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THE WHICHEV VIEW: Does LEVC’s Space oriented Architecture point the way for fleets?

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By WhichEV

LEVC is the original ‘London Black Cab Company’ from the Victorian era – and it’s still making interesting vehicles today. As they move across to electric power trains, so they will expand the variety of vehicles offered – and the range of features included.

Specifically, they have just made the move on a full accessible taxi that has integrated ramps and enough internal space to allow a wheel chair to spin 360 degrees.

Backed by huge Chinese producer Geely (who own Volvo, Lotus, Polestar etc), LEVC is using intelligent design to create a variety of products from common core modules – including Electric Vans.

This ability to create/adapt/innovate comes from the underlying ‘Space Oriented Architecture’, where ‘proven sections’ can be integrated in interesting new ways. LEVC has used this SOA to create the perfect taxi for disabled people in cities.

In the near future, Fleet Managers will be able to take advantage of this kind of design – in order to create the perfect vehicle for their needs.

Everything from cabs and vans to ambulances will be catered for – and not at ‘silly money’.

Read more about this topic over at WhichEV.

Driver Safety – A guide to reducing risk

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By Barney Goffer, UK Product Manager for Teletrac Navman

For fleet managers, the first step to improving driver safety is knowing which metrics to capture in order to then create meaningful KPIs around them. This is where connected fleet management solutions come in – making everyone’s lives easier.

Connected fleet management solutions such as the ones we offer at Teletrac Navman can help fleet managers measure elements of driver behaviour and gain a clear picture of driver performance and levels of risk. Our latest solutions enable fleets to digitise coaching and incentive programmes, to help drivers identify and correct high-risk actions.

One of the key risk areas for fleets is distracted driving, which is now much easier to monitor thanks to smart dashcams placed in the vehicle. Smart dashcams can be lifesaving – they review every minute of drive time through forward and driver-facing cameras and utilising AI, signals of driver fatigue or distraction can be detected and acted on before an incident occurs. Driving behaviour can also then be reviewed retrospectively to develop sophisticated and engaging driver coaching.

Speeding is something that raises risk levels in any situation, so that’s another key factor we need to consider when implementing safe practices. With smart solutions, fleet managers can compare driver speeds with posted speed limits and set alerts based on their own thresholds. In addition to safety, reducing speeding events will also help to decrease unnecessary fuel usage which is an important business KPI.

Connected fleet management solutions can also give a fleet manager a clear picture of whether a driver engages in behaviour contrary to their safety goals, such as harsh cornering, aggressive acceleration, or heavy braking – the latter of which may indicate too much speed being carried or a delay in responses. In addition to impacting safety these actions also affect the condition of a vehicle and increase unnecessary maintenance costs, but also impact insurance premiums if the aggressive driving leads to an accident.

To recap, a firm understanding of driver behaviour and how certain behaviours add or reduce risk is vital to building a comprehensive driver safety program. Connected fleet management software now helps identify poor driving behaviours in real-time so that actions can be addressed and corrected before an incident occurs, while also more clearly identifying incidents for post-event training.

Risks can be drastically reduced when fleet managers are empowered with visibility and to be able to develop fleet safety programs proactively, deliver highly tailored training programs, and build driver trust through the personalised approach, transparency and immediacy of the training.

Take 30 seconds to fill out Teletrac Navman’s online solution builder and learn about the fleet safety technology being used by fleets around the world.

Digitised vehicle inspections reducing commercial fleet spend

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A number of recent surveys of commercial fleet managers carried our across the UK (including  those from Webfleet and Samsara) have indicated a focus on reducing fleet spend in 2023 and the importance of investing in technology to realise these cost savings.

Longer replacement cycles (partially driven by new vehicle supply constraints and by cost pressures) mean that fleet managers must contend with an ageing fleet and have to ensure their operation in a safe, reliable and economical way.

Ensuring a safe and reliable (ageing) fleet with minimal downtime can only come out of better SMR management which in turn is a function of how efficiently vehicle condition is monitored, issues identified/anticipated and resolved. Technology in the form of digital fleet inspection software can help with better SMR management.

