Corporations and employers are providing electric vehicle charging stations at the workplace for all kinds of reasons. Some offer chargers as benefits and amenities to attract and retain top talent who are environmentally conscious and comfortable with cutting-edge technology. Others offer them to impress clientele, and to fulfill sustainability objectives. EV chargers also send clear a message to staff and customers alike that the business is supporting a greener future. If you’d like chargers at your place of business, plan ahead. These type of investments go through an extensive internal review process where multiple departments, including the top management, may get involved. If you work at a small business, the owner may fulfill all those roles! At a large corporation there will be more people to speak to. Having information handy will move the process forward faster. Here are five steps to planning EV charging stations at your workplace.
Step 1: Employee Survey
First, you want to be able to prove to management that EV chargers are important. The first step is a survey of employees who would like and/or would benefit if EV chargers were added to your workplace garage or parking lot. When you’re asking employees if they drive EVs, be sure to ask questions such as “Would you be more likely to purchase an EV if you knew you could charge at work?” There are plenty of drivers who would like to own an EV, but don’t think it is possible. The number one reason consumers avoid EVs is range anxiety, or the fear of running out of charge before finding a charger. Knowing there is a charger easily accessible five days a week could influence your co-workers in their future car-buying decisions and can add numbers to your survey. If employees park in a city garage, or your business receives plenty of visitors and customers, including guests and visitors in your survey can also be useful. Factor in growth in the EV sector. EV ownership increases between 3-10% every year, a 40% year-on-year increase since 2019. You can presume, it will grow at your office at approximately the same rate (or more), and more employees will own and drive EVs next year.
Step 2: Determine Pricing/Budget
Second, your business will have to decide if it wants to charge for use of the EVSE. Some businesses choose to install chargers as a free amenity or perk. EV chargers and other high-tech amenities attract younger, more educated, tech-savvy employees. If your business has high income clientele, providing free charging for visitors can be a great differentiator. Some business owners may think adding EVSE to their garage will make for high electric bills. However, according to GreenTech Media, EV chargers barely make a dent in an overall electric bill with a general increase of less than 4%. Additionally, Blink allows for EVSE to be another stream of revenue for the business. There are many businesses who will want to charge for use of the EVSE, and providing detailed information about how to use the charger to generate revenue can help your case. Blink offers four different business models, including Host Owned and full turnkey.
Step 3: Plan Ahead
Third, plan with the future in mind. Planning for more electrical infrastructure at time of installation can help your business save when it’s time to install more chargers. When the process of preparing for the installation of chargers begins, prepare for twice as many as you want to install right now. That way, most of the work is already done! If you’re installing four chargers, prepare for eight, but only pay for the installation of four. This will increase the installation price by a small amount. However, when you go back to add four more chargers in the future, most of the expensive work will already be done, and the price of installing new chargers may be slashed nearly in half.
Step 4: Select a Network
Next, be sure to choose the right network! The Blink Network enables our hosts to control who can use the charger, hours of operation, how much energy can be used, and most importantly, charge for electricity use. Our network also enables hosts to get the most out of their chargers by providing access to customized reports with charging activity, how much pollution was prevented by their use, and more.
Step 5: Manage Drivers
Finally, there will be other details that management may want to discuss prior to making a decision. What happens if everyone wants to charge at once? How can you get employees to move already charged cars so more people can use the charger and the business can make more money? Online waitlists can help show who is next in line and send messages to employees when it is time to move their car. The Blink Network already features the ability to inform users when cars need to be moved after fully charged. Employers may even want to hire a valet service to move cars without disrupting employees’ workday. Having information ready when you speak to management can make it easier and faster to get EVSE installed in your place of work. Blink is here to ensure you are informed and ready to build your case with ease.