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UL certifies first fridge under new sustainability standard
July 5, 2012 - UL Environment, a business unit of UL (Underwriters Laboratories), has announced appliance manufacturer Whirlpool Corp. as the first company to achieve certification of its products to AHAM 7001/CSA SPE 7001-12/UL 7001, Sustainability Standard for Household Refrigeration Appliances.
July 5, 2012 By Alyssa Dalton
Developed collaboratively by UL Environment, the Association of Home Appliances Manufacturers (AHAM), and the Canadian Standards Association (CSA), the new sustainability standard requires that refrigerators meet lifecycle-based environmental performance criteria across five categories: energy consumption during use, materials, manufacturing and operations, product performance, and end-of-life. The first products to meet these criteria and achieve UL Environment certification are Whirlpool’s French Door-style, bottom-mount household refrigerators.
“The home appliances industry has a remarkable opportunity to help advance sustainability in new and exciting ways, and we applaud Whirlpool for taking this leadership role and pursuing certification to the AHAM-CSA-UL standard,” said Sara Greenstein, president of UL Environment. “We are confident that Whirlpool’s forthcoming certification will set the stage for other refrigerator manufacturers to follow suit, spurring positive transformation toward environmental stewardship across the home appliances industry.”
Based on a 100-point system, AHAM 7001/CSA SPE 7001-12/UL 7001 requires that a product earn a minimum of 60 points, with at least one point from each of the five categories, to comply. A bonus category for innovation awards up to 10 additional points, though projects may not exceed 100 points.
“Whirlpool is proud to be the first to offer refrigerators that meet the new AHAM-CSA-UL Sustainability Standard,” said JB Hoyt, director of sustainability and regulatory affairs for Whirlpool and vice chair of the AHAM taskforce. “We worked on the task force to advance an extremely broad view of sustainability that fits with what consumers are looking for when shopping for appliances.”
The following Whirlpool refrigerator models have achieved certification to the standard:
2-door models:
GB9FHDXV GB9FHDXW GB2FHDXW MBF2258WE MBF2258XE MBF1958XE MBL2258XE MBR2258XE
3-door models:
GI6FDRXX GI6SDRXX MFI2670XE
4-door models:
KFXL25RY KFXL25RYMS KFXS25RY KFXS25RYMS
Development of the standard began in 2010, following the principles of ISO 14020 and ISO 14024. In early 2012, the draft standard underwent a pilot phase to allow manufacturers to test its applicability and functionality prior to publication. In the coming months, UL Environment, AHAM, and the CSA Group will form consensus committees to move the standard through the Canadian and U.S. accredited standards processes, following the requirements of the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).
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