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Are you ready, Mr Sigloch?

Uwe Sigloch, Head of Market Manage­ment Ventilation/Air Condi­tioning at ebm-papst, about the outcome of the EU eco-design direc­tive


The EU eco-design direc­tive aims to reduce the power consump­tion of energy-using prod­ucts. The imple­men­ta­tion measures for fans are expected to become law in early 2010. For three years, Uwe Sigloch, Head of Market Manage­ment Ventilation/Air Condi­tioning at ebm-papst, has been involved in drawing up the spec­i­fi­ca­tions.

Many fan manu­fac­turers consider the proposed direc­tive to be exces­sively strict. How do you rate the spec­i­fi­ca­tions?
A Europe-wide study was conducted to iden­tify the minimum require­ments of fans. The manu­fac­turers were involved in the process from the very begin­ning, through the VDMA. A mood change now would not be under­stand­able. Person­ally, I am convinced that a direc­tive with strict minimum require­ments will only benefit the Euro­pean fan industry. More highly qual­i­fied jobs will be created. Not to forget the orig­inal objec­tive: Co2 reduc­tion of 20 percent by 2020!

What will change on the Euro­pean market as a result of the direc­tive?
Once this direc­tive has been passed, all fans with an output of 125 watts or more will have to satisfy the spec­i­fied minimum level of effi­ciency. This will result in lower consump­tion of elec­trical energy with unchanged comfort. Because only compliant prod­ucts bearing the “CE” symbol will be marketed in Europe, some fans will disap­pear from the Euro­pean market, or they will be replaced by supe­rior models. The direc­tive will also affect fans that are installed in air condi­tioning units, for example. These fans are also required to satisfy the minimum stan­dards. This will also be of rele­vance for equip­ment imported from other coun­tries.

What does the direc­tive mean to ebm-papst?
Once the direc­tive is imple­mented, the focus of our product port­folio will shift even further from fans with AC tech­nology to fans with energy-effi­cient EC tech­nology. But that is not a problem. Even now, each of our fans with AC tech­nology has an equiv­a­lent with EC tech­nology. ebm-papst is well prepared for the new require­ments.

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High minimum efficiency ratings for fans