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With the current shift towards Electric Vehicles (EVs), there needs to be adequate infrastructure to support it.
One of the main factors to consider when getting an EV is EV charging. You can charge your EV in three ways – at home using a domestic EV charger, at your workplace with office charging points, and at public charging stations around the country.
EV Charging stations at work can be a convenient way for employees to recharge their EVs during office hours while they are parked there during the day.
From a business point of view, and of course, considering the substantial increase in the number of EVs on UK roads, having office charge points will become not just increasingly important but also extremely necessary to accommodate both employees and visitors.
The UK government has plans to impose a ban on new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 as a way to promote EVs amongst the masses and curb carbon emissions.
They have also introduced grants as a way to financially support and encourage the installation of both domestic and workplace EV chargers.
Similar to the Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme (EVHS) to support domestic installations, the government has introduced the Workplace Charging Scheme (WCS) for all kinds of businesses, organisations, charities, and local authorities.
Read on to find out all about the Workplace EV charging Scheme, what’s involved in it, and how to choose the best office charging points:
The Workplace Charging Scheme (WCS) is funded by the Government’s Office for Zero Emissions Vehicles (OZEV) in order to provide financial support to businesses looking to install office EV charging stations.
Its main purpose is to reduce the cost of installing EV charge points in workplaces and encourage the general population to make the shift from petrol-powered vehicles to EVs by providing them with sufficient and convenient charge points near them.
The WCS grant allows workplaces to claim 75% of the total cost of installation, up to a maximum of £350 per socket installed, and a maximum of 40 sockets across all sites for each workplace.
All businesses in the UK can benefit from the grant. There are, however, a few conditions to be eligible:
You must declare a legitimate need for EV chargers for your business that may include:
A wide range of EVs are covered in the grant that includes cars, motorcycles, mopeds, vans, taxis, and trucks. However, it must be noted that not all EVs will qualify for the grant and only those approved by the government will make the cut for eligible EVs.
Businesses cannot claim for existing EV charging points, since the grant is only available for new installations, that too fitted only by OZEV-approved installers.
Standard 3-pin sockets are not eligible for the WCS fund. The EV chargers must provide a minimum of 3 kW power and be able to accommodate multiple EVs simultaneously.
An office will have several different types of EVs coming in and going, belonging to both employees and visitors. Therefore, office charging points must cater to different connectivity needs and are compatible with the maximum number of EVs possible.
The most common workplace charger installation is a wall-mounted Type 2 charger with a 7kW rate of power. This is compatible with almost all the top-rated EVs in the market and, depending on the model and battery size, can charge one fully in around 3 to 7 hours.
Some workplaces may also opt for a faster 22kW charger or a rapid charger if they have the space and budget for it.
Wall-mounted chargers are the most common in workplaces because they are usually cheaper to install than free-standing ones, which are, no doubt a great option, but usually have a high installation cost.
For workplaces that wish to install EV charging points in areas that are accessible to the public, they need to consider access requirements, such as using a key or RFID cards to allow only authorised individuals to use the service.
Many EV charging point manufacturers offer an extra level of control in the form of reports being generated on the energy use, the number of charge points used, and the impact it has on carbon emissions.
The two main costs of workplace EV chargers are the price of the charger itself and the installation fee. As an example, a professionally installed Type 2 7kW unit would cost somewhere around £1,500, after the WCS Grant has been applied.
Similarly, a 22kW system would cost around £2,500 to £5,000, including the WCS Grant, while a rapid charging installation may go up to £35,000.
A professional installer will be able to give you a quote for the unit as well as its installation costs once a suitable system has been selected.
There is no one golden number. It is a decision based on several factors that include the number of electric cars, the type of chargers required, the space available, and the budget for the installations.
One of the first things you need to consider is who will be using the charge points and what they need. For instance, employees who have a home electric car charging point and live nearby will probably not charge at work since they wouldn’t need to.
On the other hand, field-based employees with no homecharge unit and a longer commute will make use of the office charging stations. For such people, a workplace charge point could become their primary source and most frequently used charging station.
For businesses that have an existing fleet of EVs, their charging requirements need to be considered, in addition to planning forward for future needs and requirements.
As impressive as it may sound, faster isn’t always better – or necessary – for most businesses. It is often thought that the more powerful and fast the charger is, the better it will be for the organisation and employees. In reality, that is not the case.
A 7kW charge point will typically provide an EV up to 5 miles of charge in 10 minutes. A rapid 150kW charger, on the other hand, would give around 100 miles in the same time.
The requirement for EV chargers, and their speed, will be determined by the number and type of electric vehicles used.
Businesses also need to determine the amount of power available to them since rapid chargers providing 150kW+ will, quite obviously, need much more power than chargers providing 7kW.
Chargers with a load balancing feature can also be installed for greater flexibility where the systems can be configured according to the users’ requirements.
The cost is also a huge contributing factor that varies massively. A 7kW charger capable of charging two EVs at the same time would cost around £4,000, whereas a 150kW unit would cost upwards of £100,000.
