The professional refrigeration regulations acts as an economic filter: it determines what equipment you will be able to buy today, how you will maintain it tomorrow and what value it will retain when it is time to renovate. In HORECA, its effect usually comes in three clear ways: refrigerant (F-Gas), efficiency and labelling (Ecodesign and energy label) and operational obligations (temperature control, maintenance and traceability).
If you have already read our article on profitability of professional refrigeration in HORECA, Here we fit in a piece that completes the total cost of ownership (TCO): the regulatory risk. When a standard changes the most suitable refrigerant or raises efficiency requirements, the impact is not theoretical: it affects maintenance costs, availability, consumption and the economic life of the equipment. This is why standards and cost-effectiveness are analysed together. professional refrigeration regulations not only conditions compliance, it also conditions return on investment.
Professional Refrigeration Regulations in 5 points
- The regulations on professional refrigeration affect the purchase by total costenergy, maintenance, spare parts and refrigerant availability.
- F-Gas accelerates the transition to lower impact refrigerants: this changes the horizon for some refrigerants and their cost of service.
- Ecodesign in professional refrigeration and the energy labelling set minimum requirements and make the efficiency of direct sales equipment (showcases, walls, displays) more comparable.
- The most expensive risk is usually stop, decrease o rework (changing equipment prematurely) due to indefensible decisions.
- In order to make a better decision, regulations should be converted into shopping checklistRefrigerant, efficiency, repairability, documentation and actual installation.
¿Why it matters now the Professional Refrigeration Regulations?
- F-Gas already conditions the purchasenot just “what gas is in it”, but “what gas will I be able to reasonably maintain in X years” time".
- Energy remains a sensitive cost line in HORECA. and efficiency and labelling requirements push to compare with less uncertainty.
- The professional customer mixes models (in-store, delivery, retail). This stresses the cold: more openings, more rotation, more peaks.
1) Understanding regulation as “economic risk” (not as legal text)
When we talk about professional refrigeration regulations, The real impact usually falls into one of these four costs:
Operational idea: regulations influence whether equipment remains a maintainable and defensible asset or becomes expensive to maintain.
“We don't look at regulation to comply: we look at it so that the investment doesn't become expensive to maintain in the middle of its life”.”
Diagnostic questions
- Will the team be in high openness zone (bar, lounge, self-service) or back?
- Does the operation require registration/alarm (by internal audit, chain, HACCP procedures)?
- What is your expected time horizon: 3-5 years or 8-12 years?
- Who is going to maintain it: own SAT, regular installer, external contract?
2) F-Gas: what changes in purchasing decisions
F-Gas reinforces the phase-down and the framework of restrictions on F-gases and their use in equipment. For purchasing purposes in HORECA, the mechanism matters: if a refrigerant is worse positioned, the natural chain is less availability / more cost / more pressure to migrate to alternatives.
In HORECA, where continuity and service are valued, this translates into a simple question: which refrigerant gives me predictable maintenance over the lifetime of the equipment?
What usually happens (real mechanism)
- The market is moving towards refrigerants with a better regulatory fit.
- At the same time, the demand for training, procedures and compatible components is growing.
- The cost of “the above” may rise due to relative scarcity and changing incentives.
Common mistake
Buying as if the refrigerant is a minor issue (“we'll see later”). In 24/7 teams, this “we'll see” often appears as more difficult maintenance, longer lead times or hasty decisions.
What to ask for in order not to decide blindly
- Exact refrigerant y upload (plaque and documentation).
- Policy on service and maintenance: procedures, critical spare parts, training required.
- In projects: installation conditions (ambient temperature, ventilation, accessibility).
“The refrigerant is not a detail: it defines the cost and the ease of maintaining the equipment in 5-10 years” time."
3) Ecodesign and energy labelling: when efficiency is no longer “opinion”.”
In equipment with a direct selling function, the requirements for Ecodesign and the energy labelling set minimums and require documentation of benefits.
Practical impact on purchasing (what changes)
- Real comparability: labelling and documentation reduce confusion by catalogue.
- More defensible projects: justifying consumption and class helps to close.
- Risk of “cheap equipment that always penalises”.”The purchase cost is once; the consumption is every day.
Diagnostic questions
- Is the team in the room and working with high thermal load (doors, lighting, nearby heat)?
- Does the client need to predictability of consumption?
- Does the premises have power limitation or energy penalties?
Common mistake
Choosing by “litres and price” without looking at actual use: a display cabinet with constant openings does not behave in the same way as a cupboard in the back.
What to ask for in order not to decide blindly
- Energy label (if applicable) and product sheet partner.
- Test conditions or manufacturer's references to understand the context.
4) Service life, repairability and documentation: what matters most when something fails
In HORECA, equipment can be compliant and still be a bad investment if it is difficult to repair, has no reasonable spare parts, requires complex disassembly or there is no clear documentation for fine commissioning.
The practical criterion is simple: a defensible piece of equipment is one that, when it fails, is repaired with less time, less uncertainty and less impact on the business.
“The lifespan is not that the equipment stays on: it's that it can be maintained without stopping the business.”
Diagnostic questions
- Is there Local SAT and critical spare parts available?
- Does the installation allow access to condenser, ventilation, drains and control?
- Who bears the cost if there is a stoppage: the venue or the operator?
