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Programme focus: Cooling Towers (CT)
The Eurovent Certified Performance programme for Cooling Towers (CT) has been developed in cooperation with the Cooling Technology Institute Est.1950 (CTI, Houston, Texas, USA). The programme combines CTI test protocols and Eurovent Certification’s audit process to attest the conformity of cooling towers to International Standards, and provide independently verified product performance data, via an impartial and vigorous certification process.
Why is cooling tower certification important?
Cooling Towers are an essential component of many HVAC systems and are used in a wide range of applications, for both process cooling and indoor climates. Usually a component in a chiller system used to reject heat, cooling towers can be found in data centres, hospitals, manufacturing production lines, office blocks, sports centres and even larger residential properties.
There is no one-size-fits-all solution, therefore selecting the correct cooling tower is essential for ensuring efficient heat rejection, energy savings, system reliability, and long-term performance. The wrong choice can lead to higher operational costs (water and energy), inefficient cooling, non-compliance with regulations, higher carbon footprint and have a negative impact on the whole system, resulting in issues such as premature equipment failure. It is therefore imperative that HVAC professionals have access to accurate performance data, to ensure the product meets manufacturer claims.
The Eurovent Certified Performance programme for Cooling Towers offers decision makers assurance that product data has been independently verified by a robust certification process. The continued compliance of certified data is also ensured by on-going performance testing by CTI and auditing by Eurovent Certification.
This is important as it provides a guarantee of performance and energy efficiency. This helps specifiers meet minimum energy efficiency standards, such as the Eurovent Industry Recommendation/ Code of Good Practice Eurovent 9/12-2016 and ASHRAE 90.1., both of which require cooling tower energy efficiency validation by the CTI certification process and are used by governments and by green building certification programmes such as LEED™.
Third-party evaluation via the Eurovent Certified Performance programme for Cooling Towers, combines the expertise of two independent and impartial certification bodies, removing risk and building trust between all industry stakeholders.
What products are included?
The cooling tower programme applies to product ranges (or product lines) of open-circuit and closed-circuit cooling towers that:
- Are manufactured by a company whose headquarters or main facility are located in Europe, Middle-East, Africa or India.
- Have already achieved and hold current certification by the CTI according to CTI STD-201.
What is certified?
There are three key requirement steps to achieve and maintain Eurovent certification in compliance to the ECP-04-CT. These being;
- Qualification Procedure
- Repetition Procedure
- Factory Audit.
For the admission and yearly surveillance procedures, an Eurovent Certification auditor visits the production place and reviews the conformity of data records. One unit per product family / range is selected and tested by an independent test agency.
Main certified characteristics and acceptance criteria (per CTI STD-201):
- Entering wet bulb temperature: 10°C to 32.2°C (50°F to 90°F)
- Cooling range > 2.2°C (4°F)
- Cooling approach > 2.8°C (5°F)
- Process fluid temperature < 51.7°C (125°F)
- Barometric pressure: 91.4 to 105.0 kPa (27” to 31” Hg).
What are the testing standards?
Cooling towers certified under this Eurovent Certified Performance programme are tested to:
- CTI STD-201 RS
- ECP-04-CT - Appendix A.
You can find out more about the certification rules and requirements in the Technical Certification Rules and Certification Manual on our Eurovent Certified Performance programme for Cooling Towers page.
Did you know that even a slight underperformance can have a big impact over the lifecycle of the product? In this cooling tower case study, certified manufacturer, BAC, run through the figures and explain the real impact of an underperforming cooling tower, not just on energy consumption, but its wider effect on the full HVAC system.
Why choose Eurovent Certified Performance?
Eurovent Certified Performance for Cooling Towers offers a comprehensive, independent and impartial certification programme, which goes far beyond laboratory testing alone.
This programme includes:
- Independent laboratory tests according to CTI STD-201
- Factory audits
- Software audits
- Full analysis and validation of all supplied data (including marketing materials)
- Surveillance process to ensure continued conformity.
Evaluation protocols are uniform to ensure the certification process is fair and equal for all manufacturers. Eurovent Certification:
- Evaluates all cooling towers according to the same criteria
- Expresses results in the same unit of measurement, regardless of the country where the products are manufactured or marketed
- Ensures all products within the programme go through exactly the same certification, auditing and surveillance process
- Ensures products with components manufactured across multiple sites (sometimes in different countries), all reach Eurovent certification standards
- Impartiality standards are kept high as manufacturers and laboratories have no direct contact, keeping the process clear of any bias.
As all cooling towers go through the same process, decision makers can directly compare this data when making product decisions, via the free to access certified product directory.