{"id":22776,"date":"2026-03-19T08:38:27","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T07:38:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/?p=22776"},"modified":"2026-03-19T08:38:27","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T07:38:27","slug":"specialist-article-erp-2026-stricter-efficiency-requirements-and-new-system-limits-for-fans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/products\/fans\/specialist-article-erp-2026-stricter-efficiency-requirements-and-new-system-limits-for-fans_22776\/","title":{"rendered":"ErP 2026: Stricter effi\u00adciency require\u00adments"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

For years, the Ecode\u00adsign Direc\u00adtive has formed the over\u00adar\u00adching legal frame\u00adwork for energy-related prod\u00aducts in the EU. On this basis, the Euro\u00adpean Union issues product-specific imple\u00admenting regu\u00adla\u00adtions: For fans, this is the Fan Regu\u00adla\u00adtion. The revised version (EU) 2024\/1834, published in 2024, is known in the industry as ErP 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This new regu\u00adla\u00adtion replaces the previ\u00adously valid Fan Regu\u00adla\u00adtion (EU) No. 327\/2011 (ErP 2015) and tightens the minimum require\u00adments for fan effi\u00adciency that have been in force for the last fifteen years (Figures 1 and 2). The regu\u00adla\u00adtion applies to fans with an elec\u00adtric input power between 125 W and 500 kW and will be imple\u00admented in stages from 2026 and 2027. In addi\u00adtion to stricter effi\u00adciency limits, the regu\u00adla\u00adtion focuses more on the fan as a func\u00adtional overall system and supple\u00adments the require\u00adments with exten\u00adsive infor\u00adma\u00adtion, repair and docu\u00admen\u00adta\u00adtion oblig\u00ada\u00adtions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 1: The minimum effi\u00adciency require\u00adments for axial fans have been grad\u00adu\u00adally increased since 2013. From 2026, a minimum fan effi\u00adciency grade of 50 percent will apply\u2014the deci\u00adsive factor is the total static effi\u00adciency at the best effi\u00adciency point. (Pe = elec\u00adtrical input power; \u03b7min = minimum fan effi\u00adciency; \u03b7se = total static effi\u00adciency; BEP = best point) (Image | ebm-papst)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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<\/strong>Figure 2: Require\u00adments are also contin\u00aduing to rise for centrifugal fans with back\u00adward-curved blades. From 2026, the minimum fan effi\u00adciency grade required will be 64 percent, setting a new bench\u00admark for effi\u00adciency. (Pe = elec\u00adtrical input power; \u03b7min = minimum fan effi\u00adciency; \u03b7se = total static effi\u00adciency; BEP = best effi\u00adciency point) (Image | ebm-papst)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The complete fan as the central refer\u00adence value<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For the first time, the revised regu\u00adla\u00adtion clearly spec\u00adi\u00adfies when a fan is consid\u00adered complete in the regu\u00adla\u00adtory sense. The deci\u00adsive factor for deter\u00admining complete\u00adness is the combi\u00adna\u00adtion of stator, impeller and motor\u2014only their inter\u00adac\u00adtion defines a fan within the meaning of the regu\u00adla\u00adtion (Figure 3).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prod\u00aducts in which one or more of these compo\u00adnents are missing or are placed on the market sepa\u00adrately are referred to by the fan industry as \u201cincom\u00adplete fans.\u201d This distinc\u00adtion has far-reaching conse\u00adquences: Any company that manu\u00adfac\u00adtures an incom\u00adplete fan, inte\u00adgrates it into a device and places it on the market under their own name is consid\u00adered a manu\u00adfac\u00adturer for regu\u00adla\u00adtory purposes\u2014with all the resulting oblig\u00ada\u00adtions regarding confor\u00admity assess\u00adment, CE marking and fulfill\u00adment of other ErP require\u00adments (Figures 4 and 5).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ques\u00adtions about ErP 2026?<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Dr.