In the Air - HRAI Industry News

The National Building Code of Canada (NBC) was first published by the federal government in 1941 and has been adopted by some provinces and many municipalities over the years since.  The NBC serves as a model forming the basis for all provincial codes. British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec have created their own NBC-based codes while the other provinces adopted the NBC using supplemental laws to revise the NBC as needed. 

The Ontario Building Code (OBC) came into force on December 31st, 1975 thus superseding all municipal laws related to the construction of buildings.  Building codes are important because they establish  minimum standards for the design, construction, and maintenance of buildings.  Ideally, building codes are meant to ensure public safety by the setting of standards for fire safety, structural stability, accessibility and other key aspects of building design and construction.    

Prior to the 2006 OBC, the efficient use and conservation of energy related to buildings had not been addressed.  A new regulation to the 2006 code came into effect in July 2011. Newly minted Part 12 of the OBC and its Supplementary Standard SB-12 deals with energy and resource conservation in Part 9 buildings, those defined as less than three stories under 600 m3.  By setting standards, our codes provide guidance to industry professionals such as engineers, architects and contractors ensuring buildings will be designed and constructed in a consistent and safe manner.   

The Canadian government building code review process entails an exacting evaluation of existing and potentially new construction standards and practices throughout Canada.  The review is undertaken to make sure that all new building projects reflect the NBC’s intended purpose to erect structures meeting the best levels of safety, efficiency and overall quality.  The review process is carried out by the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) in collaboration with the provincial and territorial governments and is thus responsible for developing and updating the NBC.   

Advances in building science, construction technology, safety practices and the need to remain in consistent conformity with other codes such as the National Fire Code or National Plumbing Code require a review and update of the NBC every 5 years.  The review process requires input from a variety of stakeholders such as engineers, safety experts, building professionals and members of the public. All these groups gather to provide input and feedback on proposed changes to the code.   

This year, the focus on transitioning to lower GWP refrigerants for use in residential air conditioning appliances means the NBC requires an immediate update to include equipment utilizing ASHRAE Category A2L mildly flammable refrigerants as a reasonable preferred alternative to existing HFCs currently entering a phasedown. HRAI together with the Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) did submit comments to the NRC concerning code changes related to the adoption of A2L’s and there will be more to come.  In addition, HRAI with input from AHRI, designed an HVAC/R wholesaler survey to determine how many of them operate storage facilities in Canada containing compressed gases in excess of 160K pounds. The survey is intended to determine if further code changes are necessary with respect to the storage of A2L’s.  With this information in hand, including accumulated comments from other stakeholders, we will thus be ready to submit our code change request for A2L’s with enough time for review and adoption of changes in advance of the new equipment coming onto the market.