IGSHPA: the body behind ground source heat pump training and standards

What IGSHPA is

IGSHPA, the International Ground Source Heat Pump Association, is a non-profit organisation dedicated to one specific technology: the ground source, or geothermal, heat pump. It is based at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma, and was established in the late 1980s as the technology began to move from niche experiment to mainstream heating option in parts of the United States.

Its purpose is to make sure that the people who design and install these systems know what they are doing. It does this by developing training courses, awarding installer accreditations, publishing technical standards and gathering the industry together to share good practice. In short, it is the professional backbone of the ground source heat pump trade.

What IGSHPA does

The association's work concentrates on the quality and competence of the installation workforce, which is where most heat pump problems begin and end. Its main activities include:

• Training and accreditation, running courses that teach installers how to size, design and commission ground loop systems correctly;
• Technical standards, publishing installation guidance that sets a common benchmark for quality across the industry;
• Research and knowledge sharing, drawing on its university base to test and improve system design;
• Industry coordination, bringing manufacturers, installers and researchers together to raise standards across the sector.

By certifying installers and codifying best practice, the association reduces the risk that a homeowner ends up with an expensive system that never delivers the efficiency it was sold on.

How ground source heat pumps work

A ground source heat pump exploits a simple fact: a few metres below the surface, the ground stays at a fairly steady temperature all year, warmer than the winter air and cooler than the summer air. Buried pipes, the ground loop, carry a fluid that absorbs this low-grade heat. A heat pump then compresses that heat to a useful temperature for radiators, underfloor heating and hot water.

The appeal is efficiency. A well-designed system can deliver roughly three to four units of heat for every unit of electricity it consumes, far more than a direct electric heater. Because it runs on electricity rather than gas, and because that electricity can come from renewable sources, a heat pump is a cornerstone technology for low-carbon heating.

Why installer standards matter so much

Heat pumps are unusually sensitive to installation quality. Get the ground loop too small, the flow temperature too high or the controls wrong, and the same hardware that should slash a heating bill can end up costing more to run than the system it replaced. Unlike a gas boiler, which is relatively forgiving, a heat pump rewards precision and punishes shortcuts.

This is exactly why an organisation devoted to training and certification exists. Standardised competence protects consumers, builds trust in the technology and prevents a handful of bad installations from damaging the reputation of an entire low-carbon industry. The same principle underpins the accreditation schemes that govern heat pump work elsewhere in the world.

The link to UK low-carbon heating

Heat pumps are central to the UK's plan to decarbonise home heating and move away from gas boilers. Ground source systems are less common here than air source models, largely because they need space for the ground loop, but they offer strong efficiency where the site allows. The engineering challenges IGSHPA addresses, correct sizing, proper commissioning and skilled installation, are precisely the ones facing the UK heat pump rollout.

For UK households, the practical lesson is to treat installer competence as seriously as the hardware itself. A certified, experienced installer is the single biggest factor in whether a heat pump lives up to its promise. To understand how the electricity that powers a heat pump is priced, see our guides to the regulator Ofgem and the standing charge, and compare tariffs from UK energy providers.

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