WaterFurnace International, Inc., a manufacturer of residential and commercial geothermal and water source heat pumps, announced that its in-house testing lab has earned ENERGY STAR accreditation by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It has also met the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025, the main standard used by testing and calibration laboratories.

According to the WaterFurnace, it is the only HVAC equipment manufacturer in the U.S. to attain the prestigious recognitions.

The accreditation allows WaterFurnace to conduct testing at its engineering laboratory without the need for third-party testing. “By submitting the performance data directly, we can eliminate the intermediary costs and unnecessary delays of an intermediary laboratory,” said Robert Brown, VP of Engineering.

Lab reports generated at the company's Fort Wayne, Ind. facility can now be accepted directly by other compliance organizations, such as the EPA, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the British Department of Energy and Climate Change.

Brown said the ISO 17025 accreditation process, which WaterFurnace began in 2010, took 12 months to complete. He also thinks this may be the start of an industry trend.

 “Investing in advanced lab technology and management for more efficient and accurate labs is vital to our competitiveness,” Brown told appliance DESIGN. “As EPA/DOE influence increases, we see a greater need for this accreditation.”