proves that the manufacturer’s catalogue 

data and, if applicable, selection software output data 

is correct. It also does not necessarily mean that a unit 

complies with minimum performance regulations. 

• A certification body typically does not tell companies 

how to manufacture products unless explicitly 

specified. Certification generally aims to validate 

claims against the allowed deviations set within this 

certification company. 

• Performance certification schemes by different 

certifying companies are not at par with each other. 

Therefore, it is essential to raise awareness of the 

true implications behind each certification programme 

and differentiate between the processes behind 

certifications circulating in the market. 

We recommend using the following (non-exhaustive) 

checklist of questions as a reference to assess a 

certification scheme: 

Does the certification cover the performance of the AHU 

or just the components individually? 

This is key to ensuring the performance meets the 

declared parameters and meets requirements related 

Khalil El Ghazzi 

to air quality, cooling or heating capacity, energy 

recovery, power consumption, air/water side pressure 

drop, and the like. 

Separate certifications of components cannot be 

qualified as consolidated certification of the AHU. 

Does the certification programme certify units 

keeping hot or humid climates in mind? 

Certification that takes into consideration the 

performance of units in warm climates is a valuable 

tool that provides an easier and more inclusive 

reference for customers in the warmer regions to 

choose the most suitable equipment in a simple and 

more straightforward manner. 

Is the certified AHU listed in the online directory of the 

respective certification body? 

Any quality performance scheme should have an online 

certification directory. If the AHU range and its test 

results are not mentioned in this online directory, it is not 

certified. Always verify this first. 

Are performance parameters periodically validated by 

way of factory audits? 

This ensures that the independent certification 

organisation can check if products continue to be 

manufactured under the same parameters. 

Eurovent: What’s behind the mark? 

Eurovent Certified Performance “Air Handling Units” 

Not all certification schemes are made equal. 

It is critical to assess the processes behind the 

certification to ensure the integrity of the mark. 

Below are the features of the Eurovent certification 

for air handling units that serve as a reference guide 

to evaluate whether similar certifications in the 

market conduct equal due diligence. 

Mechanical performance certified with addition of filter bypass leakage and sound insertion loss. 

Rating and performance certified with strict deviations. 

Performance test of real unit conducted in a laboratory. 

An energy labelling scheme that helps identify better performing units on a scale from A+ (best) to E (worst). 

Energy Efficiency Classes for Summer Application (EECS) label for air handling units for warm 

weather conditions and humidity recovery 

Eurovent Certified Performance option for “Hygienic Air Handling Units” 

Annual factory visits. 

Annual selection software audit to guarantee validity of output data 



NEWSLETTER 

GUEST ARTICLE 

2022: The Awakening of the 

Demand Demons 

Avin Gidwani, Chief Executive, BNC Network 

Can you tell us a bit about the 

history of the GSO and the 

role it plays in the regulatory 

development of the Middle East? 

Many HVAC suppliers still 

have balance sheets that are 

positive and cash flows that are 

manageable - the core issue 

remains the waning backlog on 

their order books. While some 

businesses grapple with critical 

supply chain issues, the problem 

is still operational, not existential 

and poses a new dynamic 

that creates opportunities for 

businesses that manufacture 

locally, maintain stocks and know 

how to hedge their bets on raw 

materials as they bid work. 

The region imports from almost 

every country in the world, 

guaranteeing that materials 

are almost always available - 

not necessarily the material of 

preference, but there are almost 

always viable options available to 

keep the project trains running. 

While the supply chain doomsday 

commentary may have you believe 

otherwise, the challenge for 

construction businesses in the 

region is clearly still demand 

and not supply. 

Demand is a set of 

unpredictable demons that 

appear to be awakening. The 

fear is always that they could 

be feigning or just be stretching 

before falling back asleep. The 

more likely scenario would 

be that the demand demons 

are awake and just lazing as 

they carefully and cautiously 

consider the chaotic geopolitical 

world around them. 

At the beginning of 2022, the 

GCC BNC Urban Index fell by 

9% over the last two years, 

bringing the index to 12.6% 

below the BNC 100 line (which 

indicates the average urban 

project market size from 2015 

to 2018). This contraction 

has not been felt evenly by 

all companies because it is 

dependent on various factors 

like where they stand in the 

project cycle, their geographical 

business mix, and their energy 

vs. urban projects sector-mix. 

Avin Gidwani 

This is particularly significant 

because while the urban sector 

contracted over the course of 

2021, the energy sector expanded 

by 5.2%. 

In the UAE, the demand demon 

is eager to start a new day and 

the country has seen three 

consecutive quarters of Q-on-Q 

growth in project awards and 

new project announcements 

have followed the same trend. As 

for Saudi Arabia, it has multiple 

demand demons - the one in 

Riyadh is sprightly, eager and 

raring to go, while the ones in the 

Western Province, which have a 

long, hard and exciting journey 

ahead, are still pondering and 

planning their path. In the East of 

the Kingdom, the demon is still in 

hibernation. 

Qatar’s demon resides in its North 

Sea and awoke in 2021 with an 

almost insatiable appetite as 

the country saw a record streak 

of project announcements and 

awards, almost exclusively in the 

hydrocarbon sector. In Kuwait 

and Oman where the demand 

demons were all but dead, there 

is finally a rumbling of activity 

in the energy sector, which one 

can only hope is the tossing and 

turning before demand rises and 

shines. Meanwhile, in Bahrain, the 

demon’s urban appetite doubled 

over the year, settling at close to a 

billion dollars in new projects. 

With this lay of the land, putting 

aside global politics and 

pandemics, there is still reason 

to be cautiously optimistic about 

the awakening of a GCC market 

that will consume more than you 

can produce. 

About BNC Network 

BNC (Building and Construction) 

Network, is the flagship 

construction market digitization 

initiative of Industry Networks 

FZC. BNC was launched in 

2003 to create a digital network 

that connects the construction 

industry in creative new ways 

to increase transparency and 

efficiency. Used worldwide 

by thousands of industry 

professionals everyday, BNC 

offers a state-of-the-art projectsales 

CRM system pre-integrated 

with its project database - the 

largest in Middle East & Africa. 

With over 29,000 live construction 

projects estimated at US$ 11.1 

trillion, BNC’s coverage spans 

72 countries and 5 sectors - the 

urban, oil & gas, transportation, 

utilities, and industrial sectors. 

