EV Charging and It's Impact On The Event Market

Background
The UK government aims to phase out petrol and diesel vehicles by 2040, but research indicates that many regions in the UK are falling short when it comes to providing charging points for electric vehicles. As of 2017 there were 47,000 electric vehicles registered in the UK, however; there were only 173 new publicly available charging points installed that year.

Currently there are almost 17,000 people for every publicly available charging point, with only four areas of the country having higher than average levels of provision. In late 2017 the London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced a £4.5 million investment in EV charging points across the capital but it is clear that more investment is required to plug the charge point gap across the rest of the UK.

Phasing out petrol and diesel vehicles is just one of the many targets included in the government’s 25 year environmental plan. Waste reduction was also highlighted as a key factor that needed to be addressed in order to futureproof Britain from further environmental risk. The change in government legislation has impacted the way outdoor events and festivals are run – with the introduction of solar powered equipment, greener generators and smarter waste management facilities becoming a mainstay over the last few years. Organisers are now more knowledgeable than ever of the importance of sustainability and are increasingly selective when planning their event.

While on-going discussions take place within central government to install more charging points across the UK, Wayne Woodhead (MD) of temporary power specialist ide Systems believes that it is only a matter of time before the demand for EV charging increases at events and festivals.

“The government has made it clear that they want consumers and businesses to transition to electric vehicles, the main issue is ensuring that the right infrastructure is in place to do this.

EV charging is highly regarded as the future of modern day transport and we believe it is our responsibility as a forward thinking business to introduce a cost effective solution to the temporary power market to satisfy the potential demand for EV charging at events and festivals.

We have conducted a great deal of research on EV charging and our engineers have developed an innovative solution which is ideal for charging electric vehicles at remote locations and festivals. We are excited to bring this solution to market and believe that it will help solve problems for our clients and the end user.”

The solution
ide Systems has created the Vulcan EV Charging Point, which is designed to charge electric vehicles from a temporary power source and is housed in a high visibility IP54 enclosure. Up to six charging points can be connected in-line and powered from a single 63A three-phase supply or twelve charging points in “low power mode.”

The Vulcan EV Charging Point can be configured to select any phase, and can be set to provide 32A charging or 16A charging if the power is limited. The outputs are fully compliant with European Type 2 charging systems found on the road today and a connection can be made to a vehicle in less than a minute.

When is the solution available?
The first ever EV charging station will be set up at the 2018 Showmans Show in October where users will be able to charge their electric vehicles using the ide Vulcan EV Charging Points.

The Vulcan EV Charging Points are now available to hire from any of ide’s three Rental Centres across the UK and can be purchased from the ide Manufacturing Centre in the Midlands.