KRAIA Chairman Noh Hwan-yong (left) and AHRI Stephen Yurek are in agreement. (Courtesy of KRAIA)
KRAIA Strengthens Standard Cooperation on Refrigeration and Air Conditioning between Korea and the U.S.
The Korea Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Industry Association (KRAIA: 한국냉동공조산업협회) said it signed an agreement with Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) on February 3 in Orlando, U.S. to promote Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration (HVACR).
The agreement calls for the Association of Refrigerated and Air-Conditioning Industries to exclusively distribute and utilize AHRI standards in Korea.
As a follow-up measure, the two agencies plan to form working-level officials' meetings and hold discussions on the development of standards and certificates of the two countries on a regular basis.
The association is a representative organization of 150 member companies in refrigeration and air-conditioning sector in Korea and has been designated by the National Agency for Technology and Standards as the Cooperation Organization for Standards Development (COSD).
With the conclusion of the agreement, the association plans to develop AHRI standards, and as a first step, it is currently establishing three AHRI standards as a group standard in Korea.
A source at the association said, "With the signing of the agreement, the introduction of AHRI's standards and certificates in Korea will ease the hassle of Korean companies having to obtain overseas certifications for procurement or project participation.
"KRAIA has laid the foundation for standard technologies that can improve the internationalization index of our products to a global level at a time when there are a number of issues at home and abroad, including fine dust," said Noh Hwan-yong, chairman of the association. "By using standardized equipment, we will be able to improve trust in the industry and create a virtuous circle that will lead to industrial development, sales growth, and job creation."
