HVAC QI 8/31/2011

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ENERGY STAR

®

Partnership Agreement

For ENERGY STAR HVAC Quality Installation (QI) Program Partners

Mail this form to:

ENERGY STAR HVAC QI Program Manager

US EPA (Mail Code 6202J)

1200 Pennsylvania Ave, NW 

Washington, DC 20460

Or Fax this form to:

202-343-2200

Organization

Name:

Address: City/State/Zip:

Telephone: Fax:_ Web Site:

Major Area(s) Served: 

Authorized Company/Organization Representative (printed name): 

Title: E-mail:

Signature: Date: 

To be completed by U.S. EPA:

EPA Representative; ENERGY STAR Residential Branch, Climate Partnership Program Division

Signature: Date: 

ENERGY STAR HVAC QI Program Goals

ENERGY STAR helps consumers, businesses, and public organizations protect the environment through superior energy 

efficiency. The ENERGY STAR HVAC QI program seeks to improve HVAC installation practices to deliver greater 

energy efficiency and comfort to consumers and to provide a new energy efficiency program strategy to utilities.

Notes:

- The ENERGY STAR HVAC QI Program is applicable to residential installations of central air conditioning, furnace, 

air-source heat pump, geothermal heat pump and boiler systems. Installations may be in single-family houses or in 

multifamily buildings in which each unit has its own self-contained HVAC system.

- Program sponsors may choose to include systems in existing homes and/or new construction. Requirements are 

more stringent for new construction and for existing homes with new or modified ductwork.

- If a home has multiple zones with separate HVAC systems, each system must be verified as a separate unit.

- Although the ENERGY STAR HVAC QI Program does not require contractors to install ENERGY STAR qualified 

equipment we strongly encourage program partners to promote ENERGY STAR qualified equipment in tandem with 

quality installation.

ENERGY STAR Commitments to Partners

1. Increase awareness of the ENERGY STAR HVAC Quality Installation Program by distributing key messages on 

the benefits of proper installation practices and verification.

2. Provide current ENERGY STAR news, information, and reference documents (via the ENERGY STAR Web 

site, Hotline, e-mail or other means).

3. Provide ENERGY STAR partners with public recognition for their involvement in ENERGY STAR.

4. Respond swiftly to any partner request for information or clarification on ENERGY STAR policies.

OMB Control No. 2060-0586
HVAC QI 8/31/2011

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Definitions:

For the purpose of this agreement the following terms are defined as follows:

ANSI

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) facilitates the development of American National Standards by

accrediting the procedures of standards developing organizations. Accreditation by ANSI signifies that the procedures 

used by the standards body in connection with the development of American National Standards meet the Institute’s 

essential requirements for openness, balance, consensus and due process.

ENERGY STAR HVAC QI Guidelines

Requirements for installations under the program must meet Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) 

Standard 5: HVAC Quality Installation Specification or equivalent standard approved by EPA.

File Verification

File verification is a review of load calculations, equipment selection and the commissioning report. This review includes 

confirming that all required installation elements were performed using an approved method and checking for data

inconsistencies.

Field Verification

Field verification is an in-field verification of the installation that follows established protocols.

Terms of the Agreement:

The following are the terms of the ENERGY STAR Partnership Agreement as it pertains to ENERGY STAR HVAC 

Quality Installation (QI) Program Partners. The ENERGY STAR Partner under HVAC QI is defined as a program 

sponsor who agrees to the following commitments, and is legally independent from contractors performing installations 

and third-party verifiers verifying installations under this program.

The ENERGY STAR Partner may issue an ENERGY STAR Quality Installation Certificate for a residential central air 

conditioning, furnace, air-source heat pump, geothermal heat pump or boiler system if the following criteria are met:

1) The participating contractor has signed a participation agreement with the ENERGY STAR Partner implementing 

the program.

a) The participation agreement between the contractor and the ENERGY STAR partner must include at a 

minimum:

i) Entry and training requirements 

ii) Installation requirements

iii) Documentation requirements

iv) Sampling and verification requirements 

v) A conflict resolution process

vi) A process for dismissal from the program if the terms of the participation agreement are not adhered to

2) The system is installed by a technician working as or for a state licensed contractor, where a license is required.

