AREA urges input to proposed EN378 revision
29th June 2025
BELGIUM: European contractors organisation AREA is encouraging its members to participate in the public enquiry into the proposed revision of EN378.
European Standard EN 378:2016 specifies safety and environmental requirements for refrigerating systems and heat pumps. The changes proposed will have a significant impact on the design and installation of both factory built and site-installed refrigeration, air conditioning, and heat pump systems.
The European Standards Organisation, CEN, is about to issue for public enquiry the proposed revision of the widely-used standard for refrigeration systems, EN 378. There are several significant changes proposed which will have an impact on the design and installation of both factory-built and site-installed refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump systems.
With CEN about to issue the proposed revision for public enquiry, AREA is encouraging all its members to participate in the enquiry process to ensure that the voice of refrigeration contractors is heard and taken into account in the final version of the standard.
The proposed revision is said to include a number of major changes, in particular significant revisions to the method for the determination of charge limits for flammable refrigerants
In addition, the current Annex E of Part 1, Safety classification and information about refrigerants, becomes a new Part 5. This is intended to allow it to be revised more easily as new refrigerants come into use.
EN 378 Part 4 will be withdrawn and replaced by adopting the current ISO 5149-4 as EN ISO 5149-4. There is no change proposed to the technical content.
The enquiry stage will open on 3 July and run to 25 September.
All interested members of the public in CEN member countries can participate. Current CEN members are all 27 member states of the EU plus Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, UK, North Macedonia, Turkey, and Serbia.
