Approval

The following section mainly deals with the installation, approval, operation and monitoring of hot water boiler systems, while the regulations governing the construction and marketing of boiler systems and system components are only discussed where relevant to the operation of a boiler system.

It is advisable to contact the relevant authorities as early as the planning phase of a boiler system. It should be agreed in advance which documents are required for approval and what the approval process involves. Many authorities offer preliminary consultations to advise applicants on this matter.

First, it must be determined whether the boiler system requires an approval process in accordance with the Federal Immission Control Act (BImSchG) or a permit process.

The Ordinance on Installations Requiring Approval (4. ImSchV) describes which installations require approval for construction and operation under the Federal Immission Control Act. This may affect both the boiler system and the business itself where the boiler system is installed.

The installations requiring approval are listed exhaustively in the Annex to 4. BImSchV. These are industrial systems of all kinds that may cause significant environmental damage. Only the installations listed in this annex require approval under the Federal Immission Control Act (BImSchG) in the case of new building or significant modification (of an existing installation) (new building under Section 4 BImSchG, significant modification under Section 16 BImSchG).

The question of whether the system requires a permit (scope of the 4. BImSchG) or does not require a permit (scope of the 1. BImSchG) is decisive with regard to the different requirements of the 44. BImSchG. This provides information on the necessary emission limits.

If a system consists of several individual combustion units, the aggregation rules of the 44. BImSchV must be observed during their planning, installation and commissioning (Section 4 (1–3), 44. BImSchV).

If the boiler system or the operating site falls under the 4. BImSchV (Federal Immission Control Act), an approval process in accordance with the BImSchG is required; if not, a permit process is necessary.

Permit process

In accordance with Section 18(1)(1) of the German Health and Safety at Work regulation (BetrSichV 2015), a permit from the competent authority is required for the construction and operation of facilities, as well as for any changes to their design or mode of operation that affect safety. This includes all hot water boilers in accordance with the Pressure Equipment Directive. The permit covers the entire boiler system with all equipment necessary for operation:

• Hot water boiler or steam boiler
• Combustion with all air supply equipment and heated air preheaters
• All devices for the supply of fuels
• Superheater and flue gas heat exchanger
• Bearing structure for the boiler
• Insulation, brick lining
• All components that are part of the flue system, such as flue gas lines, silencer and chimney
• Steam and hot water pipes with fittings
• All monitoring and safety equipment
• All other system components used in the operation of the boiler system
• Boiler room

The application for permission must be submitted to the competent supervisory authority (of the system location). In Germany, for example, this varies depending on the federal state:

• District government
• Factory Inspectorate
• District office
• State Office for Occupational Safety, Health Protection and Technical Safety (LAGetSi)

All documents necessary for assessing the application must be enclosed with the application. The federal states have drawn up checklists for this purpose.

If the application documents are complete, permission will be granted within three months.

In addition to the permit in accordance with BetrSichV, the necessary building permit or, if applicable, a water law suitability assessment and other approvals are also required. These are not part of the permit process.

The technical details are described in the application for a permit in the form of supplementary sheets.

As a manufacturer of hot water and steam boiler systems, Bosch supports industrial boilers by providing the relevant information in pre-filled forms relating to the scope of delivery.

Test report by an approved monitoring body (ZÜS)

The application for a permit must be accompanied by a test report from an approved monitoring body (ZÜS) as part of the permit process in accordance with Section 18 BetrSichV.

This report takes a comprehensive look at the hazards associated with operating hot water and steam boiler systems. The applicant must enclose all documents necessary for the assessment of the application with the application. The application documents must be complete, location-specific and sufficiently informative to enable a final assessment to be made.

In the first step of this two-part permit process, the ZÜS carries out the technical inspection. If the result is positive, the test report confirms that the installation, design and operation of the system comply with the requirements of the BetrSichV. Conditions may be imposed for the construction and operation of the hot water and steam boiler system. These are then adopted by the competent supervisory authorities in a second step and can be found in the issued permit notice.