The demand needs to be gauged and high-powered chargers must only be installed if there is an actual need for them. If the users have their cars parked for most of the day, there is no need for ultra-rapid chargers since they have plenty of time to recharge their cars during office hours.
On the contrary, if users are mostly on the go and are at the workplace for only a short amount of time, they can surely benefit from a high-powered charging infrastructure.
It may also be wise to consider a mix of both regular-powered and high-powered EV chargers to accommodate the different types of users in the organisation, while also keeping a check on the budget and other valuable resources.
When planning for the ideal location for EV charging points, every workplace will have its own considerations with the key factor being the location of the property’s power supply.
The closer the charging points are to the power supply, the less digging will be required, which will in turn lower the total cost of installation.
The electricity supply used to power the charge points is usually found within the main building of the workplace, which is why charge points are mostly installed adjacent to them rather than in the middle of the company’s car park.
Ideally, office EV charge points must be installed in easy-to-locate, prominent locations. Locating them near the entrance could be a bonus, although that would require strict access control to prevent misuse.
The charge points must be positioned in a way to accommodate the EVs since most of them have a charging port on or near the front, which may be an issue in workplaces with a reverse parking policy.
Signage is an important part of workplace charge points, where it needs to be made clear that the area is reserved for EV charging only.
The accepted signage is ‘Electric vehicle recharging point only’ instead of ‘Electric vehicles only’, which can be misconstrued to believe the space can also be used for EV parking.
Workplace EV charging has several benefits for the organisation, its employees, and visitors.
Being able to charge their EVs at work encourages the adoption of greener practices among employees. This is particularly true for those employees who do not have access to home EV charging points and rely on either workplace chargers or public EV charging stations.
Since most employee cars are left idle in the company’s car park during the day, this time could successfully be utilised by providing an excellent opportunity to charge their EVs.
Workplace charging can be listed as a fantastic employee perk and may help your organisation rank better in terms of employee retention and productivity.
It can also help minimise range anxiety, which is a common fear among EV owners, who will be assured of being able to charge their cars while they work during the day.
Workplace EV charging helps organisations reach their sustainability goals by greatly reducing CO2 emissions and fulfilling their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
To enjoy the benefits of workplace EV charging, all users must use the service responsibly and follow certain etiquettes to make it a great experience for all, such as:
According to the law, as of 1st July 2019, in order to qualify for a government-funded grant, all charge points must use smart technology so that they can be remotely accessed by the owners/operators to:
Smart EV chargers are intelligent charging systems that connect all the components of the charging infrastructure, including the EVs and the EV chargers, through the internet.
As opposed to traditional EV chargers, smart EV chargers allow the business to remotely monitor, manage, and restrict the use of their devices to optimise the usage and energy consumption.
Smart chargers require the users to identify themselves at the charging station, which is done either by logging on to the mobile application provided by the manufacturer or by showing their RFID tag to the charger.
Smart chargers provide a lot of benefits to both the owners and users of the system through added convenience and control.
For users, the smart charging app makes it easy to locate the nearest charging station, in addition to getting information about the charger’s capacity and price, along with its availability in real-time.
Smart chargers are faster and energy-efficient, and automatically use the maximum amount of power available. Most smart chargers charge at a maximum power of 22 kW, with fast smart chargers going up to 150kW.
They are also a much safer option since they automatically test the connection before charging to see if the EV and EV charger are compatible or not.
Lastly, since all the events and usage can be tracked down, smart charging helps avoid unnecessary disputes over power consumption and bills.
Monitoring allows the owners/operators to remotely control charging events, view the statistics, and report any issues that may arise.
At Calder Electrical, we can install EV chargers for domestic and commercial premises in line with the current regulations and can offer a government incentive to reduce the installation costs.
We are authorised and registered OLEV installers and our charge points come with a 3-year warranty.
If you own an EV or are planning to buy one, you will want to maximise recharge times and efficiency by installing an OLEV approved charger in your home. Our team can visit you and survey your house to help determine your needs and requirements.
There are various chargers currently in the market and it can be a little confusing to choose the best one for your home. We will take out the hassle and provide you with the most suitable and affordable option, ranging from the standard systems to the smart ones that are becoming increasingly popular.
Similarly, if you have a business that is looking to help employees or customers/clients charge their EVs at the workplace, you may contact us right away.
We offer all kinds of different options to choose from such as wall-mounted to freestanding pedestal units, and from fast charging to rapid charging units.
Depending on the size and demand of the premises, our experts will help assess the best solution for your business’s needs.
We can also offer a PAYG (Pay as you go) charging system and token fed chargers with features focused on both the user and operator. This is something a lot of businesses are looking at currently as the market for EV cars and chargers increases year on year.
Contact us here or call us on 0800 612 3001 for a quick consultation with our leading industry experts.
Photo by Ernest Ojeh on Unsplash
