The motion has left many employers across the labor spectrum, including HVACR contractors, on high alert.

The industry should start getting comfortable with HCs, CO₂, HFOs, and A2L refrigerants, just like a previous generation got used to those newfangled chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs).

The IIAR Industrial Refrigeration Conference and Heavy Equipment Show featured messages from industry experts, a former astronaut, and an official with the Department of Homeland Security.

Service technicians who work on commercial refrigeration equipment should be aware that the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued what it calls the final rule on the “Energy Conservation Program: Energy Conservation Standards for Commercial Refrigeration Equipment.”

The Service Applications Manual (SAM) of the RSES has been one of the venerable documents of the HVACR industry. It consisted of two large loose-leaf binders in which were inserted printed training materials prepared by RSES in conjunction with industry experts.

The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) has joined the ruckus over questions about the importation of HFC-134a refrigerant from China. On April 14 the federal agency released what it calls a “preliminary Countervailing Duty Determination (CVD).”

What has changed over the past 25 years or so is the recovery equipment, and the latest generation of such equipment is a considerable improvement over that of the first generation.

It is appropriate to keep an eye on developments in industrial refrigeration in Europe. For one, new technologies, especially as related to refrigerants, often are first tried in Europe. Second, the industrial refrigeration sector using ammonia has strongly aligned itself with supporters of other non-f-gas refrigerants.