5 Ways to Achieve Greater Network Uptime and Availability for Electric Vehicle Chargers
May 16, 2023
Electric vehicle charging infrastructure is critical for the growth of the EV market, and ensuring network uptime and availability is essential for the success of our charging station owner partners. At Pearce Renewables, we understand the complexity of network maintenance from end-to-end. Here are five ways to achieve greater network uptime and availability for your electric vehicle chargers:
1. Analyze and Interpret Data Insights Before Arriving on Site
Comprehensive remote monitoring is key to understanding problems and creating effective repair solutions before techs ever arrive on site. Working with intelligent systems allows you to constantly gather and analyze data on potential asset issues and troubleshoot problems remotely. Using OCCP protocols to transmit data ensures that readings are rich enough in information to relay system issues before deploying technicians. Though data interpretations are only as good as the OEM’s code readings, working with an excellent independent service partner (ISP) can help you interpret the OEM data and troubleshoot code indexes.
2. Deploying Technicians with the Right Scope and Parts
Once you understand the scope of work required to address an issue, you can determine the necessary parts and equipment to send with the technician. Collecting information from both the error codes and the OEM in partnership with an ISP allows you to ensure the right parts are sent to the site on the first visit. As many of our customers know, having to go through the OEM for parts ordering can take weeks. This is where working with an ISP like Pearce Renewables, who has an in-house parts department, comes into play. Our warehouse of available inventory can overnight parts to our technicians anywhere in the country preventing downtime and increasing network efficiency.
3. Getting to the Site in the Right Time
Working with an ISP who offers nationwide coverage is crucial in ensuring your site can be prioritized and serviced in a timely manner. Understanding how your ISP dispatches technicians and fulfills SLA promises is critical. You want a partner who communicates every step of the way with their clients, keeping them updated on the status of their service requests and ensuring that technicians complete critical repairs when it matters most. Understanding that each customer has different communication needs, ISP partners should customize their feedback channels to meet each client’s individual desires.
4. Implementing Continuous Improvement
Constantly looking for ways to improve and iterate to increase efficiency will contribute to your bottom line. You can do this by working with an ISP who has feedback mechanisms in place to capture regular customer and system improvement opportunities. This feedback can be used to collaborate with the OEMs as well. Additionally, working with an ISP who places a high value on training and provides their technicians with weekly, monthly, and quarterly continuing education promotes continuous improvement both in your systems and in the field.
5. Avoiding Failure in the First Place
The only thing better than an efficiently repaired charging asset is one that never breaks down in the first place. To achieve this, it’s critical to have routine preventive maintenance schedules and protocols in place to identify potential failure points before they even occur. Understanding the wide variance in charger wear-and-tear based on location, climate, and frequency of use allows you and your ISP to adjust your preventative maintenance schedule accordingly. Using these predictive maintenance technologies, you can minimize the risk of failure by remotely monitor assets and running regular test diagnostics to identify potential issues before they start.
Conclusion
Achieving greater network uptime and availability requires a comprehensive approach that involves partnering with an Independent Service Provider who provides high-quality technology, regular maintenance, continuous monitoring, timely dispatching of technicians, and smooth remote troubleshooting. Pearce Renewables offers a turnkey solution that efficiently works with multiple OEMs to provide the best, most efficient service possible. We believe that achieving greater network uptime and availability is a team effort requiring collaboration between the charger owner, service partner, and the OEM. With Pearce’s existing service network already in place, our in-house parts division, and our proven track-record of service, we are the the national, scalable, end-to-end service partner of choice for all EV network needs.
To learn more, or to discuss project scopes, please email sully.speed@pearce-renewables.com
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