ENERGY STAR and UL among the most trusted brands in the United States

On April 25, 2012, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) hosted an exploratory meeting to examine the need for a potential ANSI Energy Efficiency Standards Panel, with a view to coordinate a U.S. approach to energy efficiency standardization activities.  Due to the increasing interest and heightened awareness of product energy efficiency regulations in the U.S., various UL government affairs staff and industry members participated in this meeting.  Based on the input received from stakeholders at the meeting, ANSI will develop a proposed framework for the panel’s path forward with regard to scope, mission and structure. This framework will be shared with meeting participants and other interested stakeholders in due course.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) presented the federal perspective on energy efficiency. ENERGY STAR® was first introduced in 1992 to help consumers identify products which are more energy efficient.  With ENERGY STAR, Americans have reduced green-house gas emission by over 1.7 billion metric tons and saved nearly $230 billion on utility bills.  According to a July 2011 Fairfield research report, ENERGY STAR ranked the highest among a number of trusted brands in influencing purchasing decisions, which is a testimony for ENERGY STAR as a credible source for energy savings information for homes and businesses. UL is part of that study too.

In a separate 2011 study by the EPA, 45% of consumers thought that the U.S. government decided if a product deserves the ENERGY STAR label. Meanwhile, 24% thought UL is the decision maker, up from 18% in 2010. This increasing awareness is a result of the continuous marketing and service delivery efforts by UL as an EPA-recognized Certification Body (CB), which tests products, conducts reviews of product test reports and ensures the products meet the ENERGY STAR requirements and regulations.
   
UL is an EPA-recognized CB and has one of the most comprehensive scope for ENERGY STAR with EPA-recognized Testing Laboratories around the world which can perform Qualification and Verification testing for most product categories.

For more information, contact Thomas Juliano, business development manager for energy efficiency, global high-tech industry.