March Online Poll: What best describes your thoughts on the Department of Energy’s rule establishing regional standards?

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) recently approved two American Society of Safety Engineers’ (ASSE) standards addressing fall protection. The standards are part of the Z359 Fall Protection Code.

Local municipalities may not require residents to install HVAC equipment that exceeds federally preempted standards. That is the message Judge Martha Vazquez, of the Federal District Court for the District of New Mexico, shared in her Jan. 25 ruling in AHRI v. City of Albuquerque.

The Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) launched its Building Performance Council (BPC).

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued a notice in the Federal Register announcing that it will establish a committee to provide advice and recommendations to the Secretary of Energy on matters concerning its Appliances and Commercial Equipment Standards Program’s test procedures and rulemaking process.

This month on www.achrnews.com we are running an online poll to gauge our web visitors’ opinions on the regional standards rule established by the Department of Energy (DOE). Although the poll has only been up for a week at the time of writing this column, I am already disturbed by the early results.

With the new regional efficiency standards for residential furnaces, air conditioners, and heat pumps set to become effective beginning in May 2013, many in the industry are wondering: How does the Department of Energy (DOE) intend to enforce these standards?

Despite lingering economic blight, a gridlocked political climate, and mild winter temperatures, Paul Stalknecht, president and CEO of the Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA), is beaming with optimism.

We, as contractors, have to walk a very fine line when it comes to deciding what issues/opportunities we go after. The reason for this is that we have a responsibility to our customers to make them aware of upcoming issues in order that they, the customers, may make informed decisions regarding the issues confronting them.