BNC publishes a quarterly 

construction report called the 

BNC Projects Journal and the 

BNC Bulletin, a daily construction 

newsletter. 

About the Author 

Avin Gidwani, the CEO of BNC, is 

a serial entrepreneur who has 

worked in leadership capacities 

within the construction industry for 

over 20 years. He launched BNC 

in 2003 with the vision to create a 

digital network that connects the 

construction industry in creative 

new ways to increase transparency 

and efficiency. Returning to the 

business after a decade in 2014, he 

transformed BNC into a technology 

business. With Avin as its lead 

architect, BNC created its state-ofthe-art 

project-sales CRM system 

pre-integrated with its project 

intelligence database - the largest 

in the Middle East and Africa. 

www.bncnetwork.net 

PLEASE FOLLOW US ON 

OUR SOCIAL NETWORKS 



NEWSLETTER 

CASE STUDY 

Study shows the importance 

of ventilation, IAQ in 

combatting TB 

Taiwan study offers empirical data that improving ventilation to CO2

NEWSLETTER 

CASE STUDY 

interventions in University A were 

less successful than what should 

be expected. The role of poor 

ventilation in this outbreak was 

discovered precisely because 

of the ongoing occurrence of 

tertiary cases despite early 

removal of the index case 1 year 

ago. The worsening situation 

in October 2011 prompted 

investigations of indoor 

ventilation and the subsequent 

ventilation engineering. 

In retrospect, infectious aerosol 

accumulated in the poorly 

ventilated environment. Without 

the ventilation improvement, the 

outbreak in University A would 

be more prolonged and more 

difficult to control. 

A major strength of this 

study is the comprehensive 

epidemiological investigation. 

The outbreak investigation team 

found that TB transmission 

can occur following exposure 

to shared air for as short as 30 

hours under poorly ventilated 

environments. 

Another strength is the 

comprehensive contact tracing 

and long-term follow-up based 

on Taiwan's highly effective 

public health system. 

The NIOSH and other 

governmental agencies had 

recommended indoor air quality 

standards based on CO2 levels 

of 600-1500 ppm for schools and 

workplaces. 

The considerations for these 

recommendations are for comfort 

and learning/working efficiency. 

Our results support the hypothesis 

that there is a threshold of 

ventilation rate that stop TB 

epidemic." 

However, our data are not 

precise enough to exactly define 

this threshold, which could be 

in between 600 and 1000 ppm 

CO2 in this outbreak. Moreover, 

the threshold could vary across 

different TB outbreaks — a higher 

ventilation rate would be required 

to neutralize the hazard from a 

more infectious index case. 

In conclusion, the study shows 

that maintaining adequate 

indoor ventilation could be a 

highly effective strategy for 

controlling TB outbreaks. Our 

findings highlight the need to 

assess indoor ventilation status 

in TB outbreak investigation. In 

congregate settings where there 

is known to be a high risk of TB, 

it may be beneficial to make 

pre-emptive improvements to 

building ventilation. A refocusing 

on the importance of adequate 

ventilation in TB control may 

prevent hundreds of thousands 

of TB cases and be the gamechanger 

for achieving the global 

End TB target.” 

Source of study: 

Chun-Ru Du, Shun-Chih Wang, 

Ming-Chih Yu, Ting-Fang Chiu 

Pei-Chun Chuang, Ruwen Jou, 

Pei-Chun Chan, Chin-Tai Fang. 

Effect of ventilation improvement 

during a tuberculosis 

outbreak in underventilated 

university buildings. Indoor Air. 

2020;30:422–432. https ://doi. 

org/10.1111/ina.12639 

Why Middle East should 

incentivise ventilation 

retrofits 

The pandemic has shown how dependent our life and businesses are on our built 

environment. Eurovent Middle East is calling on all governments to provide incentives 

to retrofit existing buildings with better ventilation and air filtration systems, to avoid 

similar situations in future crises. The stimulus to the economy stemming from such 

incentives is considerable and would offset the costs. 

PLEASE FOLLOW US ON 

OUR SOCIAL NETWORKS 


NEWSLETTER 

GUEST ARTICLE 

Why the slow move back 

to normal should be an 

opportunity for the HVAC 

sector to step up 

Dr Iyad Al Attar, Independent Air Filtration Expert and Associated Consultant for 

Eurovent Middle East, calls on the HVAC sector to challenge conventional philosophies, 

outlining what the industry should keep in mind to truly improve IAQ and avoid the 

outdated thinking that prolonged Covid-19... 

It is good to get back to “normal” 

slowly, but not back to the practices 

that have led to and delayed our exit 

from the Covid-19 pandemic. The 

importance of air filter performance 

in enhancing air quality has been 

belittled for decades and perceived 

as an acquired luxury. The pandemic 

finally brought the air quality 

narrative from the backburner to 

the news headlines. The scale and 

scope of losses in human lives and 

economic setbacks have scrutinised 

air quality and filter performance. 

Yet, despite all our technical knowhow, 

knowledge, and collective 

experiences, we aimlessly wander 

in our HVAC systems, washing coils, 

dedusting filters, and cleaning ducts, 

believing that we have satisfied our 

air quality obligations. 

It is time to get it right; we ought to 

focus on what is effective, not what is 

in fashion. We need to admit that our 

conventional philosophies trapped 

us in the pandemic and delayed our 

exit from it. If our literal adherence 

to filtration and HVAC standards 

has contributed to the deterioration 

of indoor air quality, we certainly 

need to check the metrics of these 

standards. 

The pandemic is a prime time 

to revolt against outdated and 

conventional practices that have 

failed to protect our respiratory 

systems and instead participated in 

spreading the coronavirus. COVID-19 

has now showcased compelling 

economic reasons for resolving air 

quality issues. The objective here is 

not just to avail the best Indoor Air 

Quality (IAQ) possible but to address 

all relevant matters influencing the 

built environment. HVAC systems 

must step up, and we should think 

beyond thermal comfort. That would 

include rewiring our buildings and 

cities to place IAQ at the forefront 

of national priorities by employing 

continuous aerosol monitoring and 

the corresponding filtration solutions. 

Conventional maintenance 

measures thwart any endeavour to 

attain better air quality. 

Raising the bar of air quality is an 

engineering approach. Currently, 

predetermined ways of doing things 

and conventional practices continue 

to risk IAQ; the game is the same. 

