Strong industry and government engagement has seen Australia adopt international (ISO) standards for refrigeration safety. These documents supersede the AS/NZS 1677 series. These changes were first proposed by AIRAH in 2010.

“PRIME – the HVAC&R industry strategy to transition to low emissions – identified early on that AS/NZS 1677 had to be reviewed,” says AIRAH chief executive Tony Gleeson.

“In response to stakeholder needs, Standards Australia worked closely with industry and government and supported PRIME to achieve this major milestone.”

Significant changes have been made to refrigeration standards, with the following now published and available:

• AS/NZS ISO 817:2016, Refrigerants – Designation and safety classification
• AS/NZS 5149.1:2016, Refrigerating systems and heat pumps – Safety and environmental requirements – Part 1: Definitions, classification and selection criteria
• AS/NZS 5149.2:2016, Refrigerating systems and heat pumps – Safety and environmental requirements – Part 2: Design, construction, testing, marking and documentation
• AS/NZS 5149.3:2016, Refrigerating systems and heat pumps – Safety and environmental requirements – Part 3: Installation site
• AS/NZS 5149.4:2016, Refrigerating systems and heat pumps – Safety and environmental requirements – Part 4: Operation, maintenance, repair and recovery.

“The adoption of these standards is an important step as the HVAC&R industry transitions to a low-emission future,” says AIRAH executive manager – government relations and technical services Phil Wilkinson.

“Last weekend saw the announcement that global agreement had been reached on an HFC phase-down and this international alignment of standards supports our shift away from HFC refrigerants and towards low-global-warming refrigerant alternatives.”

As direct or modified adoptions of international standards, AS/NZS ISO 817 supersedes AS/NZS 1677.1:1998, Refrigerating systems – Refrigerant classification. The AS/NZS 5149 series supersedes AS/NZS 1677.2:1998 Refrigerating systems – Safety requirements for fixed applications.