'IF MORE companies focused on a Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) as opposed to the traditional Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER), significant savings could be made' says the engineering manager from Carrier Air Conditioning.
Andrew Keogh from Carrier sums the situation up with the words: 'the addition of one simple letter could help companies save thousands of pounds when it comes to installing an air conditioning system'.

Air conditioning equipment with an EER of 4 can be up to 25% more expensive than one with an EER of 3, and with building regulations requiring a minimum 20% improvement in the energy performance in ac services, many firms get out the cheque book.

Keogh says the problem with EER is that all tests are done at an ambient temperature of 35*C. Unfortunately, those in the UK only enjoy those temperatures a couple of times a year. 'It seems unusual that we base our scoring system on a standard ambient temperature which is rarely achieved in the real world', he added.

Carrier believes the SEER rating is more accurate and reflects overall system efficiency on a seasonal basis, while the EER reflects the system’s energy efficiency at peak day operations. SEER measures the efficiency of the chiller at each of the four seasons to give a more representative measure of real life performance. This is a much better measure as the UK has six months of the year (spring and autumn) when temperatures are flat and where cooling loads are low.