OFTEC is calling on installers to ensure that they are fully prepared for the new EU energy efficiency regulations which come into force in September or risk legal action.

The new regulations relate to the production, testing and labelling of heating appliances.

The Energy Related Products Directive (ErPD) aims to improve the energy efficiency of domestic and commercial heating systems, reduce emissions and help end users make smarter buying choices. The first tier of changes will be implemented from 26 September this year.

The regulations cover two main areas - performance standards, placing responsibility on manufacturers, and labelling, which involves the entire supply chain, including installers.

To comply with the ErPD, manufacturers will need to meet minimum energy performance standards, nitrogen oxide and noise emissions on all products covered by the regulations in order to bear a CE mark and be available for sale.

Relevant products will also need to carry a specific label to identify the energy efficiency band (from A++ to G) for heating and, where relevant, a similar banding scheme for hot water production - very similar to labels currently seen on white goods.

Where various products are assembled together to form a heating installation, it will be the responsibility of the installer at the point of sale to calculate the overall energy efficiency of the system and produce a label for the customer.

Enforcement of the directive will be carried out by The National Measurement Office through product testing and market surveillance. Any installer or manufacturer seen to be non-compliant could face legal action and, at worst, criminal prosecution.

OFTEC technical director, Paul Rose, said: “We fully endorse the new legislation which offers a good step forward in improving the energy efficiency of heating related products. However, the ErPD is a complex set of regulations which places the responsibility on technicians to correctly calculate the energy efficiency of heating systems they install using supporting information from manufactures known as ‘product fiche’.

Mr Rose continued: “As part of our comprehensive support package for technicians, we are currently looking at ways to help registered technicians complete this process.

“We would like to see an online tool made available whereby installers can input product information from website fiche numbers and produce a label. This has been alluded to but we haven’t seen any evidence of it materialising as yet, or of the product information technicians will require to fulfil their responsibilities under ErPD.”