Digitised vehicle inspections can help fleet managers

  • Assess fleet condition and plan maintenance/repair
  • Identify and anticipate potential safety and compliance issues

Nothing new here although you will be surprised at the number of mid-large fleets still operating on paper based inspections and excel sheets. The trick is to move away from manual/semi-digital processes to digital tools that not only make the inspection process simple but also reduce the admin overhead required to manage the outcome of the inspections effectively.

ClearInspect is one such tool that helps fleet managers administer vehicle inspections seamlessly with an AI enabled app that can be used by drivers or team leads. Most visual inspection checks are via image capture using the smartphone app and images are automatically analysed to identify defects or damages. A customisable easy to use checklist enables capture of other information on the condition of the vehicle.

Alerts are generated for the fleet administrator or manager along with a dashboard for viewing inspection results. Efficient damage management helps not only track but also reduce repair costs for fleet managers and this tool is ideally suited for small to medium fleets (passenger and commercial).

More information available on the website or a free trial can be arranged via hello@clearinspect.co.uk

The WhichEV View: Volta Trucks signals ambition with new Service Hub in London

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By WhichEV

Volta Trucks, the all-electric commercial vehicle manufacturer and services provider, has celebrated the official opening of its innovative Truck as a Service Hub in Tottenham, London.

The event was attended by controversial Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan as well as Tottenham MP Rt. Hon. David Lammy, industry leaders, key customers, and stakeholders.

Situated on White Hart Lane in Tottenham, the cutting-edge facility marks the first of its kind in the UK. It is designed to be the primary destination for routine servicing and maintenance of electric vehicles in the London area.

The state-of-the-art hub offers comprehensive support to fleet operators transitioning to electric trucks, featuring administrative offices and a Volta Trucks Academy Training centre, as well as a customer call centre providing round-the-clock assistance and technical support for the trucks that we saw being built during our visit earlier this year.

Read the full story over at WhichEV…

THE WHICHEV VIEW: Global EV market penetration heading to 15%

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By WhichEV

IDC is reporting that the number of EVs in use across world is heading toward the 12 million mark, while around 1 in 4 of the EVs sold are in Europe.

BYD, Tesla and SAIC represent over 36% of the EVs sold globally (their share of the huge Chinese market is over 53%).

The ATTO 3 from BYD is being sold through multiple UK dealers, including Stratstone – which has traditionally been a Jaguar house.

WhichEV spoke with Stratstone and they told use that they feel comfortable integrating BYD into their range, as there is little/no overlap with Jaguar or any of the Land/Range Rover products

The ATTO 3 is already affordable (around £37,000), but the new BYD Dolphin will push prices down below £30,000 and that leaves the tantalising prospect of the BYD Seagull which could retail in Europe for a little over €10,000 and in the UK for less than £10,000 – with the higher end BYD Seal around £40,000

If the next generation of Chinese EVs can offer fleet managers products from £10,000 to £50,000 – through major local dealers that can offer local support – just how fast could fleets move across to pollution free vehicles?

Click to read the full story over at WhichEV...

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: Introducing ClearInspect – Making fleet inspections simple, efficient & accurate

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ClearInspect helps fleet managers efficiently assess & track vehicle condition based on smartphone images and thereby reduce damages and costs.

Damage repair costs in fleets

Ageing fleet due to supply shortages and inflationary cost pressures mean fleet managers need to find effective ways to reduce damages and associated repair costs. Vehicle inspections are largely manual and tracking damages requires extensive admin effort. Vehicle damage history is a messy plethora of emails, messages, paperwork, image files in folders even for ‘well managed’ fleets. Overall resulting in lower accountability and frequent unrecorded damage ending in huge repair bills.

