What Qualifies for High Energy Star Products?

In the world of consumer products, the ENERGY STAR symbol reigns supreme for those bearing high energy-efficiency ratings. This government-backed label has been adopted in most countries, and is now the standard with which manufacturers strive to meet or exceed when developing new devices.

What is ENERGY STAR?

The symbol first originated in the United States in 1992 through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a voluntary labeling program. The sole purpose was to designate and recognize eco-friendly products that have low emission values and which promote the conservation of energy and money.

In light of its sheer success, ENERGY STAR soon expanded to other many other areas, including heating and cooling equipment and commercial office products. It can now be found on appliances and electronic devices in nearly every home and building.

In sum, the program has helped saved in excess of $25 billion in energy costs per year, making it one of the biggest eco-friendly measures to date. Of course, the standards with which manufacturers must adhere are quite strict. To develop a product that is ENERGY STAR-worthy is an incredible honor as well as an asset!

How does a product attain ENERGY STAR status?           

Only by meeting the specification guidelines and their respective energy-efficiency requirements set forth by the program can a product brand the ENERGY STAR symbol. The EPA differentiates these by category; there are a number of points a product must meet to qualify in general.

These include meeting consumer performance demands while at the same time increasing energy-efficiency, providing customers with savings in a reasonable amount of time (especially if the specific product costs more than the market rate), and that the product’s energy consumption can be measured on a quantitative basis.

In addition, it must be shown that labeling of the product would clearly differentiate it and be easily noticed by consumers. The ENERGY STAR symbol has become a household name, and is taken very seriously by customers.

It is widely understood that when purchasing one of these products, you’re going to save more money on your annual operating costs. Thus, it’s only fair that manufacturers be held to high accountability for ensuring their product designs are adequate and far from sub-par in relation to others on the market.

The EPA regularly revises its product specifications and standards, which is why it is important for businesses to stay up-to-date with current protocol.