The addiction to using washable and 

reusable filters has compromised 

any indoor air quality and filtration 

upgrades. The villain in the story is 

the tremendous reliance on saving 

cost rather than lives by dedusting 

a clogged filter by compressed air, 

washing coils and cleaning dusts. 

Dr Iyad Al Attar 

These maintenance measures thwart 

any endeavour to attain better air 

quality. Therefore, it is time to bend 

the arc of conventional practices 

toward professional, thorough, and 

preventative maintenance programs 

to take air quality to the next level. 

The mindset of maintenance 

shortcuts will never position air 

quality to be a pressing issue in the 

built environment. Underutilising air 

filtration technologies and settling 

for what we can do rather than what 

we must have led to the inheriting 

poor IAQ and contributed further to 

the spread of microorganisms. It 

is time to make filter performance 

the driving force of the built 

environment, not an accessory of the 

entire HVACR system. 

Any cost of filtration upgrades is 

infinitesimal given the cost of the 

lockdown 

To achieve leaps and bounds as 

far as IAQ is concerned, we must 

consider new ideas and adopt 

innovative approaches. We need to 

consider appropriate filter selection 

that can accommodate all types of 

pollutants once their physical and 

chemical characterisation has been 

completed. To implement proper 

corrective measures, we ought 

to highlight the air quality issues 

and determine whether they are 

ventilation or filtration issues or if it 

is a bit of both. For example, to lower 

the concentration of CO 2 , ventilation 

techniques are necessary, but 

both filtration and ventilation 

solutions can reduce Particulate 

Matter (PM) and gaseous pollutants 

concentrations. 

Recently, there has been a great 

deal of hype on moisture control, 

and several studies and scholars 

correlated humidity control and 

virus survivability in an indoor 

environment. Ironically, the sole 

reliance on a single stage of an 

inch thick washable filter in Fan 

Coil Units (FCU) and installing 

these filters before they are 

completely dry - not to mention 

their poor filter efficiency - may 

counterproductively affect the IAQ. 

Air handling units use the second 

stage of filtration (Pocket Filters) 

in addition to the primary filters. 

The agony is that these secondary 

filters occupy tremendous space 

in the air handling units compared 

to their modest performance. 

Unfortunately, although these filters 

are disposable, maintenance teams 

re-stall them after attempting to 

regenerate them by water-washing 

or compressed air. 

It is impossible to embark on air 

quality enhancements if these 

practices exist. There are a lot 

to tweak in terms of IAQ, not just 

Figure A & B: Scanning electron microscopic images of filter media used 

in air filters. 

to hike the filter efficiency and 

install High-Efficiency Particulate 

Arrestance (HEPA) filters, but 

to consider the entire HVAC 

systems and built-in environments 

holistically. Satisfaction is gained 

through increased productivity and 

levitating dull buildings through 

IoT. Therefore, enticing HVAC 

engineers to design systems that 

would respond to variations in indoor 

air quality will prove invaluable 

in confronting a wide array of 

pollutants, not just PM. 

Air filter media, design, and 

performance have advanced 

tremendously. Addressing only the 

associated rise in pressure drop 

when selecting air filters with higher 

efficiency is yesterday’s argument. 

The optimised performance of 

modern aerodynamic filter design 

can spark a new beginning to attain 

cleaner air at a much lower pressure 

drop. 

Figure C: Typical installation of 

secondary stage filter “pocket type” 

in an air handling unit 

Reimaging Air Quality 

Today, existing and new buildings 

are subject to tremendous 

pressure to provide healthier 

indoor environments. However, 

any cost of filtration upgrades is 

infinitesimal given the cost of the 

lockdown. Although COVID-19 has 

brought immense suffering, it has 

highlighted the primary deficiencies 

in terms of the tools and conditions 

of our indoor environment. 

Globally, the pandemic pushed air 

quality to the centre and forced 

everyone to reimagine air quality 

given the incredible growth in 

industrialisation; however, at the 

same time, it also shed light on the 

lack of effective regulations. Today, 

technology has provided us with 

tools and the resources to attain 

the best air quality, and now the 

pandemic has given us the business 

case to act swiftly. 

We must unweave every strand of 

conventional practice that led to 

the spread of the virus. We ought to 

admit that maintenance programs 

in place are, at best, modest, if they 

exist at all. It is time to certify HVAC 

systems, air filter performance, and 

maintenance programs and teams 

to take air quality to the next level. 

It is now time for the global 

government to legislate rules 

and regulations that match the 

importance of outdoor and indoor 

air quality and allocate budgets 

and plans to improve IAQ. The bill 

that can come due is horrendous if 

we do not make air quality a global 

priority. 



NEWSLETTER 

PHOTO STORY 

Eurovent Middle East 

Annual Meeting 

On March 22, 2022, Eurovent Middle East held its first physical Annual meeting since the 

pandemic. The meeting attracted 40 member representative and confirmed the re-election 

of Tariq Al Ghussein (CEO of Taqeef) and Rafaël Van Eijcken (General Manager Middle East 

of Baltimore Aircoil Company EMENA as President and Vice-President. Further Board 

members are Frank Taaning Grundholm (ABB), Andrea Cavalet (EPTA Middle East), Dani 

Elamana (Camfil Middle East & Africa), Ismail Serhan Ozten (Danfoss Turkey, Middle 

East & Africa), Marco Duarte (ebm-papst Middle East), Matteo Zanesco (CAREL), Morten 

Schmelzer (Systemair), and Srinivasan Rangan (Rheem Middle East and Africa). 


NEWSLETTER 

TECHNICAL PAPER 

How can active front-end 

drives boost energy efficiency 

and save on capital costs? 

Harmonics are troublesome for electrical networks as they can cause unreliable 

operation and overheating as well as requiring expensive oversizing of equipment to 

handle them. But local energy losses through waste heat are only part of the reason 

why harmonics are bad for energy efficiency. They also cause a poor power factor 

that brings down the energy efficiency of the whole network. Frank Taaning Grundholm, 

Vice President, Global HVACR Sales, ABB Motion, explains why harmonics occur and 

how active frontend (AFE) drives can eliminate them at source. 

Variable speed drives (VSDs) play a 

critical role in improving the energy 

efficiency of motors, pumps, and fans 

across a wide range of industries 

such as water, HVAC, oil and gas, 

power, pulp and paper, marine, food 

and beverage, metals and mining. 

They save energy by controlling 

the speed of electrical motors to 

match the needs of the application. 

