Climate Center is now stocking R448A, the industry’s leading alternative to R404A, in every branch.

The company has invested heavily to respond quickly and effectively ahead of the upcoming changes to the F-Gas Regulations, by ensuring the lower GWP R448A refrigerant is readily available for customers in all of its 55 branches nationwide.

The race is on ahead of the R404A ban in 2020 to find alternatives for refrigeration, Climate Centr’s significant stock investment aims to make it easy for customers to access this alternative before demand for R404A outstrips supply.

The merchant was also the first to stock R32 for air conditioning contractors Nationwide as air conditioning started to move towards this new refrigerant last year.

The changes to the F-Gas Regulations came into force on 1 January 2015 with the aim of encouraging users to use refrigerants with a lower global warming potential (GWP).

From 2020 a ban on using new refrigerants with a GWP higher than 2500 for servicing most commercial refrigeration systems and in new stationery refrigeration systems comes into effect.

Climate Center sales director Robert Franklin said: “Climate Center is committed to stocking and distributing lower GWP refrigerants to help the UK reduce its carbon footprint, we have been working extensively to assist customers through these changes. If companies don’t act now, they run the risk of not being able to access the higher GWP refrigerants as quota reductions limit availability of High GWP blends.”