The Federal Government, through the Standards Organisation of Nigeria, has unveiled a bioclimatic chamber for the testing of the energy efficiency of locally manufactured and imported air conditioners.
The commissioning of the facility took place on Thursday in Lagos and had in attendance stakeholders in the private and public sectors.
The procurement of the equipment was supported by the Nigerian Energy Support Programme, the European Union and the German Government.
In his welcome remarks, the Director-General of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria, Farouk Salim, said the facility would help SON determine the conformity level of air conditioners in the Nigerian market
According to him, once the facility is fully operational, it will crest labels on products belonging within its category.
He said, “SON has no standards. Most of the time, people say SON standard. SON does not have one single standard. The standard we have belongs to the people of Nigeria. So, it is the Nigerian standard.”
The Head of Programme at the Nigerian Energy Support Programme, Duke Benjamin, described the journey to commissioning the equipment as long and arduous, but one that was worth the while.
He added that the equipment would go a long way to help in the testing of energy efficiency of air conditioners in the Nigerian market.
Benjamin said, “The AC testing chamber is equipped to test the energy efficiency ratio, cooling capacity of up to 20 kilowatts, compressor quality and efficiency, power, pressure and temperature requirements.
Operationalising the equipment will accelerate improvements in the quality and efficiency of ACs in the Nigerian market.”
The Vice Consul at the German Consulate, Jochen Schindelarz, described the commissioning of the facility as an outstanding achievement
He said that Germany had always supported Nigeria’s aspiration towards economic growth with focus on critical sectors.
The Permanent Secretary of Federal Ministry of Power, Temitope Fashedemi, congratulated SON for the giant stride and encouraged the organisation to intensify monitoring of standards.