This is particularly important as 

many industrial motors are running 

at well below their peak load for 

most of the time. However, with the 

many advantages of VSDs comes 

a potentially troublesome power 

quality issue known as power line 

harmonics that can have an adverse 

effect on both system reliability and 

energy efficiency. 

If these harmonics are not 

addressed, they can cause damage 

to sensitive electronic equipment, 

interference in communication 

equipment, and false readings on 

measurement devices. Harmonics 

can trip circuit breakers, blow fuses 

and cause capacitor bank failures. 

The effects also include overheating 

of transformers, cables, motors, 

generators and capacitors, wasting 

energy and shortening their life. 

Equipment must be designed to 

tolerate harmonics in the network 

and oversizing leads to higher 

investment costs and underutilized 

capacity. 

Harmonics arise from non-linear 

loads 

In an ideal situation, the alternating 

current (AC) power supply serving 

industrial facilities shows a pure 

sinusoidal wave form – see Figure 

01. It has a frequency of either 50 

or 60 Hertz (Hz), depending on the 

region of the world. 

In practice, this pure sine wave is 

never present, amongst other due 

to the industrial use of non-linear 

loads that create harmonics. These 

harmonics cause the sine wave to 

deviate as shown in Figure 02. 

VSDs are not the only equipment 

that create harmonics. They result 

from all loads supplied from a 

rectifier, which for example includes 

EC (electronically commutated) 

motors, LED or fluorescent 

lighting, mobile phone chargers, 

computers, uninterruptible power 

supplies (UPS) and Wi-Fi routers 

- basically every single type of 

modern electronic device. Direct 

on-line (DoL) motors and oldfashioned 

light bulbs do not cause 

Frank Taaning 

Grundholm 

harmonics as they are linear loads, 

but DoL motors cause phase angle 

displacement issues, which is just 

another kind of power quality issue. 

Harmonic disturbances should not 

be confused with radio frequency 

interference (RFI). Harmonics are 

multiples of the base frequency 

and are therefore relatively low in 

frequency, typically below 2,500 

Hertz (Hz). In contrast RFI is usually 

above 150 kilohertz (kHz). RFI 

disturbances can be radiated and/ 

or conducted. Harmonics are 

always conducted. 

The impact of harmonics on 

the network is measured as a 

percentage value known as the 

total harmonic distortion (THD). 

This is the ratio of the RMS 

(root mean square) harmonic 

content to the RMS value of the 

fundamental frequency. Where 

no voltage or current harmonics 

exist the THD is 0%. As the level 

of harmonics increases, the THD 

value increases. THDi is the total 

harmonic distortion on current 

and THDu or THDv is the total 

harmonic distortion on voltage. 

The higher the harmonic current 

content (THDi), the higher the 

losses in the power network – for 

example, a 40% THDi results in 

16% higher losses than a network 

with no harmonics. That means 

increased energy costs. And it also 

requires the electrical system to 

be dimensioned to carry the excess 

current. 

A single 4 kW drive, even with 

100% THDi, will not necessarily 

cause problems for the whole 

network. But it is important to 

consider the cumulative effect 

of harmonic distortion of a 

number of drives at the point of 

common coupling (PCC) – where 

the network serving the facility 

connects to the local utility 

distribution network. 

Methods for tackling harmonics 

Oversizing of critical electrical 

equipment is one approach to 

tackling the overheating created 

by the harmonic current. As 

an example, transformers and 

cables may be increased in size. 

Oversizing of backup generators 

is also a common way to mitigate 

some of the challenges created by 

harmonics. 

This approach to tackling 

harmonics can be expensive, and 

often ineffective. Instead, it is 

better to use equipment that does 

not cause harmonics in the first 

place. That is why the industry is 

now adopting a new generation of 

ultra-low harmonic drives. 

Drives that produce exceptionally 

low levels of harmonics 

Ultra-low harmonic (ULH) drives 

have harmonics mitigation 

built in. This includes an active 

front end (AFE) and integrated 

low harmonic line filter. There 

is no need for external filters, 

multi-pulse arrangements or 

special transformers. The simple 

installation offers significant 

savings in space, time and money. 

Compared to a conventional drive, 

the harmonic content is reduced 

by up to 95%. The total harmonic 

current distortion (THDi) of a ULH 

is typically 3%. In contrast, with an 

external passive filter the typical 

total harmonic distortion is between 

5 to 10%. 

Furthermore, as the risk of 

overheating is reduced with the 

reduction of harmonic currents, 

there is no need to over-dimension 

equipment, such as transformers 

and cables. 

Power factor is the important factor 

Harmonics also affect the power 

factor (PF). This describes how 

effectively an electrical network 

uses the power it draws. True 

power factor considers both the 

displacement power factor (also 

known as CosΦ) and distortion 

power factor (that is a function of the 

amount of harmonic current). In the 

very best case, a network will have a 

PF of unity (1). 

In some cases, utilities impose 

penalty charges on buildings 

with a poor power factor. Adding 

a standard VSD to a motor will 

improve its displacement power 

factor, which is an issue with all DoL 

motors, but add to the distortion 

due to the drive rectifier. ULH drives 

mitigate harmonics which positively 

affects the true power factor. They 

also have the ability to compensate 

reactive power which improves the 

displacement power factor of the 

installation. 

To illustrate the difference, a 

standard 6-pulse drive might 

have a true PF of around 0.78, 

Figure 01 – the ideal electrical supply has a perfectly sinusoidal wave form. 

Figure 02 – in practice, the wave form is often distorted by harmonics, this example being from a VSD with three phase diode 

bridge rectifier and DC coils. 


NEWSLETTER 



Review of Certification 

Procedure for Inverter Air 

Conditioner 

Dr A. Nour Eddine, Air-Conditioner program manager, Eurovent Certita Certification 

Figure 3 – Comparison of the overall system costs with a standard drive and a ULH drive with an active front end (AFE). 

causing it to draw an increased 

line current of 128% of the 

nominal. In contrast, a ULH 

drive with a true PF of 1 will 

draw only the nominal current 

(100%). 

Essentially, ULH drives not only 

optimize the energy efficiency 

of the applications, but they 

also help make the overall 

power network more efficient. 

The result is lower electricity 

bills. 

