COSTIC : The S&T Committee for the Climatic Industries at the service of the installers'

Genuine creation of a Profession as a whole, COSTIC has been since 1906 the reliable spearhead for the firms working in the field of Mechanical Building Services.

COSTIC as an independent, non-profit association gathering contractors and building operators fulfils 3 main tasks:

COSTIC is engaged in research with several bodies. Here comes a brief and by no means exhaustive list of our partners:

- Government, corporate bodies and utilities
- Energy providers, consulting engineers and contractors
- European institutions
- Other associations in specific fields

 

HISTORY

1906  Creation of the Scientific Society (First aspect of COSTIC)
1906-1946  Research studies on emission of radiators, coal boilers, heat exchanges in non-steady state regime
1950-1960  Development of calculation methods for design (concerning losses, ventilation, consumption estimates, hot water heating systems …)
1960-1975  Our first step in teaching activities, creation of a special department 'génie climatique et énergétique' at the 'ENSAIS Grande Ecole' (national college of Arts & Industries engineering based in Strasbourg, East of France). Development of the first softwares for design of heating and air-conditioning installations
1975-1990  'the Energy Savings Years': the finalization of the thermal audit method in partnership with the French organisation ADEME.

 

COSTIC employs about 50 persons including 32 engineers & technicians 60 reports and articles are written or supervised each year.
Our training programmes amounted to 8500 days, 2800 interns, 240 training sessions (from 2 up to 5 days).
Contacts in more than 19 Countries around the world have been initiated.
Our library contains 14000 documents and is a subscriber to 100 international technical magazines.

COSTIC implements the principles of sustainable development and lifelong training in its own sphere of activities. We strive to provide our clients with services that embody the attributes of efficiency, innovation, customer satisfaction, quality in an integrated go-ahead approach.

Thanks to a running and priviledged dialogue maintained with the HVAC professionals, COSTIC operates accross the following spectrum

 

FACILITIES

- 900 m2 - testing hall near Paris
- 410 m2 - testing hall in the South of France
with a complete and modern equipment for measurement and testing specially designed for both our teaching & research activities, such as boilers, chilled water units, air-handling units, thermal testing cabins, automatic systems.
- Our climatic cell which has received the W.H.O agreement for testings (South of France)
- Our cell in Saint-Rémy with heating/cooling ceilings and a new technique for ventilation
- A trailer equiped with the most recent equipment for decentralized training sessions on air-conditioning
- A trailer specially conceived for training on control and management systems
- Simulation tools
- An information centre whose very high quality is recognized by the Professionals

THE SERVICES

We train your staff and welcome students

OUR AIMS

- To help the professionals be more efficient and competitive
- To adapt the professionals' offers to the evolution of techniques

In the general framework of supporting SMEs in their technological needs, our centre of expertise receives the requests of our members by phone or by mail. Moreover, facing specific S&T needs, COSTIC proposes more than 80 training sessions covering a wide range of subjects and it also conceives training programmes specially designed to meet the demands of its clients.

We steer the professionals towards accepting their responsabilities in environmental issues by means of consistent training and guidance, syntheses of our researches.

COSTIC, A DRIVING TEACHING FORCE THANKS TO:

- Integration of activities and disciplines from basic level to engineers and PhD
- An optimal use of knowledge to meet the final consumers' satisfaction

We welcome each year both 30 students from ENSAIS (French National College of Engineering) for their last year of lectures and students from other Universities. We guarantee them financing and scientific means to carry on researches within the frame of their theses.

We assist decision-makers in elaborating regulations & standards

COSTIC further continues to play a significant role in the elaboration of:

STANDARDS

- CEN (European Standardization Committee): TC 156, TC 228 and TC 247
- International Agency for Energy (Annex 28)

REGULATION

- French Building Regulation
- French Sanitary Regulation

COSTIC monitores the rules, regulations and standards as part of knowledge and innovation transfer to SMEs and authorities.

We play an active role in dissemination

COSTIC spreads out technical datas and discusses specific questions related to our fields of S&T competence with interested parties in an open manner, in particular taking our own Newsletter as a catching means to alert the Professionals.

EUROPEAN AFFAIRS

Representation of the French installers

Since 1957, Brussels has become an undisputed centre of political decisions concerning a large scale of subjects dealing with our professional activities and with our everyday's life. As a consequence, Brussels is a place where it is COSTIC's duty to be present.

We have developped significant means to strenghten our relations with the European institutions and to promote the interest of the French installers thanks to our lobbying.

EUROPEAN NETWORKING

Among other, COSTIC is a member of the Cercle des Délégués Permanents français in Brussels.

EUROPEAN TRADE UNIONS

We provide technical support to the European trade Unions.

Business information and opportunities on the European Union

TOWARDS A BETTER APPROACH TO GLOBAL CHALLENGES

Addressing key European problems, COSTIC :

- Mobilises instruments and skills towards excellence to meet social objectives and economic development
- Answers S&T prospects thanks to its studies oriented and targeted to professional aims
- Develops links with relevant national and international initiatives = Energy efficiency networking

In the field of Energy
After the international conferences, several new markets have come into light, answering the Energy efficiency and the Energy savings questions. So, COSTIC's areas of studies are mainly Rational Use of Energy and Renewable Sources of Energy in buildings (Regulation, performances, reduction in losses…). To clear Energy Systems and promote an efficient Energy for a competitive Europe, COSTIC has made a substantial effort on waste management, the recycling of waste, PV, solar energy and biomass.

In the field of Environment
Part of the process of reducing the greenhouse effect, Environmental Technology (water treatment and savings) is of great concern at COSTIC: Indoor Air Quality, DSM, acoustics, pipings (e.g. health problems). Besides, COSTIC has developped a strong ability in performing Environmental Diagnostics.

A TRANSNATIONALITY-BASED ACTIVITY

Since the beginning of the 1990s, COSTIC is more and more involved in the European affairs, working within the frame of European financing programmes.

We carry out transnational projects thanks to European RTD framework programme, SAVE, Altener, Life and the Structural funds.