Top tips for fleet charging installations

A brief guide for EV infrastructure project success

By ABB product marketing manager – e-Mobility, Debbie van der Schyff

Fleet electrification is widely considered to be the economic driving force that accelerates e-mobility via asset utilisation and scale.

However, fleets also have infrastructure needs that may differ from traditional charging infrastructure, such as site design to power levels, charger features and analytics. Still, what remains constant for every EV infrastructure project are the demands for safety, intelligence, and advanced planning.

The industry players involved in the electrification of transport—the OEMs, infrastructure technologists, utilities, contractors, and networks—accumulate a lot of knowledge already. They’ve established standards that normalise everything from the shape of charging plugs to the design requirements for new charging installations and are building a library of best practices.

As a global leader in electrification, ABB has deployed high power EV charging systems for more than a decade. From that unique position and with a lot of lessons learned, I offer some tips and insights for ensuring safety, intelligence, and long-term optimisation for EV charging deployments.

1. Safety first, safety always

• Safety standards – EV charging places high power into everyone’s hands, so safety is always paramount and should never take a back seat. Make sure chargers and supportive grid connected equipment meet or exceed relevant safety standards such as UL, NEC, ISO and more.

• Secure your equipment – Choose charger and equipment designs that keep moisture, animals, and would-be vandals at bay. Water is the enemy of electrical systems, so the design should keep humidity out and provide drying inside the enclosure when condensation levels get too high.

• Electrical safety – Charging systems must have a disconnecting means, which shall be lockable open, typically within line of sight of the EV charger to accommodate first responders and meet NEC requirements. This may be a circuit breaker with a padlock or a disconnect switch depending on the local authority’s requirements. A charger should have a safety interlock system that prevents charging under unsafe conditions, such as those caused by vehicular impact or vandalism.

• Site services – Safety relies on people so ensure those who install, commission and service are qualified service engineers. And never skimp on annual preventative maintenance where ongoing safety checks are performed.

2. Get smart, get connected

• Energy management – Managing the power draw of charging systems can reduce utility demand fees. Capacity required on site should always be in line with local guidelines, like WorkSafe. Load management will assist with site planning to optimise the site power during off peak times.

• Interoperable back-office integration – OCPP offers an industry accepted protocol with smart charging functionality to enable managed charging programs that accomplish load balancing while incentivising lower energy costs for infrastructure owners.

• Sequential charging – Improving cost of ownership through asset utilisation and automated charging services can also be found with sequential charging technology. This charging feature will allow a single power device to deliver power to multiple charge points sequentially over time, often overnight or during scheduled breaks.

• Asset health monitoring – It’s essential that charging systems be monitored from anywhere, so they must be connected. Analytics from the data streams allow remote intervention, with up to 80% of faults addressed without service personnel dispatched to site.

3. Build partnerships early and often

• Tap experience – Find trusted partners such as engineering and design firms who are familiar with the complexities of siting for variables like cable reach and vehicle movement scenarios. Additionally, infrastructure companies with proven technology and extensive field experience will be valuable consultants, whether addressing high power electrification equipment, future-proofing strategies or optimizing the user experience.

• Specify interoperability – Interoperability offers the entire EV industry the shared benefits of safety and scale. Every charging system should comply with common, open standards. Testing and validation should be completed prior to deployment for functional ‘plug and play’ interoperability across all vehicles and charging assets.

• Get to know your utility – Engaging the local utility early in the project planning process is critical to meeting timelines. Utilities have very experienced electrical infrastructure engineers who are eager to support their customers, but also need sufficient timelines to ensure feasibility, identify upgrades and build these actions into their system planning cycles.

TOP TIP: Stay ahead of the curve

EV charging technology continues to advance with functionality like energy storage, islanding and remote management built into chargers and extended to charging facilities. Asset health monitoring is gaining traction rapidly with charging owners and operators. It’s important for fleet owners, contractors, and suppliers to plan ahead, leverage industry standards and build best practices so that the transition to e-mobility at scale is a smooth one.

About the author

Debbie van der Schyff’s career with the ABB started in 1997 where she was a sales assistant for the Measurement business in South Africa. During her 25-year career with ABB, she has held various roles ranging from Industrial Automation, Smart Home Systems and Uninterruptable Power Supply solutions.

The journey with ABB provided variety, innovation and global mobility that resonated with her love of travel.

Deciding to settle in Aotearoa in 2009 was challenging but presented van der Schyff an opportunity to experience a new culture with endless possibilities.

As the product marketing manager for the e-Mobility division for ABB New Zealand, van der Schyff assists businesses with charging solutions for EV technology.