Why system efficiency is more 

important than component 

efficiency 

The benefits of ULH drives 

must be viewed in the context 

of a complete system, as shown 

in Figure 3. The standard 

6-pulse drive on its own has 

a higher efficiency. But the 

efficiency drop in the filter 

added to address harmonics, 

and the lower motor voltage 

(370 V as opposed to 400 V), 

make the overall system 

efficiency lower. Therefore, the 

system with the ULH drive has 

lower operating costs. 

Boosting reliability while 

saving capital costs 

There is a further reason for 

specifying ULH drives, which 

is the very significant cost of 

process downtime that can 

result from the failure of 

critical electrical assets. Some 

estimates suggest that the average 

cost of a downtime incident is USD 

16,000 (source: Garvey). In the 

automotive industry, the costs are 

even higher - up to USD 48,000 per 

minute, the equivalent of over USD 

2.7 million per hour. 

It might seem counter-intuitive to 

suggest that selecting ULH drives 

could impact the capital costs of 

a facility. However, the situation 

becomes clearer when you consider 

that the electrical systems are 

accountable for a large proportion 

of the cost of a new facility. 

Deploying ULH drives means 

that the key electrical assets 

will not have to be over-sized 

to accommodate the potentially 

harmful effects of harmonics. 

Rather, they can be optimized to 

match the actual load more closely, 

and therefore their capital cost 

is lower. This ‘right-sizing’ effect 

ripples through the facility. For 

example, with ULH drives, cable 

costs can be reduced by about 10% 

compared with using standard 

6-pulse VSDs. Furthermore, 

distribution transformer costs 

are reduced by 20%, generator 

costs are reduced by 50%, while 

switchgear and circuit breaker 

costs could be cut by 10–30%. 

A proactive approach to harmonics 

pays dividends 

When designers and operators of 

buildings and industrial systems 

take appropriate action to address 

harmonics in their electrical 

networks, they soon experience 

a positive return on investment. 

This comes in terms of improved 

reliability, longer equipment life, 

lower energy bills and reduced 

capital costs. 

A particularly elegant and costeffective 

solution is to deploy 

ultra-low harmonic (ULH) drives 

such as ABB’s ACS880 range 

that mitigate harmonics at 

source. ABB has also developed 

Industry-specific ULH drives for 

the HVAC and water industries. 

For further information: https:// 

new.abb.com/drives/segments/ 

hvac 

Considerable technology 

advancement in comfort airconditioners 

designs over the past 

few decades have seen a substantial 

development in the variable speed 

compressor operation (inverter airconditioner). 

Most of the current 

international standards allows the 

intervention when testing these units 

to provide the setting parameters, 

while some still forbid it to prevent 

manufacturer interference. 

This study reviews the testing 

methods of the two types of airconditioners 

in the different 

scientific literature and international 

standards. The results showed that 

Figure 1: Simple Refrigeration Cycle 

it is not possible to test the IAC unit 

on a fixed rating capacity without 

providing the setting parameters 

such as the compressor speed and 

frequency and the fan speed. To 

guarantee no further interference 

from the manufacturer, using a 

third-party certification body has 

showed an efficient solution until 

further development of the testing 

methods… 

Introduction 

Interest for air-conditioning (AC) 

systems has exponentially expanded 

worldwide throughout the most 

recent couple of decades. The global 

Dr A. Nour Eddine 

market size was valued at 106.6 

billion USD in 2020 with an expected 

compound annual growth (CAGR) of 

6.2 % until 2028[1]. The expanding 

rate of electricity and aggressive 

effect on the environment from 

power generation pushed to 

substantial developments in 

the variable speed compressor 

(inverter). The inverter segment 

account for 50% of the market in 

India [2] and is projected to expand 

globally at a CAGR of 7.7% [1] in 

a 6-year period. This growth is 

attributable to inverter AC’s (IAC) 

due to the difference in operation 

comparing to conventional AC’s. 

An AC is a mechanism designed 

to maintain and control the air 

temperature and humidity 

within an area. The operation is 


NEWSLETTER 


Figure 3: Calorimeter room method 

schematic 

Figure 4: Enthalpy difference method schematic 

Figure 2: Room Temperature 

Operation for AC and IAC 

typically performed by a simple 

refrigeration (vapor compression) 

cycle (Figure 1). 

A typical refrigeration cycle uses 

an electric motor to drive the 

compressor. The two most 

common types of compressors 

are the ‘fixed speed’ type and the 

‘variable speed’ (inverter) types. 

With conventional ‘fixed-speed’ 

air conditioners, the compressor 

is either on (working to 100% 

capacity) or off. An inverter in an 

air conditioner is used to change 

the compressor’s motor speed to 

drive variable refrigerant flow in 

an air conditioning system to 

achieve the desired temperature 

conditions in indoor space. It 

maintains the desired 

temperatures without wild 

fluctuations. Figure 2 shows the 

difference in room temperature 

fluctuation between fixed speed 

and IAC units. IAC provide ability 

to control the speed of the 

compressor motor which helps in 

continuous regulation of 

temperature. It also helps in 

saving energy and power with 

the help of a variable speed 

compressor. Additionally, 

other benefits such as no 

temperature fluctuations, 

longer durability, faster 

cooling, and reduced noise in 

comparison with non-inverter 

ACs are expected to fuel the 

demand for inverter technology. 

The fundamental difference 

in operation required further 

investigations through the 

years to validate the efficiency 

of testing and rating IAC units 

using the same methods of 

conventional AC’s. Mavuri 

et al. [3]tested IAC using the 

calorimeter test method. The 

results showed that to test the 

IAC on part load on specific 

room temperature conditions, 

it should either be in a locked 

mode where the instruction for 

fixing the compressor speed is 

supplied by the manufacturer 

and the capacity is directly 

proportional to the compressor 

speed, either testing the IAC 

in a field operation mode by 

fixing a thermal load instead 

of fixed room temperature or 

capacity. The dependency of the 

unit capacity to the compressor 

frequency has also been showed 

in a thermal model created 

by Hui et al.[4]. Another study 

[5] on the effect of unlocked 

test using the calorimeter 

room method on the Minimum 

energy Performance Standards 

(MEPS) on IAC results in some 

unit failing to comply with 

the MEPS requirements and 

consumed much higher level 

of electricity compared to a 

fixed load or locked capacity 

test. This result is far from 

real life performances since 

it was proven by several field 

studies that IAC enormously 

reduce power consumption in 

comparison to conventional AC’s 

such as Almogbel et al. [6] who 

studied the energy consumption 

of an AC and an IAC for 108 

days, and showed 49% less 

energy consumption of the IAC 

comparing to conventional AC. 

