The STEK quality mark — what it is, what it gets you and how to keep it

STEK (opent in nieuw tabblad) — Stichting Emissiepreventie Koudetechniek, active since 1992 — is the leading company quality mark in Dutch refrigeration and air conditioning. For clients in retail, food, refrigerated transport and — for some years now — housing associations, "STEK-recognised" is often a hard tender requirement. How you apply for the company certificate and your technicians' personal certificates is covered in Applying for an F-gas certificate.

STEK versus BRL 100 — not the same thing

A common misconception: that STEK and BRL 100 are interchangeable. They are not. BRL 100 is a process certificate based on quality management requirements, issued by one of six authorised certifying bodies (including Kiwa NV) — InstallQ is not among them, see what is BRL 100?. STEK is a separate, older foundation with its own assessment framework that focuses more on refrigeration-specific professional competence and environmental performance indicators (leak rate, recycling percentage).

Many installation companies hold both quality marks. Why? Because BRL 100 is often the requirement set out in public tenders, while STEK is the quality mark that end customers in refrigeration recognise.

The minimum requirements for STEK

In broad terms, STEK asks for:

• At least two technicians employed with a valid BRL 200 / F-gas certification.
• A calibrated set of tools: leak detector, gauge set, vacuum pump, recovery equipment — calibrated no more than 12 months ago.
• Refrigerant records that add up: per cylinder, per installation, per change. A leak rate of at most 1% on an annual basis (measured across all installed charge).
• A management review (annual internal review) in which the points above are explicitly discussed.
• An external audit roughly every 2 years (the certificate is valid for 2 years + 3 months from the last audit).

The STEK annual report

Once a year a STEK-recognised company has to submit an annual report. It sets out, among other things: total installed refrigerant charge per type, total additions, total recoveries, and the calculated leak percentage.

Putting this report together from loose Excel sheets can easily take a week. In Koldwerk the reports module generates this annual report automatically from your refrigerant changes — STEK-compliant CSV format, one export button.

What if your leak percentage is too high?

STEK can take corrective action if your leak rate goes above 1%. That starts with a warning and an improvement plan; on repetition the recognition can be withdrawn. In concrete terms: make sure RECOVERY is always recorded — not just ADDITION. Otherwise the unexplained difference counts as leakage.

Tip: at Koldwerk the refrigerant balance shows, per type, the difference between installed and theoretical. A negative number = possible leak or missing change entry. Walking through it monthly prevents surprises at the end of the year.

STEK in 2026 and beyond

BRL 100 version 3.0 formally applies from 31 August 2026, with a transitional period of 24 months until 31 August 2028 in which companies are audited against the new version in phases. Additional requirements are added for annual report export, technician certificate tracking and automatic leak-check frequency according to the 5-tonne CO₂-eq limit. See the full timeline at /compliance-tijdlijn.

Further reading

• STEK vs BRL 100 — the two quality marks side by side: when do you need which?
• SCIOS scope 14 and refrigeration: a common misconception put right — SCIOS scope 14 is about heating systems, not about refrigeration installations; this article explains the difference with STEK and BRL 100.
• Applying for an F-gas certificate — applying for the company certificate + personal certificates step by step.
• BRL 100 audit checklist download — free checklist to test your audit preparation.

Disclaimer: STEK requirements can change — check stek.nl (opent in nieuw tabblad) for the assessment documents and the annual report template currently in force.