-Ing. Julien Gril\u00adliat, Head of Regu\u00adla\u00adtory Affairs ebm-papst<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Write an e-mail <\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Stricter effi\u00adciency require\u00adments and new assess\u00adment approaches<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ErP 2026 signif\u00adi\u00adcantly raises the minimum effi\u00adciency levels that have been in force since 2015. Effi\u00adciency will continue to be assessed using the Fan Effi\u00adciency Grade (FEG) but is now based on updated refer\u00adence points and measure\u00adment condi\u00adtions. The aim is to provide a more real\u00adistic repre\u00adsen\u00adta\u00adtion of the oper\u00adating behavior of modern fans, espe\u00adcially under partial load condi\u00adtions. While the minimum require\u00adments continue to be assessed at the best effi\u00adciency point, detailed infor\u00adma\u00adtion on partial load behavior must also be docu\u00admented and provided.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new regu\u00adla\u00adtion thus takes into account the fact that fans are not contin\u00adu\u00adously oper\u00adated at their design point in many appli\u00adca\u00adtions. Today, effi\u00adciency gains are achieved less through pure peak effi\u00adcien\u00adcies and more through a broad effi\u00adciency optimum over a wide char\u00adac\u00adter\u00adistic curve range. Aero\u00addy\u00adnam\u00adi\u00adcally opti\u00admized impellers, low-loss motor tech\u00adnolo\u00adgies and precise elec\u00adtronic control are there\u00adfore becoming more rele\u00advant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Figure 3: The central func\u00adtional areas of axial (left) and centrifugal fans (right): the impeller as the aero\u00addy\u00adnamic center\u00adpiece (green), the motor with inte\u00adgrated elec\u00adtronics as the drive unit (orange), and the stator, i.e., the air-conducting and supporting struc\u00adtures (blue). (Image | ebm-papst)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Impact on designs and system inte\u00adgra\u00adtion<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The stricter effi\u00adciency limits and modi\u00adfied eval\u00adu\u00ada\u00adtion methods have a direct impact on the design of fans and entire systems. Certain designs are becoming prob\u00adlem\u00adatic, while other concepts are gaining in viability. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In partic\u00adular, the coor\u00addi\u00adna\u00adtion between impeller geom\u00adetry, motor and power elec\u00adtronics is becoming a deci\u00adsive factor. Flow-related losses during instal\u00adla\u00adtion, unfa\u00advor\u00adable airflows or non-opti\u00admized hous\u00adings can prevent effi\u00adciency reserves from being fully exploited in real-world oper\u00ada\u00adtion. Consid\u00adering the fan as a whole there\u00adfore forces manu\u00adfac\u00adturers and plant engi\u00adneers to adopt a holistic approach to system design.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Docu\u00admen\u00adta\u00adtion, infor\u00adma\u00adtion and repair oblig\u00ada\u00adtions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In addi\u00adtion to effi\u00adciency require\u00adments, ErP 2026 expands oblig\u00ada\u00adtions relating to trans\u00adparency, repairability and life cycle assess\u00adment. Manu\u00adfac\u00adturers will have to provide signif\u00adi\u00adcantly more product infor\u00adma\u00adtion in the future. This includes effi\u00adciency values for defined oper\u00adating points, infor\u00adma\u00adtion on partial load behavior and tech\u00adnical data on disas\u00adsembly and repair.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Figure 4: Example of an incom\u00adplete centrifugal fan. (Image | ebm-papst)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The regu\u00adla\u00adtion thus specif\u00adi\u00adcally strengthens the possi\u00adbil\u00adi\u00adties for repairing fans. It stip\u00adu\u00adlates that defined spare parts must be avail\u00adable and imple\u00admented in such a way that they can be replaced profes\u00adsion\u00adally and without causing perma\u00adnent damage to the product. In addi\u00adtion, profes\u00adsional repair service providers receive access to these spare parts and the neces\u00adsary repair infor\u00adma\u00adtion. ebm-papst is imple\u00admenting these require\u00adments, making all needed spare parts and the corre\u00adsponding infor\u00adma\u00adtion avail\u00adable to qual\u00adi\u00adfied repair service providers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spare parts must also be avail\u00adable for up to ten years after product discon\u00adtin\u00adu\u00ada\u00adtion, while product infor\u00adma\u00adtion must be stored digi\u00adtally for up to 20 years. These require\u00adments signif\u00adi\u00adcantly increase the orga\u00adni\u00adza\u00adtional effort and require robust docu\u00admen\u00adta\u00adtion and data manage\u00adment