P L A Y B O O K
SUSTAINABILITY
5 MINUTE LEARNING
PLAYBOOK 07
Practical fleet guidance in five-minute learning plans
07
EV CHARGING AND INFRASTRUCTURE 7 practical steps for navigating charging infrastructure gaps
REAL-WORLD INSIGHTS from industry experts
Fleet. Wise.
PRACTICAL GUIDANCE you can apply today
BIGGER PICTURE
for a more sustainable fleet
EXPERT KNOWLEDGE, ACCESSIBLE TO EVERY FLEET
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1
Understand charging behaviour before installing infrastructure
Many fleets still begin infrastructure planning by estimating how many chargers they think they need. The stronger approach is to understand charging behaviour first, including where vehicles dwell, how often they return to depot and which routes create charging pressure. Platforms such as Webfleet, Samsara and Geotab are increasingly helping fleets build this operational picture before infrastructure deployment begins.
EXPLORE: FLEET TELEMATICS AND MANAGEMENT
www.webfleet.com
www.samsara.com
www.geotab.com
2
Take advantage of workplace and depot infrastructure funding
A growing number of fleets still underestimate the scale of charging infrastructure funding now available. The UK’s Depot Charging Scheme offers up to 70% funding towards depot charging and civil works, capped at £1 million per organisation. Workplace Charging Scheme grants have also increased to £500 per socket, making early infrastructure planning more valuable than ever.
Up to
70% funding available
3
Build charging around multiple environments
Most EV fleets quickly evolve into mixed charging ecosystems involving depot, home, public and near-home charging. That creates complexity around reimbursement, visibility and operational consistency. Providers such as Rightcharge, Allstar and Paua are helping fleets manage charging payments, reimbursement, public charging access and consolidated billing across multiple charging environments.
EXPLORE: CHARGING PAYMENT PLATFORMS
www.rightcharge.co.uk
www.allstarcard.co.uk
www.paua.com
4
Explore managed charging models early
A growing number of fleets are discovering they do not necessarily want to manage charging infrastructure internally at scale. Charging-as-a-Service models from providers including Impact Energy Global, and Mer combine infrastructure, monitoring, maintenance and energy management into a single operational solution. For many fleets, the biggest value is reducing complexity as charging activity grows.
EXPLORE: FLEET CHARGING SOLUTIONS uk.mer.eco
5
Prioritise uptime over charger volume
More chargers do not automatically create better charging operations. As fleets become more dependent on EV uptime, infrastructure reliability, maintenance response times and software resilience become operationally critical. Providers such as Gridserve are focusing heavily on charger resilience, while Zapmap helps fleets improve route planning through real-time charger availability, reliability data and network visibility.
EXPLORE: EV CHARGING NETWORK
www.gridserve.com
www.zap-map.com
6
Treat energy planning as part of fleet planning
That imbalance is becoming increasingly important as fleets scale. Rightcharge analysis suggests moving drivers onto managed home charging and EV-specific tariffs can save around £1,000 per driver annually. Providers such as Rightcharge, mer and Octopus Electric Vehicles are helping fleets treat charging and energy planning as part of wider operational strategy rather than standalone infrastructure deployment.
Public charging accounts for just 27% of sessions, but it’s draining 57% of total charging costs. Charlie Cook, Founder & CEO, Rightcharge
EXPLORE: EV ENERGY PLANNING
www.rightcharge.co.uk
https://octopusev.com
7
Pilot operationally before scaling commercially
The fleets navigating electrification most effectively are often the ones scaling most carefully. Controlled trials help fleets understand: ■ Real charging demand ■ Driver charging behaviour ■ Site pressure ■ Software reliability ■ Infrastructure performance Before wider rollout decisions are made. Mer’s work with Elis demonstrates the value of aligning charging infrastructure with operational requirements before investing at scale.
EXPLORE: MANAGING THE EV TRANSITION
https://uk.mer.eco
MORE FLEET WISDOM IN THIS SERIES: RELATED CONTENT ■ Why fleets are losing control of charging before they’ve fully scaled ■ What good charging strategy actually looks like Join Better Fleet for best-practice planning that’s proven through real-world case studies. For all your fleet information needs, visit
WWW.FLEETWISE.ONLINE To promote your products and services directly to the UK’s 35,000 fleets, via Better Fleet, contact Lisa Turner at lisa@fleetwise.info or Ian Richardson at ian.richardson@360mediagroupltd.com
P L A Y B O O K
Practical fleet guidance in five-minute learning plans