Charging Ahead: How Facilities Managers Can Navigate The Transition To An EV Workplace
If the UK is to meet its target of having net zero emissions by 2050, the adoption of electric vehicles (EV’s) by businesses is key. In fact, the UK government has set out the path for 80% of new cars and 70% new vans sold in the UK to be zero emission by 20301.
To meet these ambitious targets, organisations across the UK need to have strategic plans in place to transition their fleets from traditional combustion engines to EV’s.
This transition requires collaboration across multiple departments in an organisation, including fleet, procurement, operations, finance and facilities. Facility managers (FM’s) shape the infrastructure of their business’ premises, so therefore have a pivotal role to play in supporting the switch to an EV powered workforce.
This switch can be a daunting task for FM’s, with a myriad of challenges - from accessing power to futureproofing and maintaining the infrastructure. At NG Bailey, our own adoption of EV’s, combined with our expertise in electrical infrastructure and installations and our dedicated team of EV specialists, means we’re familiar with all of the roadblocks that lie ahead on this journey.
Here we have summarised some of the key challenges we have seen organisations face as they make this move.
Preparation Is Key
When beginning your journey, it’s essential to have a good understanding of your site, the requirements of the charging infrastructure and your organisation’s overall EV aspirations.
Power is a major factor for EV’s so knowing your current capacity and how you intend to charge your vehicles must be at the forefront of every EV strategy, as it can have a material impact on both the cost and time of delivering the project.
For instance, if you’re installing charging infrastructure at an office building, then you’ll most likely be charging your vehicles throughout the day, meaning that AC chargers may be an option. This could also be the case for logistics depots which charge vehicles at off‑peak times or overnight. These solutions have less impact on the electrical demand of the site and can be managed through load balancing software.
However, if your facility is a hub for last mile logistics, which needs quick turn arounds to get vehicles back on the road and deliveries out with minimum interruption, then rapid or ultra‑rapid solutions such as DC chargers may be necessary. These will likely require an upgrade to the existing capacity on site.
FM’s need to consider how their sites operate, and how charging vehicles may impact the day‑to‑day running of the business. It is important to understand how many and how often vehicles will be charging on the site, and their dwell time. This exercise shouldn’t only consider current requirements but also prepare for any future needs.
Dealing With Distribution Network Operators
If there’s a need for additional capacity then factors such as the amount of charging, time of day, and even the current property usage of electricity will need to be taken into account before you make an application to increase capacity with your DNO.
It’s also important to understand that securing additional capacity from a DNO is not as simple as pressing a button. It can take a minimum of 28 days and up to over six months if you need to obtain either an upgrade or new point connection.
We have worked with organisations previously who have ordered EV’s before considering the infrastructure requirements and securing the capacity. This can lead to costly and lengthy wait times and means that your new fleet of vehicles is not used efficiently, therefore planning and preparation is key.
Planning For The Total Cost Of Ownership
Ultimately, charging points are just the tip of the iceberg. The most significant cost when moving towards EV’s is the installation of the electrical infrastructure to support the chargers.
Most organisations traditionally have long‑term transition plans so may be tempted not to buy as many chargers right away or opt for lower capacity infrastructure to save on cost. Whilst this may save money in the short term, once electrical infrastructure is installed it is notoriously more difficult and expensive to dig it back up for upgrades, replacements, or expansions.
Savvy FM’s will future proof their sites to give them more capacity than they immediately need and enable them to grow the number of chargers as demand increases. It’s therefore critical to consider the long‑ term objectives of your organisation’s EV strategy and focus on installing high quality infrastructure at the start as part of the investment.
Aside from the initial infrastructure investment, the largest cost for FM’s is the maintenance of their EV charging provision. We believe that while the initial cost for better‑quality chargers can be more expensive, over the lifetime of a site it will offer a far better return on investment with less maintenance and less time offline for repairs.
When the infrastructure is in place to charge fleet vehicles this is even more important, as any down time could cost the organisation in lost revenue and reputational impact. We work with customers to select the right charging infrastructure and the right back‑office system to monitor the charging infrastructure on. These systems provide automatic notifications when chargers are offline and can be remotely rebooted, potentially saving on the cost of an engineer having to attend site.
Trusted Partners
As the number of commercial EV’s continue to rise, and with the deadline for the transition to net zero emissions vehicles creeping ever closer, it is more important than ever to begin your organisation’s migration. The most important choice an FM can make when beginning their EV journey is choosing trusted partners to guide them through the process and support them along the way. So, wherever you are in your EV journey, it’s important to work with partners who you trust so you can focus on your core business.
1: Gov.uk, Government sets out path to zero emission vehicles by 2035: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government‑sets‑out‑path‑to‑zero‑emission‑vehicles‑by‑2035
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