Photo courtesy of Evercar
EVgo selects Driivz as IT service provider
Charging network EVgo, which operates over 800 DC fast chargers in 66 markets, has chosen Driivz, which has offices in California and Israel, as its preferred IT solutions service provider in North America. Driivz offers a cloud-based software platform that manages operations, user grid integration, billing and driver applications. According to the companies, the new platform will offer new benefits for network users, including an upgraded web portal that will enable remote vehicle charging, an improved enrollment process for EVgo’s billing plans, simplified payment, and roaming and instant notification capabilities. For charging site owners, EVgo will offer a new portal for charge reporting and data collection. “Following an extensive worldwide review of options, EVgo selected Driivz as the most user-friendly, stable, advanced and innovative SaaS platform for the management of electric vehicle charging infrastructure available today,” said Dave Schembri, CEO of EVgo.
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Photo courtesy of BMW Group
BMW Digital Charging Service optimizes charging to minimize costs and maximize solar
Recognizing that smart charging is the wave of the future, BMW i has introduced its new Digital Charging Service (DCS), which it calls an “intelligent service for predictive, convenient, cost-effective and green power-optimized charging.” DCS is designed to carry out the charging process independently and autonomously. Its two core functions are tariff-optimized and solar-optimized charging. Tariff-optimized charging aligns the charging plan to the customer’s electricity cost, automatically charging at the lowest available rates. Solar-optimized charging is aligned to a domestic photovoltaic system. DCS predicts available solar power based on the weather forecast and establishes a charging plan. Along with DCS, BMW i is launching two additional Wallbox home chargers, which can now handle threephase charging levels up to 22 kW. The top-of-the-range Wallbox Connect can record the amount of electricity delivered separately for each vehicle, and export the data to track charging costs. The new service will be offered on a pilot basis in Germany and the Netherlands in early 2017.