Despite clear scientific evidence 

of the difference in operation 

of the conventional AC and IAC, 

there is no definitive solution 

in the international regulation to 

differentiate the testing 

procedure of these two types 

of units. This article presents the 

adopted solutions of the 

regulation’s commissions in 

different countries and the 

feedback and experience of 

Eurovent Certita Certification 

(ECC) body for this matter. 

Inverter Air-Conditioner Testing 

schemes 

For a variety of HVAC equipment, 

many testing methods have been 

developed. Heating balance 

method (calorimeter room 

method) and enthalpy difference 

method are commonly used for 

testing HVAC equipment. 

Calorimeter Room (Figure 3) test 

heat balance test device 

is a room air conditioning 

performance test device. The 

method of calibrating the 

performance of air conditioner 

with calorimeter test bench 

is called Room heat balance 

method. The basic principle is 

based on the law of conservation 

of thermodynamics (the first law 

of thermodynamics): that is 

Input Energy = Output Energy 

The air enthalpy difference 

method (Figure 4) is a way 

to test the performance 

of the air conditioner by 

measuring the enthalpy and 

the circulating air volume 

of the air at the inlet and 

outlet of the air conditioner. 

It consists of measuring the 

enthalpy difference of the 

inlet and outlet air inside the 

air conditioner chamber and 

calculate the air conditioner 

capacity through the heat 

exchanger air flow. The 

enthalpy is measured by 

measuring the temperatures 

of dry and wet bulbs (T-Ts 

method). 

When testing the IAC freely 

without setting the parameters 

from the manufacturer, the 

capacity of the unit would not 

be constant even if the ambient 

temperature is constant. 

The internal control of the 

unit will compensate for the 

thermal load of the room. 

The IAC unit will be checking 

the air temperature from 

time to time using its own 

censor and will adapt with the 

capacity being delivered to 

compensate the thermal load. 

If the unit determine that the 

temperature is going down in 

a cooling capacity test then 

the unit will realize that the 

capacity delivered is too much 

and it will reduce the capacity 

by reducing the compressor 

frequency. On the opposite 

side, if the ambient conditions 

are going up, then the unit 

would increase the capacity 

by increasing the compressor 

frequency and the fan speed and 

the electronic expansion valve 

on both sides of the unit. During 

the test of IAC, to maintain the 

unit on a fixed capacity, the 

operational parameters of the 

unit should be fixed (compressor 

frequency, electronic expansion 

valve and the fan speed). 

As one can see from how both 

testing methods function, the 

IAC with a variable capacity 

could not be tested using the 

calorimeter room method and 

is too difficult to test using the 

air enthalpy method. Therefore, 

in the current state of available 

technology, testing an IAC 

should require setting fixed 

parameters such as compressor 

speed and frequency and in 

some cases fan speed and the 

expansion valve opening. This 

could be done by manually 

involving a thermostat included 

in the unit or automatically 

with a preset parameters in 

what is called testing mode. 

This procedure aims to convert 

the IAC unit into a fixed speed 

compressor unit for testing 

purpose. 


NEWSLETTER 


International regulations and 

standards for testing IAC’s 

The test procedures for Air 

Conditioners are slightly different 

between each governing body. 

With different climates and 

equipment markets in each 

country, the high and low 

temperature test conditions 

each test procedure are slightly 

different. This section discusses 

the scope of each test procedure 

and reviews their similarities 

when testing the IAC’s[8]. 

• ISO 

The ISO standard 5151, which is 

incorporated either by reference 

or in full by many countries, 

applies to non-ducted air-cooled 

ACs and air-to-air heat pumps, 

and small ducted ACs and heat 

pumps. The scope of the standard 

covers both packaged and split 

systems but limits the split 

systems to multi-split systems 

controlled by a single thermostat. 

The standard specifies that single 

capacity, variable capacity, and 

multiple capacity units are also 

covered.’ 

• Australia 

The Australian standard, AU/ 

NZ 3823.4.1, covers air-cooled 

ACs and air-to-air heat pumps. 

This test method is the ISO 16358 

standard, which incorporates 

the entire scope of ISO 5151, ISO 

13253, and ISO 15042. ISO 13253 

covers ducted air-cooled air 

conditioners and ducted air-to-air 

heat pumps. ISO 15042 is the test 

procedure that covers multi-split 

and multi-circuit non-ducted 

systems. Both single and variable 

capacity systems are covered. 

• China 

The Chinese standard GB/T 7725- 

2004 test procedure applies to 

non-ducted units with a cooling 

capacity below 14 kW. The units 

can be either water-cooled or aircooled. 

• European Union 

The EU test procedure covers 

both packaged and split system 

ACs and heat pumps. These 

products can be variable 

capacity by any means, ducted 

or non-ducted, single-split 

or multi-split systems. The 

definition for multi-split 

from the EU aligns with the 

US definition (below). As for 

IAC’s the EN 14511 clearly 

states that the setting of the 

frequency shall be done for 

each rating condition. The 

manufacturer shall provide in 

the documentation information 

about how to obtain the 

necessary data to set the 

required frequencies and/or 

the fan when different from 

the maximum one to set on the 

control device for a given rating 

condition. 

It even allows when skilled 

personnel with knowledge of 

control software is required 

for the start of the system, the 

manufacturer or the nominated 

agent should be in attendance 

when the system is being 

installed and prepared for tests. 

- Japan 

The Japanese standard JIS 

B 8615-1:2013 and JIS B 

9612:2013 applies to packaged 

and split system ACs with a 

rated cooling capacity of 10 

kW or less. Japan references 

ISO 5151 for its standard, with 

country specific adjustments to 

the testing conditions. 

• Korea 

Korea’s standard KS C 9306 

2017 test procedure is limited 

to packaged and split systems 

with a rated cooling capacity 

of 35 kW or less. The main 

deviation in scope from the 

other countries is the exclusion 

of split systems with multiple 

indoor units. 

• United States 

The test procedure established by 

the United States was updated in 

2017, and a new test procedure 

will go into effect in 2023. The 

current test procedure covers 

both heat pumps and ACs 

configured as single package 

units and split system units. The 

standard specifies that the split 

system units can be designed as 

multi-head mini split, multi-split, 

and multi-circuit systems. 

