Certification: Connecting the global HVAC network

The challenges of energy demand, carbon reduction, and climate resilience transcend borders, and so must the solutions. That’s why global cooperation to enhance heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) product innovation, standards and sustainability is vital.

By aligning standards and certification frameworks worldwide, we ensure systems perform safely, efficiently, and reliably in every market. Shared benchmarks also create a level playing field, helping manufacturers prove product performance while enabling engineers, specifiers, and building owners to make trusted, data-driven decisions.

In our latest series of articles focusing on heat pumps, we explore certification in a global context. Starting with an explanation of the Eurovent family, we move onto certification’s European roots and expansion worldwide. Next, we focus on heat pump certifications, before examining how certified data adapts regionally, to ensure certification has value that transcends borders.

The Eurovent family

Eurovent Certification is part of the broader Eurovent family, a network which brings together four key organisations that serve complementary roles within the HVAC and refrigeration sector.

Eurovent is the European industry association for heating, ventilation, cooling, and refrigeration. It is Europe’s industry voice, representing manufacturers of indoor climate, ventilation, process cooling, and food cold chain technologies. The Association works on policy, standards, and advocacy, ensuring the industry’s voice is heard across Europe and internationally.

Eurovent Certification is the independent certification body, verifying the performance of HVACR products according to European and International Standards through rigorous third-party testing, data analysis, audits, and ongoing surveillance.

Eurovent Market Intelligence (EMI) is the leading statistics office of the HVACR market in Europe, Middle East and Africa. Its role is to collect and analyse data to provide total market estimations, market trends, and analyses, helping stakeholders make data-driven business decisions.

ProdBIM is the Eurovent Certification unit dedicated to advancing manufacturers' digital transformation across the HVACR sector. ProdBIM offers solutions in data management, BIM management, and harmonisation across multiple channels.

Together, these organisations form a unique ecosystem, a bridge between policy, data and certification. This ensures that certified performance isn’t just technically accurate, but also aligned with regulatory frameworks, market expectations, sustainability goals and meets the needs of a digital construction industry.

Note: Each entity operates independently - manufacturers do not have to be a member of Eurovent Association to access services from Eurovent Certification, Eurovent Market Intelligence or ProdBIM.

European roots, global reach

Eurovent Certification was established in 1993 by Eurovent association and the European Committee of Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturers (CECOMAF), to fill the need for an independent accreditation system to verify compliance against standards and codes. Certification activities started in 1994 across two Eurovent Certified Performance programmes – one for fan coil units and one for air conditioning products (including air-to-air heat pumps) up to 100kW.

Today, Eurovent Certification is one of the largest independent HVAC and refrigeration certification bodies worldwide. Manufacturers across the world participate in over 40 Eurovent Certification programmes, under a range of certification marks including the flagship Eurovent Certified Performance mark, the NF mark, QB mark, KEYMARK, and MCS for Heat Pumps.

Using European and International Standards, Eurovent Certification’s programmes cover a wide range of product categories across ventilation and indoor air quality, indoor climate, refrigeration and process cooling. With a headquarters in Paris, and employees from Italy to India, Eurovent Certification operates across borders, backed up by its international network of independent testing laboratories and agencies.

While 74% of HVACR products sold on the European market are Eurovent certified, certification has a global reach. Eurovent Certification actively collaborates with international partners to harmonise performance testing and develop certification programmes.

For example:

• Eurovent Certification been working closely with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Governments to harmonise certified data to Gulf conditions. This has resulted in the newly launched Desert Certification option, which tests products at extreme high ambient conditions to ensure reliable performance under desert climates.
• Eurovent Certification had recently signed an MOU with the Korea HVAC Testing Institute (K-HVAC), to promote key Standards, technical documents, and certification programmes, while also working towards the harmonisation of European, Korean, and International Standards.
• Eurovent Certification has developed programmes with international certification bodies including the USA based Air Movement and Control Association (AMCA) International Inc and the Cooling Technology Institute.

This global approach drives the adoption of low-GWP refrigerants, promotes energy-efficient design, and accelerates access to sustainable technologies.

Harmonising heat pump certification

When it comes to heat pumps, Eurovent Certification offers a range of programmes which have both worldwide and regional relevance.

Eurovent Certification works at national level with government agencies and industry bodies to ensure heat pump certifications meet regional requirements, while remaining relevant in both a European and worldwide context.

For example:

• In the UK, certified manufacturers of rooftop units, air to water heat pumps, air to air heat pumps (split, multi-split), water or brine to water heat pumps, water to air heat pumps (multi-split) and air to domestic hot water heat pumps, can use their test reports to apply for the Energy Technology List (ETL) for free.
• In Poland, geothermal (including water-water), air-to-water for Domestic hot water (DHW) and air-to-air heat pumps can now be included into the ZUM List based on Eurovent Certificates without any additional testing.

Plus, to help enhance trade across borders, Eurovent Certification maintains a bridge between the Eurovent Certified Performance for Heat Pumps, Heat Pumps NF 414, heat pumps KEYMARK and MCS for Heat Pump schemes. This means that products certified under one programme, qualify for the others. With different countries favouring different certification programmes, this gives manufacturers a ‘one-stop-shop’ for certifications, while providing consultants with verified data that complies with regional regulations. This is especially crucial for cross-border projects as standardised testing across different countries removes technical barriers, simplifying equipment selection.

Data that adapts to real world requirements

As building codes and climate challenges vary regionally, Eurovent Certification adapts its programmes to reflect local needs. Each programme has its own set of Technical Certification Rules, which specifies the characteristics tested, the conditions under which they are tested, and the testing standards applicable. Products may be evaluated at different speeds to simulate real life use, or different pressures or temperatures to simulate different climates.

For example, seasonal performance assessments are based on three standardised climate profiles: Average, Warmer, and Colder. Each profile is used to test and rate heat pumps for their heating and cooling performance under representative, all-year-round temperature cycles rather than under a single, fixed test point.

• Colder - Helsinki climate zone: More extensive tests at low temperatures to simulate demanding northern European conditions.
• Warmer - Athens climate zone: Ratings include performance at higher ambient temperatures, important for southern Europe and warm regions.
• Average - Strasbourg climate zone: Reflects moderate, central European conditions and is the basis for most standard SCOP (Seasonal Coefficient of Performance) values.

Adaptions such as these ensure that certified heat pump performance data is not just a lab result, but a reliable indicator of real-world operation in contrasting climates. This ensures decision makers have accurate data, based not on test conditions that make the product look good, but under test conditions that help anticipate how the product will operate in real life.

Supporting better decisions

By harmonising certification schemes, adapting testing to real-world conditions, and fostering partnerships with organisations and authorities worldwide, Eurovent Certification ensures that products meet rigorous standards - whether installed in Paris, Delhi, Oslo or Riyadh. For specifiers and end users, this means greater confidence in system design, reliability, and energy performance, and assurance that their investment aligns with sustainability and regulatory goals.

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