Making damage assessment efficient

ClearInspect is a simple intuitive mobile app that helps even untrained users carry out fleet inspections in a guided way. Walk around images of a vehicle captured using the app are analysed automatically to identify & assess damages, documented uniquely and a vehicle condition report is generated. Damages are also categorized as new and pre-existing. Fleet managers can get alerts on new damages to any vehicle, also see the latest status of each of their fleet in a dashboard. Reducing time and effort in inspections and tracking damages is one area where fleets see benefit from using ClearInspect. Better tracking results in increased accountability with users of the fleet and thereby has been proven to reduce damages and related costs for commercial fleet customers of ClearInspect in the UK and Europe.

Walk-around / Pre-use checks, Handover, regular inspections – all in one

In addition to its unique image based damage assessment functionality, the app has a fully customizable checklist that can be used to carry out all types of inspections. Available for both iOS and Android devices (phones, tablets) as well as a mobile weblink feature that enables inspections to be carried out in a mobile browser (without an app download). A web dashboard is available for fleet managers to see inspection details and vehicle damage history.

About ClearQuote Technologies Limited

ClearInspect is a product of ClearQuote Technologies Limited, recently established in the UK with its headquarters registered in Cardiff, the company operates an extensive engineering team in India and includes clients in Australia, UK, Europe & India and powers several thousand vehicle inspections a day.

Visit https://clearinspect.co.uk for more information or write to hello@clearinspect.co.uk for a demo and a free trial. 

The WhichEV View: Stellantis urges UK Government to renegotiate Brexit

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By WhichEV

In a startling development, Stellantis, one of the largest automakers globally, has warned the UK government that parts of its car industry could be lost unless the Brexit deal is renegotiated.

The company, known for producing brands like Vauxhall, Peugeot, Citroen, and Fiat, had previously committed to manufacturing electric vehicles (EVs) in the UK.

However, it now claims that it cannot adhere to the trade rules outlined in the Brexit agreement regarding the sourcing of parts. The collapse of Britishvolt at the start of 2023 was a key factor.

The UK government responded to Stellantis’ concerns, emphasising its determination to ensure that the country remains competitive in the car manufacturing sector, but unless large scale battery production in the UK becomes a reality in the very near future – then car companies will have no possibility to avoid costly tariffs on products like the new Vauxhall Astra Electric.

Click here to read the full, fascinating story over at WhichEV.

THE WHICHEV VIEW: Solar panels – The next big leap forward for EVs?

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We all know that the smaller, lighter, cheaper electric vehicles will kickstart a transportation revolution. But what about the cost of refuelling?

Various crises around the world has meant a massive jump in the cost of all forms of energy.

But the sun continues to shine, its power is free and available – and the technology required to harness that energy, continues to improve.

While it is easy to imagine buildings of the future, being completely covered in solar panels that charge either cars directly or battery storage for use later – many vehicle manufacturers are now looking at integrating solar panels into the vehicles themselves.

Elon Musk believes that it will be possible to generate 20 to 40 miles of range per day per car – simply by covering available surfaces with solar cells, allowing the car to charge when it is not being driven.

Between building-based and on-the-car photovoltaic cells – can we really moved to a future where we have a far smaller reliance on the grid?

For the full story, head over to WhichEV.

Charged Up? The rise of EV ‘charge anxiety’

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As the British weather starts to warm up, it’s the perfect time to get out and about in the countryside. If you are one of the millions of electric vehicle owners in the UK, then you’re probably very aware of how much range you have on your left on your car before you head out.

EV chargers are everywhere nowadays, so you’re no longer worried about making it to the next charging point. You identify your nearest charger and drive straight there, only to find that the charger’s broken. Now you’re in trouble.

This is a real issue for EV drivers up and down the country; broken chargers are rife, causing widespread charge anxiety, which has largely replaced range anxiety amongst EV owners. Here, connectivity specialists Trench Networks take a look at charge anxiety and why it’s become a huge issue for EV owners…

What is charge anxiety?

Not to be confused with range anxiety, charge anxiety has been a common experience for early adopters of electric vehicles.

Range anxiety refers to electric vehicle drivers’ fear that they will be unable to reach the nearest charging station on a single charge. Thankfully, as the UK’s EV charging infrastructure has expanded, range anxiety has become less of an issue in recent years.

