on365 Refcom FGAS Certified

To comply with European Fluorinated Gas regulations (F GAS), all personnel involved in refrigerant gas installation, maintenance, servicing, checking and recovery will need to obtain "next stage" UK F Gas qualifications from July 2011 at the latest. IT managers must ensure that their computing rooms and data centres comply with this EU directive on refrigerant gases used in cooling systems.

The regulations effectively impose nationwide training requirements on infrastructure, heating and ventilation installers. on365 sales & marketing director Chris Smith said: "We put all of our engineers through the F GAS training in 2009 but the 2011 certification deadline means that many equipment installers have a limited timeframe in which to gain accreditation for their staff. There is limited training space available and the longer people leave this, the more likely there will be a shortage of training spaces, as the deadline approaches"

He added: "If installers fail to train staff in time, many skilled personnel will legally no longer be eligible to continue working on their clients' IT and equipment installations."

Notes
The 2011 deadline is the latest stage in the EU's drive to minimise environmental damage from refrigerant gases: under the current F Gas regulations, any facility operating cooling equipment with a charge of between three and 30Kg must test for leaks once a year and twice a year for systems over 30Kg. Installers must also log all equipment usage and leak tests and repairs and be qualified to handle refrigerant.