International Code Council takes action on ASHRAE proposals
The International Codes may soon incorporate requirements from a new load calculation standard from ASHRAE and the Air Conditioning Contractors of America under several recent proposals.
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ASHRAE made 15 proposals to the ICC and after a public comment period of the committee recommendations of proposals, final hearings for the code change proposals will take place in September 2008.
If accepted, the proposals would be included in the 2009 code. Under a proposal to both the International Mechanical Code and International Energy Conservation Code, references to load calculation guidance in the ASHRAE Handbook, Fundamentals, would be replaced with requirements from a new ASHRAE standard. The new standard would be developed with the ACCA, ANSI/ASHRAE/ACCA Standard 183-2007, Peak Cooling and Heating Load Calculations in Buildings except Low-Rise Residential Buildings. The standard establishes minimum requirements for building loads that are inclusive of as many procedural methods as possible while identifying core elements that impacts heat loss and gains.
Other approved proposed changes include lighting stringency based on requirements in ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2007, Energy Standard for Buildings except Low-Rise Residential Buildings. The changes include adding exceptions for typical lighting requirements, which eliminate current conflicts with accepted lighting design practices, allowing for calculation of track lighting wattage, and modifying lighting power allowances.
Also related to 90.1 was a proposal to modify chiller requirements. The proposal calls for, effective Jan. 1, 2010, an additional path of compliance for water-cooled chillers and consolidation of, and new requirements, for some of the existing categories. Also approved was a proposal from ASHRAE to add new refrigerant classifications to the IMC from ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 34-2007, Designation, and Safety Classification of Refrigerants.
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