Putting the “electric” in EVs

This story first appeared in the August issue of EVtalk – CLICK HERE to download the magazine FREE

Electricians need to be part of the electric vehicle conversation.

So says Marcel Roquette, sustainability advisor for Corys Electrical.

With new electrical regulations around EVS due out soon, Roquette says it’s more important than ever to have experts in the electrical field involved.

It’s not simply a case of plugging in an EV and forgetting about it – the whole situation around electrics and EVs is far more complex.

Roquette points to Corys Electrical’s own newly installed charger at its Auckland head office as a case in point.

The Mode 3 electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) with Type 2 sockets has essentially been installed to service a Ford Focus Electric on a year’s evaluation with Corys Electrical.
The charger is expected to be available for public use once it’s connected to the ChargeNet NZ network.

Installing the Schneider charger wasn’t a straight forward job.
The old switchboard had to be upgraded to cope, says Marty Bedford of Thompson Electrical which did the entire job.

Like many chargers, the device also had to be internet connected (cloud connectable) so the EV and charger “talk” to each other.

During about 25 hours of work on the switchboard change-over and cable connections to a computer, a generator had to be used to provide power.

“Expensive” and “challenging” were words used around the whole task.

An Electrical Certificate of Compliance (Electrical Safety Certificate) for the work had to be ticked off.
It rated the work in compliance with AS/NZS 3000 standards, that the work had been done in accordance with certified design for the installation, that it’s safe to use and not adversely affected any other part of the installation.

That’s all necessary to meet insurance requirements, with EV charging installations branded “medium risk”.

“So if anything goes wrong, like a fire, the electrician or electrical firm involved would immediately be asked for compliance documentation,” Roquette says.
These, including a Supplier Declaration of Conformity (SDoC), would be used by insurance companies to help determine any liability.

Security aspects had to be checked as well, with the charging system isolated to avoid any issues around that.

But it all worked out well for Corys Electrical, with the charger installation and accompanying work given a high endorsement by the testers and agencies involved.

“We want to be a leading supplier of EV charging infrastructure, so many aspects of it we need to trial ourselves as customers expect safe solutions,” Roquette says.

Imagine the home owner or landlord who wants to plug-in an EV or have a charger installed.
“The first thing they would do is call an electrician and ask what they are supposed to do,” Roquette says.

“In many cases, the electrician can’t always answer all the questions, so they turn to us to help them.”
Roquette says it would be easier to have a simply understood standard format to respond in such situations.

There are so many products now on the world market with varying aspects to them, he says.

“It needs to be simplified.”
He’d like to see New Zealand have a set of guidelines for electricians which can be ticked off, rather like the British IET code of practice which has a 110-page guide.
“I’ve suggested we could use that as a basis for something similar in New Zealand.”
A 40-page check list, covering all the different aspects and complexities around EVSE, could be adopted for New Zealand to make it easier for electricians and others.
It could require boxes for an electrician to mark off, for example, that they’ve contacted the grid operator about the planned installation.

Some garages have contacted Corys to ask about what chargers to use.

Electricians are expected to know it all about EVs and charging.
“We need to be very clear on the different standards and have the basics clear,” Roquette adds.

He says this year the company has been “swamped” with enquiries and requests relating to EVs and charging.
So any products have to be reliable and 100% safe, Roquette says.

Regulations are changing to keep up with the EV uptake and infrastructure.
Roquette says the talk has included some electricians, but he’d like to see further consultation with the electrical industry.

And he says it’s uncertain when the new regulations will be released.

He’d also like to see a “one size fits all” charging unit produced to remove a lot of the complexity, and more training for electricians around EVs and the infrastructure
From France, Roquette has been involved in the electrical industry about seven years, having gained university qualifications in sustainability and working for Corys Electrical’s parent company French-based Sonepar Group.
He’s also worked in countries like Canada and has been involved in solar and recycling ventures.

He became interested in EVs while growing up after seeing all the French Post (La Poste) chargers for their electric Renault Kangoos around Paris.
“Then they ripped them all out.”
Roquette has been at Corys Electrical nearly two years and believes New Zealand, with its renewable energy sources, has a key part to play globally in the EVolution.