3) The system is verified to meet the ENERGY STAR HVAC QI Guidelines by an eligible and qualified third party 

verifier.

a) The criteria for meeting the ENERGY STAR HVAC QI Guidelines are established by:

i) ACCA Standard 5 or comparable ANSI-recognized, HVAC specification related to the proper installation

of residential and commercial heating, ventilation, and air conditioning 

b) To be considered eligible under the program the third party verifier must:

i) Be an autonomous organization/individual with no financial or ownership connections to the contractors

participating in the program

ii) Demonstrate knowledge and ability to verify each element of the ENERGY STAR HVAC QI Guidelines
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Terms of the Agreement (continued):

4) Sampling Rates and Verification Protocols.

a) A file verification must be performed on each installation.

b) The program requires that all Partners meet, at a minimum, the following sampling rates on field verifications, 

or offer an alternate verification schedule for EPA approval:

i) Phase 1 – Field verification will be conducted on 3 of the first 5 installations submitted by a new 

contractor participant.

ii) Phase 2 – After successful completion of Phase 1, the Partner must perform field verification on at least 5%

of installations by each contractor.

c) A contractor is not eligible to move to the next phase, or lower sampling rate, until they can demonstrate to 

the Program Partner that they are consistently meeting all program requirement and technical standards.

d) All Installation must be verified using the verification protocols outlined in the ENERGY STAR HVAC QI

Sponsor Guide document.

5) The Partner has submitted a detailed implementation plan to EPA describing how they will implement sections 1 

through 4 of this agreement. The Partner may not proceed with the program until this plan has been approved by 

EPA.

Other Partner requirements under this agreement:

• Provide EPA, on a quarterly basis, market indicators to assist in determining the effects of the program in promoting 

quality HVAC installations. EPA will only use the data for program evaluation purposes. The following data should 

be submitted in electronic format:

Number of participating contractors

Number of installations performed

Number of installations inspected

Number of installations failing verification

Number of certificates issued

Reasons for installation failures and the action that was taken to resolve the problem

• Adhere to the ENERGY STAR Identity Guidelines (available at www.energystar.gov/marks) and ensure that 

authorized representatives, such as advertising agencies also comply.

• Prior to use, submit all marketing materials developed for Partner’s ENERGY STAR promotions to ENERGY STAR 

for review to ensure accuracy of ENERGY STAR logo use and consistency of the ENERGY STAR message. Partner 

will allow a minimum of five full working days for ENERGY STAR to review and approve ENERGY STAR aspects of 

the marketing materials.

• Notify EPA of a change in the designated responsible party or contacts within 30 days.

General Terms and Disclaimers

1. The partner will not construe, claim or imply that its participation in ENERGY STAR constitutes federal government 

approval, acceptance, or endorsement of anything other than the partner’s commitment to ENERGY STAR. Partnership 

does not constitute federal government endorsement of the partner or its services.

2. The partner understands that the activities it undertakes in connection with ENERGY STAR are voluntary and not 

intended to provide services to the federal government. As such, the partner will not submit a claim for compensation 

to any federal agency.

3. The partner and ENERGY STAR will assume good faith as a general principle for resolving conflict and will seek to

resolve all matters informally, so as to preserve maximum public confidence in ENERGY STAR.

4. This agreement is voluntary and can be terminated by either party at any time or any reason, with no penalty.

5. Failure to comply with any of the terms of this partnership agreement can result in its termination and cessation of

access to the benefits of ENERGY STAR, including use of the marks.

6. ENERGY STAR will actively pursue resolution of noncompliance related to the use of the ENERGY STAR marks.

EPA Form 5900-183

The government estimates the average time needed to fill out this form is 0.50 hours and welcomes suggestions for reducing this effort. Send comments (referencing OMB Control 

Number) to the Director, Collection Strategies Division, U.S. EPA (2822T), 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. 20460.