Star Refrigeration's Dr Dermot Cotter will deliver expert insights on refrigerant hazards and safety for ASHRAE webinar

LONDON, July 4, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Star Technical Solutions' Managing Director, Dr Dermot Cotter CEng FInstR, will lead a key ASHRAE webinar on Friday 4th July from 5pm - 6pm, offering vital insights into the safety challenges posed by modern refrigeration systems and the engineering controls required to mitigate them.

The session, titled "Refrigeration System Hazards and Safety System Requirements," explores the complex hazard profiles of various refrigerants - including toxicity, flammability, and high operating pressures - and the design and regulatory frameworks necessary to maintain safe operation in large-scale commercial and industrial refrigeration applications.

With over 35 years in the refrigeration industry, Dr Cotter is a recognised authority on system safety, energy efficiency, and heat decarbonisation. He currently leads Star Technical Solutions, the consultancy division of Star Refrigeration, and holds positions with the Institute of Refrigeration and the Cold Chain Federation.

Dr Cotter will address the growing need for careful refrigerant selection in the transition to low-carbon technologies. The ASHRAE webinar will delve into the ISO 817 refrigerant classification system, noting the distinctions in flammability and toxicity between groups such as A1, A2L and B2L, and explaining how these impact design decisions in refrigeration and heat pump applications.

"Selecting a refrigerant today is no longer just a technical choice: it's a decision with implications on the environment and on safety, which must also take legislation into account," said Dr Cotter.

"As we move towards net zero, it is essential to understand both the direct and indirect impact of refrigerant emissions through refrigerant emissions and energy consumption. We must strike a delicate but necessary balance between safety and the pursuit of decarbonisation."

The presentation also covered pressure system hazards, ventilation strategies, gas detection systems, and emergency response protocols, referencing key UK regulations such as PSSR, DSEAR, and EN378. Dr Cotter explained how safe system design must account for emerging risks associated with high-pressure refrigerants like CO₂ and toxic compounds such as ammonia.

Particularly relevant to owners of industrial refrigeration equipment, engineers, designers, operators and health & safety professionals, the session aims to support industry-wide understanding of safe working practices as the refrigeration sector evolves toward low-GWP and natural refrigerants.

This ASHRAE presentation is part of Star Refrigeration's long-standing, unwavering commitment to technical excellence to shape safer, more efficient, and sustainable cooling systems for the future.

To register for the webinar on Refrigeration System Hazards and Safety System Requirements, visit https://www.ashrae.uk/event/webinar-refrigeration-system-hazards-and-safety-system-requirements/

For more information, visit https://www.star-ts.co.uk/

About

Star Technical Solutions (STS) is the technical consultancy service of the Star Refrigeration Group, the UK's leading refrigeration engineering company

The STS consultancy team has been providing expert, impartial and independent advice for refrigeration and heat pump systems to owners, users and the wider industry since 2004. The company offers regulatory compliance and project scoping, training and sustainability studies.

SOURCE Star Refrigeration