Practical criteria for deciding (quick)
- Accessibility to components without unnecessary disassembly.
- Clarity of exploded views and manuals.
- Reasonable availability of spare parts.
- Basic control/alarm to avoid invisible losses.
5) Regulations + daily operation: the blind spot (temperature, openings, mixed uses)
There is a frequent pattern: buy it right, install it right and then the actual operation breaks the performance: constant openings, hot product load, poor ventilation, irregular cleaning or control settings misaligned with the reality of the room.
HORECA is dynamic. If the equipment is just right in real conditions, any energy, temperature or control requirements become more expensive.
What to ask for in order not to decide blindly (operation)
- Usage profile: peaks, delivery, batch production, schedules.
- Actual ambient temperature (kitchen, summer, machine area).
- Frequency of opening and who uses it (trained team vs. high rotation).
- Control needs: registration, alarms, internal evidence.
Common mistake
Buy by rated capacity and then demand “spare equipment” behaviour in a kitchen that has changed pace.
6) Making regulation a purchasing method for dealers and installers
This is the practical bridge: moving from “I know F-Gas/Ecodesign exists” to “I turn it into a decision”.
7-step quick method (operational)
- Define actual use (back / room; openings; peaks; product loading).
- Define the investment horizon (3-5 vs. 8-12 years).
- Refrigerant and regulatory horizon: avoid surprises in the middle of life.
- Demonstrable efficiency: where applicable, label + token and honest comparison.
- Defensible installation (ventilation, access, drainage, location).
- Reparability and spare partsreduces the real cost of downtime.
- Minimum documentation to operate well (manuals, adjustments, control).
“The regulation does not force us to buy more expensive: it forces us to buy with less risk and less hidden cost”.”
Diagnostic questions
- What is worse here: paying a little more or having repeated stops?
- What happens if in 3 years you change the concept (more delivery, more turnover)?
- Who maintains and with what response times?
What changes for HORECA in practice
- More questions are asked about refrigerant and for its horizon (maintenance and availability).
- Efficiency goes from an argument to a minimum criterion in many purchases (especially in visible equipment/direct sales).
- In projects, there is a growing demand for documentation and comparability (labelling and tokens).
- More value is placed on reparability (less downtime, less intervention cost).
- Basic control (alarms/logging) becomes more common, even if the customer does not want platforms.
- In mixed formats (retail + tasting), cold becomes part of the “front end”: aesthetics, performance and efficiency.
- Distributors are gaining weight as risk advisors, not just as a catalogue.
- Buying “fair” penalises more: energy, failures and compliance pressure.
FAQ
In practice, three families: F-Gas (refrigerants), Ecodesign + labelling (efficiency and transparency) and operational requirements linked to temperature control and business operation.
The F-Gas framework has been strengthened and accelerates the transition to lower impact alternatives. In purchasing, this translates into maintenance horizon, availability and cost of service.
By the “availability/maintenance cost” mechanism. If a refrigerant is left on a more restrictive path, the market tends to adjust prices, stock and training towards alternatives.
It means that there is a minimum for certain product groups. Even so, the actual use (openings, thermal load, installation) still decides a large part of the consumption.
It is the system that requires the display of class and associated documentation to facilitate comparison in certain display and sales equipment.
With method: define actual use, choose refrigerant with a time horizon, ask for documentation when applicable and prioritise repairability and spare parts. Savings usually come from less downtime and less consumption, not from paying less when buying.
Refrigerant and charge, installation conditions, documentation/labelling if applicable, critical spare parts and service response times.
Not automatically, but it may change the desirability of keeping them if the refrigerant or energy performance becomes misaligned with the market. The key is to buy with a horizon, not just to deliver today.
Translate regulations into business decisions: avoid purchases that generate hidden costs and sustain the investment with defensible installation and maintenance.
Glossary
- F-Gas: EU regulatory framework on fluorinated greenhouse gases and equipment containing or relying on them.
- Regulation (EU) 2024/573: update of the F-Gas framework reinforcing the phase-down and associated restrictions.
- GWP (Global Warming Potential): indicator of the climate impact of a gas compared to CO₂.
- Ecodesign (EU 2019/2024): minimum design/efficiency requirements for certain equipment, including direct sales refrigeration.
- Energy Labelling (EU 2019/2018): energy labelling rules and product information for equipment with a direct sales function.
- EPREL: European database where products subject to energy labelling and their associated documentation are registered.
- Regulatory risk: likelihood that a purchase will become more costly or difficult to sustain due to regulatory and market changes.
- Total cost of ownership (TCO): purchase cost plus energy, maintenance, downtime and spare parts over the life of the equipment.
- Reparability: ease and cost of repairing equipment (access, spare parts, documentation, time).
- Direct sales function: equipment designed to display and sell product to customers (showcases, murals, displays).
At Coreco we rely on our network of distributors and installers.
If you are a dealer or installer, the most practical way to use the standards in professional refrigeration is to turn them into a method: define actual use, choose refrigerant with a horizon, demand demonstrable efficiency where applicable and ensure maintainable installation. The professional refrigeration regulations works best when it is integrated into the TCO and is decided with consumption, downtime and maintenance in mind, not just the purchase price.
CORECO works exclusively through a professional network: for availability and support, please contact your distributor or installer.
