The Mobile Air Conditioning Society (MACS) Worldwide will provide a free Section 609 certification class for up to 100 professional automotive technicians at 1 p.m. EST on Friday, Feb. 16 at the Caribe Royale Hotel and Convention Center in Orlando, Florida.
The free class is part of the MACS 2018 Training Event and Trade Show taking place Feb. 14-17 at the Caribe and is sponsored by MACS member Texas Truck A/C of Balch Springs, Texas.
The class will take approximately three hours and, at the end, technicians can become Section 609 certified to work on vehicles using R-12, R-134a and R-1234yf refrigerant when they take the written test provided and successfully pass. Technicians who fail will be provided one free re-test.
As of Jan. 1, all technicians who wish to purchase refrigerant in quantities of 2 pounds or more must be Section 609 certified and show their credential at purchase.
Interested technicians must register to participate by calling 215-631-7020 x 0 or by registering online at the Events tab on MACS website at macsw.org. When technicians register for the class, they will receive a confirmation for the class.
R-1234yf refrigerant is gaining popularity among vehicle manufacturers because it reduces the environmental impact of A/C systems in vehicles, helping manufacturers meet stringent vehicle emissions standards. Automakers can receive emissions credits for using environmentally friendly refrigerants, meaning aftermarket technicians will begin to see an increase in vehicles using R-1234yf. The number of vehicles using R-1234yf is expected to increase exponentially in the coming years as the refrigerant replaces the current industry-standard R134a.
The MACS refrigerant recovery and recycling program was developed to meet the requirements under Section 609 of the Clean Air Act of 1990 and was formally approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), effective Aug. 13, 1992.
Since then, more than 1.1 million technicians have achieved Section 609 certification through the program. Throughout the years, MACS has continually expanded its certification program to reflect industry changes in technology, service equipment, procedures, tools, alternative refrigerants and changing government regulatory requirements.