processes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conse\u00adquences for OEMs, importers, plant manu\u00adfac\u00adturers and oper\u00ada\u00adtors<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The new fan regu\u00adla\u00adtion affects far more than just tradi\u00adtional fan manu\u00adfac\u00adturers. OEMs, importers, plant manu\u00adfac\u00adturers and oper\u00ada\u00adtors must also reassess their role in the regu\u00adla\u00adtory context. Dr. Julien Gril\u00adliat, Director of Regu\u00adla\u00adtory Affairs at ebm-papst, observes a great deal of uncer\u00adtainty in the market: \u201cMany compa\u00adnies under\u00ades\u00adti\u00admate how quickly they can become fan manu\u00adfac\u00adturers in regu\u00adla\u00adtory terms through inte\u00adgra\u00adtion or comple\u00adtion.\u201d The conse\u00adquences range from the oblig\u00ada\u00adtion to measure effi\u00adciency and prepare tech\u00adnical docu\u00admen\u00adta\u00adtion to the CE decla\u00adra\u00adtion of confor\u00admity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Many compa\u00adnies under\u00ades\u00adti\u00admate how quickly they can become fan manu\u00adfac\u00adturers in regu\u00adla\u00adtory terms through inte\u00adgra\u00adtion or comple\u00adtion.<\/p>\nDr.-Ing. Julien Gril\u00adliat, Head of Regu\u00adla\u00adtory Affairs ebm-papst<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

For oper\u00ada\u00adtors, the choice of fan used is becoming increas\u00adingly impor\u00adtant from a strategic perspec\u00adtive. Effi\u00adciency, spare parts avail\u00adability and regu\u00adla\u00adtory compli\u00adance have a direct impact on oper\u00adating costs, system avail\u00adability and invest\u00adment secu\u00adrity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tran\u00adsi\u00adtional periods and schedule<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The regu\u00adla\u00adtion will come into force on July 24, 2026. It distin\u00adguishes between so-called \u201cstand-alone\u201d fans and fans that are inte\u00adgrated into other prod\u00aducts or appli\u00adca\u00adtions, such as venti\u00adlation units, heat pumps or refrig\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion systems. For these inte\u00adgrated fans, the ErP 2026 require\u00adments will only apply from July 24, 2027, provided that the first unit of the respec\u00adtive product was placed on the market before July 24, 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Figure 5: Example of an incom\u00adplete axial fan: The condenser manu\u00adfac\u00adturer installs incom\u00adplete axial fans (black) in the appli\u00adca\u00adtion. The fan\u2019s wall ring brackets are inte\u00adgrated into the appli\u00adca\u00adtion or installed by the condenser manu\u00adfac\u00adturer (blue). Here, the condenser manu\u00adfac\u00adturer completes the fan and thus becomes the fan manu\u00adfac\u00adturer. (Image | ebm-papst)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In prac\u00adtice, replace\u00adment parts for fans will not be required until July 24, 2028. Fans that do not comply with ErP 2026 may then only be placed on the market as replace\u00adments under clearly defined conditions\u2014and only if no suit\u00adable compliant replace\u00adment is avail\u00adable and the use is clearly marked as a replace\u00adment part. In this case, the regu\u00adla\u00adtion refers to replace\u00adment fans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How ebm-papst supports customers in the tran\u00adsi\u00adtion to ErP 2026<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Ready for 2026?<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

More back\u00adground infor\u00adma\u00adtion, sched\u00adules and services related to the new ErP Regu\u00adla\u00adtion can be found on the offi\u00adcial ebm-papst infor\u00adma\u00adtion page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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To the infor\u00adma\u00adtion page <\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The require\u00adments of ErP 2026 neces\u00adsi\u00adtate close inte\u00adgra\u00adtion of regu\u00adla\u00adtory exper\u00adtise and tech\u00adnical devel\u00adop\u00adment. ebm-papst there\u00adfore pursues a holistic approach: The company analyzes the regu\u00adla\u00adtion at an early stage, inter\u00adprets it in consul\u00adta\u00adtion with Euro\u00adpean expert commit\u00adtees and system\u00adat\u00adi\u00adcally trans\u00adlates the require\u00adments into product devel\u00adop\u00adment, port\u00adfolio strategy and customer consulting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A key compo\u00adnent