As a US certification body, 

the AHRI standard 1230-2010 

allows skilled personnel from 

the manufacturer to intervene 

to set the control software for 

an IAC. In addition to setting the 

compressor frequency needed 

to operate at targeted nominal 

capacity. 

- Canada 

The Canadian testing procedure 

are presented in the CSA EXP07 

SCOP, ICOP. It allows using both 

air enthalpy and calorimeter room 

methods depending on the type of 

the unit. It covers both fixed and 

variable speed compressor types. 

In all the presented standards, 

variable capacity units are 

currently tested at fixed 

compressor speeds. When 

installed, the speed of the 

compressor increases/decreases 

dynamically to condition the 

space. To test these units in 

a fixed-speed mode, a lab/ 

testing body must contact the 

manufacturer to upload specific 

software or connect specific 

equipment to force the unit into 

a testing mode. The necessity of 

manufacturer intervention when 

testing these units opens up the 

procedure to interference by 

allowing changes to be made to 

the unit that are not present when 

operating in the field. 

While there is no other available 

solution in the present, both 

Canada and the EU are working 

to establish dynamic load- 

based test procedures for 

room air conditioners and heat 

pumps. These proposed test 

methods (CSA EXP07 and EN 

14825) use an adaptation of 

the psychrometric approach 

to introduce sensible and 

latent heat loads to the indoor 

room and test the unit’s 

control scheme for managing 

space temperature. The 

goal of developing these test 

procedures is to reflect the 

operation of a unit more closely 

in the field, which would better 

characterize unit operation at 

lower temperatures, better 

represent the efficiency gains 

associated with variable speed 

equipment and eliminate the 

ability to override controls. 

There are other initiatives such 

as keeping the same test method 

but introducing verification after 

or before the test to check that 

the inverter unit run at the same 

parameters in real life conditions 

than those used for the test. 

These test procedures are in the 

process of being developed, and 

some have raised concerns that 

the inherently dynamic nature of 

such test approaches may make 

them difficult to reproduce. Until 

one of these methods is valid 

enough, referring to a third-party 

certification body that controls 

the communication between the 

laboratory and the manufacturer 

could be the best available solution 

for testing an IAC by allowing 

Figure 5: Certified Air Conditioner by ECC following 2021 campaign 

Figure 6: test results for the 2020 qualification campaign 

the manufacturer to provide 

the required parameters for 

testing while ensuring no further 

modifications or intervention on 

the unit. 

Eurovent Certita Certification 

(ECC) feedback and experience 

Established in 1993, Eurovent 

Certita Certification is recognized 

as a world leader in third-party 

product performance certification 

in the Heating, Ventilation, Air 

Conditioning, and Refrigeration 

fields. In the Technical 

Certification Rules document 

(TCR)[9] for the Air-conditioners, 

it covers in its scope Comfort 

air cooled air conditioners and 

air/air heat pumps rated up to 

100 kW cooling capacity. The 

program follows the standards 

EN 14511 and EN 14825 for the 

testing methods and procedures. 

All the certified products and 

performances are available the 

ECC website [10]. 

In application of the Certification 

Manual (CM) and the TCR of 

the program, ECC forbid any 

direct communication between 

the manufacturer and the 

laboratory. The communications 

should be restricted with those 

allowed by the standards such as 

installation/ start up procedure 

and information about the 

compressor frequency and fan 

speed for the case of inverter. 

This information is collected using 

a locked document provided to 

the manufacturer by ECC and the 

necessary information are then 

transferred to the laboratory. Any 

further required information by 

the laboratory should be acquired 

by the intermediate of the 

certification team. 

Currently ECC have 6217 

certified Air-Conditioner on its 

website. The IAC’s represent the 

larger part of these products 

(Figure 5). The control of all 

communication between the 

laboratory and the manufacturer 

guarantees the testing body 

should have all the required 


NEWSLETTER 


information for following 

the testing standards while 

restricting the intervention of 

the manufacturer not allowing 

any changes to be made to the 

unit that are not present when 

operating in the field. This could 

be visible in the results of the 

2020 surveillance campaign 

where 7% (Figure 6) of the 

tested seasonal efficiencies has 

been rerated, even though that 

the manufacturer provided the 

setting parameters for the IAC’s 

as allowed by the standards. 

Conclusion 

IAC and AC have a different 

type of compressor and though 

different functionality. According 

to the reviewed established test 

procedure, IAC’s are currently 

tested at fixed compressor 

speeds. To achieve that, the 

current test standards allow 

IAC manufacturer to lock the 

compressor speed for a desired 

rated capacity. This could be 

done by setting the parameters 

of the unit on each of the 

targeted capacity tests. This 

requires an allowed intervention 

of the manufacturer when 

testing these units which opens 

the procedure to interference. 

The EU and Canada are working 

on other test methods to 

prevent this intervention, in the 

meanwhile using a third-party 

certification body such as ECC 

proved to be an efficient method 

to perform the test while 

guaranteeing the minimum 

required intervention of the 

manufacturer. 

References 

[1 Grand View Research, “Air 

Conditioning Systems Market 

Size, Share & Trends Analysis 

Report By Type (Unitary, Rooftop, 

PTAC), By Technology (Inverter, 

Non-inverter), By End-use, By 

Region, And Segment Forecasts, 

2021 - 2028,” 2021. Accessed: 

Apr. 01, 2022. 

[Online]. Available: https://www. 

grandviewresearch.com/industryanalysis/air-conditioning-systemsindustry#:~:text=Inverter%20 

segment%20dominated%20the%20 

air,share%20of%2065.6%25 %20 

in%202020. 

[2] Ankur Sharma, “Room air 

conditioners Focus shifting 

to inverters,” Motilal Oswal, 

Apr. 2017. https://www. 

motilaloswal.com/site/rreports/ 

html/636288151341015916/index. 

htm (accessed Apr. 01, 2022). 

[3] S. Mavuri, “Testing inverter type air 

conditioners for field performance,” 

Ecolibrium, pp. 44–49, 2014, 

[Online]. Available: www.gzlans. 

com 

[4] H. Hui, Y. Ding, and M. Zheng, 

“Equivalent Modeling of Inverter 

Air Conditioners for Providing 

Frequency Regulation Service,” 

IEEE Transactions on Industrial 

Electronics, vol. 66, no. 2, pp. 

1413–1423, Feb. 2019, doi: 10.1109/ 

TIE.2018.2831192. 

