Challenges to Fleet Electrification

Challenge 1: Purchase?Price

Although prices are going down, the purchase price of EVs is often higher today than a comparably-sized gasoline or diesel vehicle.?Fortunately, fleet operators tend to take a TCO and payback period view when making vehicle purchases, enabling recognition that electrification saves money in the long-term.

Challenge 2: Limited?Vehicle Options

The current availability of EV options depends on the use case. Although there are currently a variety of options for light duty vehicles (e.g. suitable for passenger transport and food delivery fleets), options for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles are currently limited. This will change rapidly, as production of larger EVs ramps. It is predicted that there will be roughly 100 medium- and heavy-duty vehicle models commercially available in the next 2 years.

Challenge 3:?Deploying On-site

Fleet managers have to determine the best mix of charging equipment, including the power level (L2 vs DCFC) and equipment manufacturer(s) that can best meet the fleet reliability and cost needs. The equipment needs to be installed, which requires designing a site layout to optimize charging, and possibly upgrading site power to meet power requirements. Additionally, fleets need to engage with utilities and local government authorities in the planning and permitting processes.

Challenge 4: Managing On-site Electrical Load and Vehicle Range

Recharging an EV is different from refilling a gasoline engine. Electric fleet managers must learn a new system of fueling driven by kWh, kW, amps and volts. It takes more time to charge an EV than fuel an ICE vehicle. If charging is not well-managed, it is possible to incur high electricity bills, or for fleet vehicles to not be charged and ready for their daily shifts. Drivers also face a learning curve when understanding the vehicle’s range, as well as how this varies based on vehicle routes, weather, and driving patterns.

Keys to Effective EV Transition

To succeed in electrification, it is important to leverage industry experience, take a holistic approach, and utilize expertise when selecting partners. Finally it is critical to have a plan for ongoing site operations and maintenance, while also staying agile to adapt in this dynamic and rapidly evolving market.

Choosing your change points

When planning for charging infrastructure, the amount of charging that will need to be done on-site will impact the type and number of charge points installed. Select your charging infrastructure based on your fleet operational needs. Understanding driving patterns of your drivers is a critical step during the process of planning charging infrastructure as it allows you to plan your charging options and where to install them.?

Take a vehicle and charger agnostic approach: consider a full range of vehicle and charger solutions.

Charging software

Energy management: is a key aspect to consider whether it’s about load sharing across chargers or load shifting to reduce demand charges and avoid unnecessary upgrades.?

Charging optimization: co-optimization of vehicle duty cycle, fleet uptime, and fuel costs for both scheduled operations and unplanned contingencies provide the lowest cost per?

Interoperability: leveraging open-standards like OCPP will avoid vendor lock-in and make it easier to scale your fleet electrification efforts as technology evolves.

Home integration: the ability to track your fleet vehicles which are charged at employees homes to allow for correct reimbursement.

Future-proof your site

Site selection: If new sites are needed, then thoughtful site selection will help minimize project costs and timelines.

Site Assessment: While equipment costs may be known, installation costs can vary wildly. Ask your charger supplier to perform a site assessment and help you develop an installation plan. They can also help you understand whether additional power service upgrades are needed.

Utility coordination, Engineering, and Design: ask your charging service provider to help with utility engagement as early as possible in the design and permitting process, especially if distribution grid upgrades are needed. The ownership of the depot location and length of future lease are key considerations before grid upgrades are made as landlord approvals may be required; cost sharing may be an option too for shared parking.

Load management techniques can be applied to allow the site to always remain within available capacity, regardless of the number of vehicles plugged in.