What is PMOC?
The Ministry of Health has a regulation that requires every establishment with an artificial air conditioning system to properly maintain the equipment.
The PMOC - Maintenance, Operation, and Control Plan - constitutes one of the foundations for the correct application of the new rules. It is a kind of logbook for a climate control system, demonstrating all the stages and occurrences of its maintenance.
The PMOC is a requirement of Ministry of Health Ordinance 3,523 dated 28/08/1998 and Resolution No. 9 of Anvisa (National Health Surveillance Agency) dated 16/01/2003.
Article 6: Owners, tenants, and representatives responsible for air conditioning systems with a capacity exceeding 5 TR (15,000 kcal/h = 60,000 BTU/H) must have a qualified technical supervisor with the following responsibilities:
1. Implement and maintain an available Maintenance, Operation, and Control Plan - PMOC at the premises, adopted for the climate control system. This Plan must contain the identification of the establishment with air-conditioned environments, the description of the activities to be carried out, their periodicity, the recommendations to be adopted in equipment failure and emergency situations to ensure the safety of the climate control system, and other relevant information, according to the specifications contained in Annex I of this Technical Regulation and NBR 13971/97 of the Brazilian Association of Technical Standards - ABNT.
2. Ensure the application of the PMOC through direct or indirect continuous execution of this service.
3. Maintain records of the procedures established in the PMOC.
4. Disseminate the procedures and results of maintenance, operation, and control activities to the occupants.
What risk do I run by not having a PMOC?
Being fined for non-compliance with ordinance 3,523/MS and RE 09. The fine can reach R$ 200,000.00.
What is the qualification of the professional able to prepare a PMOC?
According to Resolution CONFEA nº 218/73, which discriminates the activities of the different professional modalities of engineering, architecture and agronomy, it establishes in its Art. 12, item I that:
" It is incumbent upon the mechanical engineer or the mechanical and automobile engineer or the mechanical and armament engineer or the automobile engineer or the industrial engineer in the mechanical modality: the performance of activities 01 to 18 of article 1 of this Resolution, referring to mechanical processes, machines in general; industrial and mechanical installations; mechanical and electro-mechanical equipment; motor vehicles; systems for the production of transmission and use of heat; refrigeration and air-conditioning systems, and related and related services."
In the activities of art. 1 of the aforementioned Resolution is related, among others, to the direction of work or technical service, inspection, expertise, evaluation, report, technical opinion, research, analysis, experimentation, testing, technical disclosure, standardization, measurement and quality control , execution of work and technical service, leading the installation team, assembly, operation, repair or maintenance, operation and maintenance of equipment or installation.
What would be the minimum frequency for general cleaning of window type air conditioners?
The criterion recommended by Anvisa Resolution RE 9/03 is to carry out environmental measurements every 6 months, however Ordinance MS nº 3.523/98 recommends that the verification of the state of maintenance be carried out by the technician in charge who must also determine the periodicity of the inspection and cleaning through the PMOC.
In the company we only have window air conditioning. Should I still have PMOC?
Yes, PMOC is mandatory. And a technical manager is also required for air conditioning systems with a capacity above 5 tr (60,000 btu). Even if this capacity is reached by the sum of small systems within the same environment.
An example: a company has 2 splits of 36,000 BTUS that add up to 72,000 BTUS higher than the 60,000 BTUS minimum limit for the existence of a PMOC.