[5] S. Mavuri, “Field Behaviour of 

Inverter Air Conditioners Effect 

on Seasonal Performance,” I 

nternational Journal of Application 

or I nnovation in Engineering & M 

anagement (I JAI EM ), vol. 4, no. 8, 

Aug. 2015, [Online]. Available: www. 

ijaiem.org 

[6] A. Almogbel, F. Alkasmoul, Z. 

Aldawsari, J. Alsulami, and A. 

Alsuwailem, “Comparison of energy 

consumption between non-inverter 

and inverter-type air conditioner in 

Saudi Arabia,” Energy Transitions, 

vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 191–197, Dec. 2020, 

doi: 10.1007/s41825-020-00033-y. 

[7] G. Du, S. Zhou, Y. Zhou, and X. 

Liu, “ScienceDirect ScienceDirect 

Design of Performance Testing 

System for HVAC Based on 

Enthalpy Difference Method,” 

Procedia Engineering, vol. 205, pp. 

2156–2163, 2017, doi: 10.1016/j. 

proeng.2017.10.035. 

[8 R. Carmichael, S. Widder, N. 

Baker, and J. Dewitt, “Domestic 

Air Conditioner Test Standards and 

Harmonization,” Washington, Mar. 

2020. 

[9] “AC | Eurovent Certita 

Certification.” https://www. 

eurovent-certification.com/ 

en/third-party-certification/ 

certification-programmes/ac 

(accessed Apr. 04, 2022). 

[10]“Eurovent Certita Certification.” 

https://www.eurovent-certification. 

com/en/ (accessed Apr. 04, 2022). 

[11]“Technologies | Daikin Reefer.” 

https://www.ref.daikin.com/zestia/ 

technologies (accessed Apr. 01, 

2022). 

Webinar on Energy Efficiency 

of Air Handling Units in Hot 

and Humid Climates 

On 28 April 2022, Eurovent, Eurovent Middle East and Eurovent Certita Certification 

hosted a joint webinar on energy efficiency of Air Handling Units in hot and humid 

climates, introducing the new energy label by Eurovent for AHUs for such conditions. 

Watch the recordings on our YouTube channel. 


NEWSLETTER 

PHOTO STORY 

WOMEN’S DAY 

International Women’s Day is a strong reminder of the huge talent 

which still is largely untapped by our industry. Eurovent Middle East 

is grateful for the excellent contribution by its female members, 

partners and staff! 

WORLD IEQ 

Eurovent Middle East was happy to be a Knowledge Partner and 

panelist for the 6th edition of the World IEQ Forum of our media 

partner Climate Control Middle East. 


NEWSLETTER 

EVENT SPOTLIGHT 

Ras Al Khaimah Municipality 

to hold inaugural Energy 

Summit 

• The first RAK Energy Summit will take place at the Al Hamra International 

Exhibition and Conference Center in Ras Al Khaimah on 4 – 5 October 2022. 

• Event features international and regional experts and leaders from the 

government and the private sector to discuss emerging trends and initiatives in the 

field of sustainable energy. 

The Government of Ras Al 

Khaimah considers energy 

efficiency and adoption of 

renewable energy to be important 

drivers for the competitiveness 

and sustainability of its economy. 

In order to enhance dialogue 

within the industry and crosslearning 

opportunities across 

similar strategies in the region 

and in the world, Ras Al Khaimah 

Municipality announces the first 

RAK Energy Summit, held under 

the patronage of His Highness 

Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi, 

UAE Supreme Council Member 

and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah. 

The first RAK Energy Summit 

will take place at the Al Hamra 

International Exhibition and 

Conference Center in Ras Al 

Khaimah on 4 – 5 October 2022. It 

will bring together international 

and regional experts and leaders 

from the government and 

the private sector to discuss 

emerging trends and initiatives in 

the field of sustainable energy. 

The RAK Energy Efficiency and 

Renewables Strategy 2040 targets 

30% electricity savings, 20% 

water savings and 20% renewable 

energy in the generation mix 

by 2040. The Strategy, already 

Andrea Di Gregorio 

well underway through a 

multitude of programs and 

initiatives, connects with federal 

strategies and supports the 

UAE’s commitments to climate 

change mitigation as part of the 

UNFCCC. 

Reem, the Energy Efficiency 

and Renewables Office of Ras 

Al Khaimah Municipality has 

underlined its appreciation 

of HVAC technologies when it 

comes to meeting its targets. 

Andrea Di Gregorio, Executive 

Director, Reem, Ras Al Khaimah 

Municipality, said, “There are 

plenty of opportunities for HVAC 

manufacturers and distributors 

who can deliver high standards of 

product quality and service levels. 

We would like to have them more 

present here and help us develop 

the local market. Our office in 

the Municipality doesn’t typically 

buy their products directly but 

it is prepared to connect supply 

and demand. Therefore, industry 

players who want to have more 

visibility of areas of opportunity 

can reach out to us. We are here 

to support.” 

At the Summit, participants will 

discuss emerging trends in green 

buildings, building retrofits, 

efficient mobility, efficient 

water use and reuse, solar 

applications, energy from waste, 

and many other related topics. 

Besides presentations and panel 

discussions, the Summit will hold 

networking sessions and live 

demonstrations aimed at creating 

and contributing to the energy 

efficiency and renewable energy 

goals of the future. 

To find out more about the 

Summit, organised by Advanced 

Conferences and Meetings, 

you can visit http://www. 

rakenergysummit.com/ 


NEWSLETTER 

ABOUT US 

Eurovent Middle East is the region's only industry association 

representing leading manufacturers of Indoor Climate (HVAC), 

Process Cooling, Food Cold Chain, Industrial Ventilation, and 

Building Automation Technologies, as well as sector associations 

and industry initiatives active in these fields. By thinking ‘Beyond 

HVACR', contributing manufacturers fulfil the highest requirements 

in terms of product quality and sustainability. 

CONNECT WITH US 

CONTACT OUR TEAM 

Dubai World Trade Centre 

Office 07, Dubai Association Centre, 2nd 

Floor, The Offices 2 at One Central 

P.O. Box 9292 Dubai 

United Arab Emirates 

Phone (int.): +43 660 4012050 

Phone (UAE): +971 58 598 9931 

Email: office@eurovent.me 

Web: www.eurovent.me 

www.eurovent.me

EME Newsletter MEssage #1/2022

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