The popularity of electric vehicles and increasing external pressures have created an optimal time for businesses to invest in commercial EV charging. Commercial sites across the UK have begun to reap the benefits of installing EV charging at their premises, but the introduction of this environmentally-friendly technology is not without its obstacles.
In this blog post, we explore some of the most common challenges facing commercial EV charging, and how ORKA can help you overcome them…
1. Demand management
When introducing EV charging to a commercial site, it’s important to have a complete understanding of the expected usage of your customers, visitors and other stakeholders, while ensuring that appropriate demand management measures are in place.
Demand management refers to risk mitigation practices that help commercial sites control the energy being consumed through its EV charging points. By ignoring demand management, commercial sites can be at risk of higher electricity costs; this can occur if a premises is consuming too much electricity during peak times as many UK energy providers tend to charge more during times of high demand.
Another potential concern is that some older UK commercial buildings might not be able to power a large number of EV charging stations simultaneously if they have an outdated electrical infrastructure.
Solution: ORKA can thoroughly evaluate the capabilities of your commercial site, while determining the number of chargers needed to manage the expectations of your stakeholders.
Customers who collaborate with ORKA for its EV charging solution will also benefit from the use of Fuuse. This innovative software can be utilised to enhance the demand management practices of a commercial site, and to spread out the usage of charging points.
With Fuuse, our customers can introduce paid-for charging to start making a return on its investment, and to alleviate the electricity costs associated with EV charging. For example, commercial sites may wish to charge a higher price for customers to charge vehicles during peak times, while offering this for free during off-peak periods. A practice like this can be enough to alleviate some of the risks associated with a charging infrastructure that’s in high demand.
2. Controlled usage
Another potential challenge associated with commercial charging sites is managing the expectations of stakeholders. If your site welcomes a lot of traffic day-to-day, then it can be difficult to balance out the usage of EV chargers amongst customers, visitors and employees.
While a convenient benefit to external stakeholders, EV charging is an excellent and often sought-after perk for employees who may believe they should have priority usage over customers and visitors.
Solution: Commercial sites should consider implementing a fair usage policy which can help ensure all parties can access the charging points. A fair usage policy can be combined with our software to shape the availability of the charging points - for example, customers can set-up charging points that are exclusive to employees, or introduce customer or employee-only charging times.
3. Maintenance and repairs
A potential challenge for commercial sites is the general maintenance and upkeep of its charging stations. As some experts recommend servicing charging points at least once a year, this can become quite costly to commercial operators that have installed a large number of EV points.
Solution: By choosing to collaborate with ORKA, you are guaranteed a bespoke EV charging solution that utilises only the highest quality technology and software. This attention to detail and quality means our customers avoid the risk of regular breakdowns.
Our customers also benefit from working with a highly-experienced team who will never cut corners when it comes to the installation of charging points, and who are just a phone call away should any problems arise.
Finally, every one of our customers benefit from first-class support services from ORKA.
4. Making a return on investment
Large commercial sites likely require a high number of charging stations to be installed to meet the demand of its customers, visitors and other stakeholders, meaning a significant investment is often necessary.
Solution: By using ORKA’s software, a rapid return on investment is possible as this provides the opportunity to introduce EV charging on a paid-for basis.
Fuuse software gives customers complete control over who can access its charging stations and at what cost. Many of ORKA’s customers choose to give employees free access to EV charging, while customers and other visitors are expected to pay a fee depending on the amount of energy consumed while charging a vehicle.
Looking for advice on whether or not to install EV charging stations on a paid-for basis? Get in touch with ORKA’s team of experts today.
5. Issues with pre-installed charging points
A commercial site can face a multitude of challenges if it has relied on a poor supplier for the installation of charging stations. Reputation matters, as customers who collaborate with a poorly-reviewed supplier can suffer from continuous breakdowns, a charging solution that isn’t compatible with the site’s electrical infrastructure, and may even be stuck with a system where they can’t control usage or make a return on investment.
Solution: ORKA’s commercial site solutions are completely bespoke to your specific premises, including its capabilities and the demand of your stakeholders. By utilising our software, we give our customers the power to control exactly who uses the charging stations, at what time, and at what cost.
6. Vandalism and misuse
Unfortunately, it’s very possible for charging points to be the subject of vandalism, theft or misuse. Remote commercial sites and car parks are at a heightened risk if the appropriate security measures are not in place.
Solution: We recommend our customers take an extra step to ensure the security of its charging points by installing proactive measures, such as CCTV or controlled access to its car park.
Our friends at Kore Solutions are ready to help customers with all its security needs. Get in touch with Kore’s expert team by clicking here.
