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Fleet FAQ

Fleet Electrification: What do you want to know?

Q. How do I decide how many chargers I need?

A. Planning out charging infrastructure can be one of the more daunting tasks in your EV adoption strategy, but it doesn’t need to be. The exact way you approach this will depend on the nuances of your fleet, however here are a few important things to consider.

You need to understand how long your vehicles dwell between duty cycles. Knowing this will help you determine what type of charging equipment you need. If your EVs dwell over a longer period of time, or you’re considering PHEVs with smaller batteries, you may consider using a slower Level 1 charger (adds 3 to 5 miles per hour) or a Level 2 charger (12 to 80 miles per hour). If you need your vehicles to get back into service quickly, or you are considering medium and heavy duty EVs with larger batteries, you may opt for a DC Fast charger that can charge most EVs up to 80% in 30 mins. There is even a range of charging ‘speeds’ in the DC Fast charger segment to evaluate.

Another factor that you may consider is where the vehicles will dwell. You may allow your drivers to take their EV home and charge there. This can reduce the amount of infrastructure you need to build on-site and there are different ways you can reimburse your employees’ charging costs.

Finally, you don’t necessarily need a dedicated charger for each individual EV. Depending on how long your EVs dwell, you may be able to create a schedule so that multiple vehicles can use the same charger. You can monitor an EV’s state-of-charge and set up custom notifications to make sure they always have a sufficient charge before deployment.

To learn more, check out our blog post on EV charging

Expert Bio

Answered by : Eric Mallia

Vice President, Sustainability Solutions at Geotab

Eric Mallia, Vice President of Sustainability Solutions at Geotab, is an authority on transportation electrification and sustainable fleets. He has been a published author featured in the International Journal of Life Cycle Assessments, Municipal World Magazine, Fleet Maintenance Magazine, and the National Post. He obtained a Masters of Environmental Studies from the University of Waterloo and a Bachelors of Business Administration from Wilfrid Laurier University.

Eric Mallia, Vice President of Sustainability Solutions at Geotab, is an authority on transportation electrification and sustainable fleets. He has been a published author featured in the International Journal of Life Cycle Assessments, Municipal World Magazine, Fleet Maintenance Magazine, and the National Post. He obtained a Masters of Environmental Studies from the University of Waterloo and a Bachelors of Business Administration from Wilfrid Laurier University.

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Fleet Electrification: What do you want to know?, Questions?

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