Supermarket Refrigeration

The A.S. Degree in Supermarket Refrigeration is designed to prepare students to enter the refrigeration industry as commercial and supermarket refrigeration technicians. Success in this program requires specific prerequisites provided in the Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Certificate (T0909). The program prepares students to work with commercial and supermarket refrigeration systems based on the vapor-compression refrigeration cycle for multiplex refrigeration systems using direct expansion evaporators and multiple compressors with common suction and discharge lines. Refrigerant safety and natural refrigerant alternatives are learned which include CO2 as the refrigerant, and safety, handling, and storage of CO2, refrigeration system types that use CO2, equipment applications, CO2 components, and pressure and temperatures controls when operating in the transcritical mode. Field trips are required to complete this degree.

The Supermarket Refrigeration Program will attract 18 students each semester. 24 will complete the program and be placed into employment as Commercial or Supermarket Refrigeration Technicians.

The A.S. Degree in Supermarket Refrigeration is designed to provide students with the theoretical framework and technical training to obtain employment as Commercial and Supermarket Refrigeration Technicians. Program completers will have the skills necessary to handle hydro fluorocarbon (HFCs) refrigerants and natural refrigerants that include Carbon Dioxide (CO2). The Certificate and Degree will meet the EPA enforced climate goals of the 2020 American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act. The AIM Act directs the EPA to implement an 85 percent phasedown of the production and consumption of the most used HFCs refrigerants by 2035. HFC refrigerants are used in most air conditioning and refrigeration equipment and are considered “super” greenhouse gases because pound for pound they trap thousands of times more heat than carbon dioxide (CO2). The Commercial Refrigeration and Supermarket sectors are rapidly adopting alternatives to HFC refrigerants. This is because the average supermarket system contains thousands of pounds of HFC refrigerant and, due to the size and the complexity of the equipment, leaks 25% of its refrigerant, or 70 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent emissions each year. The economic impact of refrigerant leak rates and the HFC production phase downs will have a significant impact on the cost of food and the food chain supply unless refrigerant alternatives are effectively put in place.

Natural refrigerants that include carbon dioxide and hydrocarbons (HC) have zero or near-zero global warming potential (GWP). These refrigerants are rapidly becoming the alternatives to HFCs. Unfortunately, the equipment that supports these alternatives faces stiff market barriers that include costly modifications and a shortage of a trained workforce. According to epw.senate.gov/phasing-down-hfcs-the-aim-act, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce estimates that implementing the AIM Act will require 150,000 American new jobs by 2030 and will save consumers $3.7 billion if properly implemented.

Providing a Certificate and Degree in Supermarket Refrigeration that meets the requirements of the AIM Act will address these challenges by responding to the training needs of employers in this sector.

This certificate and degree in Supermarket Refrigeration offers solid instruction in supermarket multiplexed refrigeration systems, in addition to the theory, application, and handling of CO2 and HC refrigerants. These are the skills required for a trained workforce capable of supporting the refrigerant phasedowns of the AIM Act and reducing climate change.

The Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Program at Mt. San Antonio College currently has two (2) A.S. degrees:

The A.S. Degree in Supermarket Refrigeration requires five core courses from A.S. S0909  that are common to all sectors of the HVACR industry.  Students interested in a career in Supermarket Refrigeration will take an additonal four courses in  1) commercial refrigeration, 2) supermarket refrigeration, 3) supermarket CO2 booster refrigeration systems, and 4) supermarket refrigeration work experience.  

Los Angeles Trade Technical College offers an A.S. Degree in Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration and a single 48-unit certificate. A single 3-unit course in refrigeration is offered with no reference to compliance with the AIM Act, multiplexed-supermarket refrigeration systems, or natural refrigerant alternatives to reduce climate change.

Their program can be found at:   https://www.lattc.edu/academics/aos/heating-ventilating-air-conditioning-hvac

El Camino College offers an A.S. Degree in Air Conditioning and Refrigeration and a 36-unit Certificate. ECC also offers seven (7) certificates of achievement in Air Conditioning and Refrigeration one 13-unit Commercial Refrigeration certificate of achievement that teaches commercial refrigeration ice machines, coolers, walk-ins, refrigerators, and freezers. There is no reference to compliance with the AIM Act, multiplexed- supermarket refrigeration systems, or natural refrigerant alternatives to reduce climate change.

Their program can be found at:  https://www.elcamino.edu/academics/areas-of-study/air-conditioning-and-refrigeration.aspx

60 Students

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