Almost three years after the European-wide introduction of the energy efficiency label, the composite equipment label is only slowly entering the market. This is the conclusion drawn by the consortium of the now-ending LabelPack A + project, which aims to facilitate the introduction of the energy efficiency label for heaters, water heaters and combinations in six European countries. “As a label that, for the first time, also rates interconnected systems in terms of their energy efficiency, the EU label is considerably more complex than the previous, well-known efficiency labels from other segments,” says Pedro Dias, Secretary General of the European Solar Heat Europe / ESTIF Association. “Unfortunately, the complexity is also reflected in the acceptance of the label by craftsmen and end customers. It has not been requested as much as we had originally expected. ”

Because of the restrained acceptance, a focus of the project was on the development of suggestions for improvement for the label and its use. Carsten Körnig, Managing Director of the German Solar Industry Association, on the conclusion of the project: “It is certainly the case that a new label needs time to establish itself on the market. So far, however, industry and trade clearly outweigh the expense, while end customers struggle with the many different pieces of information from the labels, “reports Körnig. “We have contributed to the fact that the experience of manufacturers and representatives of the crafts, public institutions in Germany and consumer advocates were reflected back to the European Commission and hope to consider these proposals in future amendments.” Until then,Numerous informational events and craftsman training were organized in the project, online tools were developed and materials were created for the specialist audience. In the last months of the project, in addition to a comprehensive evaluation of the label and the preparation of suggestions for improvement, the label was once again comprehensively communicated via social media in order to reach end customers and craftsmen. Also, the label calculation tool available in five languages ​​has been updated and its application improved. It will continue to be available and maintained in cooperation with the Solar Keymark Network.