is the consis\u00adtent design of the fan as a complete system. ebm-papst supplies fully assem\u00adbled fans including motor, impeller, stator and elec\u00adtronics from a single source. Effi\u00adciency assess\u00adment, measure\u00adment and docu\u00admen\u00adta\u00adtion are carried out at the system level. Customers receive ready-to-install solu\u00adtions with clear regu\u00adla\u00adtory clas\u00adsi\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adtion, without addi\u00adtional work to create their own effi\u00adciency certifi\u00adcates or confor\u00admity assess\u00adments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, ebm-papst is reviewing its entire port\u00adfolio for ErP 2026 compli\u00adance. The company is replacing prod\u00aducts that do not meet future require\u00adments with more effi\u00adcient new devel\u00adop\u00adments. However, today many current EC fans from ebm-papst already meet the stricter effi\u00adciency limits. Customers can use ebm-papst\u2019s digital FanScout design tool to select the fans that meet their require\u00adments and thus iden\u00adtify ErP 2026-compliant solu\u00adtions at an early stage (Figure 6).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Figure: Customers can use ebm-papst\u2019s FanScout digital design tool to select fans that meet their require\u00adments and thus iden\u00adtify ErP 2026-compliant solu\u00adtions at an early stage. (Image | ebm-papst)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In addi\u00adtion, ebm-papst supports its customers with specific services\u2014from measure\u00adments in its own labo\u00adra\u00adtory to assis\u00adtance with tech\u00adnical docu\u00admen\u00adta\u00adtion and training. \u201cOur goal is to reduce regu\u00adla\u00adtory complexity for our customers as much as possible,\u201d empha\u00adsizes Dr. Julien Gril\u00adliat: \u201cThis allows them to concen\u00adtrate on their appli\u00adca\u00adtions while still main\u00adtaining complete plan\u00adning secu\u00adrity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Finding the right fan for every appli\u00adca\u00adtion<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Simply with the new, web-based FanScout selec\u00adtion tool from ebm-papst.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Read more <\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

ErP 2026 as a tech\u00adnical and strategic turning point<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

With the revised Ecode\u00adsign Direc\u00adtive and Fan Regu\u00adla\u00adtion, the EU is shifting the stan\u00addards for effi\u00adciency, trans\u00adparency and system respon\u00adsi\u00adbility in venti\u00adlation tech\u00adnology. ErP 2026 not only changes limit values but also defines the complete fan as a central refer\u00adence value and makes effi\u00adciency a holistic system prop\u00aderty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Compa\u00adnies that address the tech\u00adnical, orga\u00adni\u00adza\u00adtional and regu\u00adla\u00adtory require\u00adments at an early stage will secure deci\u00adsive advan\u00adtages. With system\u00adi\u00adcally designed fans, clear manu\u00adfac\u00adturer respon\u00adsi\u00adbility and compre\u00adhen\u00adsive support, ebm-papst accom\u00adpa\u00adnies its customers on the path to compli\u00adance with ErP 2026 and the future-proof design of venti\u00adlation systems.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For years, the Ecode\u00adsign Direc\u00adtive has formed the over\u00adar\u00adching legal frame\u00adwork for energy-related prod\u00aducts in the EU. On this basis, the Euro\u00adpean Union issues product-specific imple\u00admenting regu\u00adla\u00adtions: For fans, this is the Fan Regu\u00adla\u00adtion. The revised version (EU) 2024\/1834, published in 2024, is known in the industry as ErP 2026. This new regu\u00adla\u00adtion replaces the [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[91,16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22776","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-erp","category-fans"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22776","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22776"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22776\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22795,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22776\/revisions\/22795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22776"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22776"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22776"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}