However, charge anxiety – the fear that you’ll be unable to use the nearest charging point due to issues with the charger – remains a very real problem, with many of the UK’s EV charging points suffering from software and mechanical issues or internet outage.

In fact, a Volkswagen study suggests that charge anxiety has replaced range anxiety altogether – in the form of fears that “current public charging infrastructure is not widespread, accessible or reliable enough to alleviate driver uncertainties.”

Why is charge anxiety an issue?

With electric vehicles forming such a crucial aspect of the British government’s Net Zero push, it’s surprising that broken chargers remain such a common problem. In fact, the GOV.UK website has identified the importance of maintaining and managing EV infrastructure, citing a minimum of 99% reliability across charging points. At present, this figure seems little more than an aspirational goal.

Annoyingly for drivers, there are a multitude of reasons why EV chargers can fail. There are a large number of charge point operators (CPOs), meaning that variation between chargers is common – with certain brands more likely to fail.

In many cases, however, electric chargers are rendered unusable due to their inability to connect to the internet. Most chargers require internet access to handle credit card, contactless and app payments. If the wireless signal fails and charger is unable to take payment, drivers are unable to charge their car.

And, that’s just for customers. There’s also a huge number of activities the CPOs need connectivity for, from carrying out remote diagnostics to estimating demand on the grid.

Who is most likely to be affected by charge anxiety?

Charge anxiety is proving a significant barrier to nationwide adoption because charger functionality is a largely regional issue. Certain cities are more likely to be subject to outages – in Derry, Northern Ireland, a staggering 30% of chargers don’t work.

Smaller cities tend to be lacking in functioning EV infrastructure – Worcester, Ipswich, Newcastle and York rounded off the top 5 cities with the least working chargers. There doesn’t seem to be much of a north/south divide in terms of available charging, though rural areas are most affected by charging failures due to the lack of available back-ups.

If a charger is broken in central London, you can be sure to find another. If your charger fails in the rural countryside, you’re unlikely to find another close by, particularly if you’ve exhausted your range getting to the chargers that’s down in the first place.

EV drivers have identified the unreliability of the charging infrastructure as a serious issue, though it’s unclear exactly what percentage of EV chargers can be relied upon to function properly. In 2021, Channel 4’s show Dispatches found that more than 1300 of the country’s chargers (5.2%) were unusable.

What’s next?

The first barrier to EV adoption – a lack of charging infrastructure – is beginning to be tackled, thanks to large-scale installations taking place across the country. For example, the numbers of charging points in the country have increased by 35% between March 2022 and March 2023. Though there’s still a way to go, it’s becoming easier to be an EV owner – purely from an access standpoint at least.

Kevin Latimer, Chief Executive Officer, Co-Founder (and EV driver!) at Trench Networks, comments: “The majority of a charger’s functionality relies on a durable internet connection, so any downtime causes huge problems. Chargers must be resilient enough to work at all times in order to meet the 99% uptime target; implementing a more robust internet connection is the first step to ensure EV enthusiasts across the country can be confident in making to move the electric vehicle ownership.

“If a charging point is supported by a robust and reliable connection, then CPOs can guard against outages, and maximise uptime, which results in increased charger revenue. In this event, the user experience is improved, and the charging operator can ensure the viability of their product for as long as possible.”

How much will solar and batteries play a part in your company’s future?

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By WhichEV

We all know that electricity prices come down by up to 75% at night, but few of us have suitable storage set up to take advantage of those rates.

But what about during the day? One solution is to ‘go solar’.

Until recently, that would have meant a HUGE surface of your building needing to be covered with panels.

However, as technology develops in this area, generating and storing electricity at the workplace will become far more common place.

The first solar experiment was demonstrated back in the 1800s and was less than 1% efficient. In other words, only a tiny fraction of the available power was transformed into electrical power.

Today, that figure is closer to 25% – with panels that are around 30% efficient likely to appear in the market very soon.

To read more about this topic, head over to WhichEV.