In implementing the projects Cool Contributions fighting Climate Change (C4) and C4II, the Philippines has unique expertise when it comes to safety standards in refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pumps (RACHP). A new report is now available that presents the Philippines' experience in adopting international RACHP safety standards as national standards.
Given local manufacturing capabilities on RAC appliances and equipment, the Philippines always used the vertical product standards IEC 60335-2-24 and IEC 60335-2-40 as basis of technical regulations over cooling appliances. With the implementation of the C4 & C4II project, adoption of the horizontal standards ISO 5149 series of standards and ISO 817 for refrigerants was initiated and used as reference in assessing conformities to facilities, equipment, products and persons.
In preparation to the gradual transition to low GWP refrigerants, particulary natural refrigerants, as part of the compliance mechanism of the Kigali Amendments to the Montreal Protocol, the Philippines unlike its regional neighbors in Southeast Asia relied on these standard specifications. The goal behind this was to gradually and safely introduce alternative substances to the Philippine market, based on standards conformity instead of arbitrary restrictions related to refrigerant flammability, toxicity or pressure.