The 10 Smart EV Charging Solution Providers 2018 by Insights Success Media

www.insightssuccess.com November 2018

Smart EV

The

Charging

Solutions Providers 2018

E-Mobility obility and S obilit Smartgrid martgrid E-Mobility: Pioneering T ansportation with Smart Grid Tr Transportation

Recharging Environment Wireless Charging: Future off Green Green AutomotiveRecharging Environment

Omnichannel Agent and Customer Engagement Solutions Simplify and personalize the customer experience, empower agents and achieve business success with one workspace for all channel interactions, application integrations, and CX reporting.

Harnessing the Power of an Electric Future

he conception of the thought of redefining the ways of commuting were incited by an extensive technological development, evolution of mechanics and a dire necessity to advance from combustible substances. Pertaining to a kindling interest in saving the environment from digressive pollutants, Electric Vehicles came into existence. The energy consumed by EVs can be derived from a range of sources, nuclear energy, and also renewable sources like tidal energy, solar energy, and wind energy or a combination of any of these. It is unquestionably evident that the use such fuels for powering motorized vehicles is soon coming to an end. This is disposal of the traditional energy is largely being aided by the steady influence of EVs and their economic and environmental advantages. The on board battery stores the energy using flywheel or super capacitors. The application of regenerative braking, which initiates the recovery of kinetic energy is also one of the reasons of a surge in the demand of Evs. The battery costs, exhibiting a significant nosedive have led EVs to become a profoundly reformative technology. The overall cost of EV ownership is commendably lower than gasoline-powered vehicles. Along with this, annoying maintenance costs, oil changes, replacing belts, and transmission repairs become seldom. Although, after implementing ceaseless initiatives, promotions and even provision of incentives from the government, EVs hardly account to one percent of the global automotive market. But considering

the changing consumer behavior, with regards to adoption of more environment-friendly practices, we might witness a commendable ascension in this number. The prejudices of consumers towards choosing EVs over the traditional locomotives are disappearing due to aspects such as dropping prices, growing variety and attractive incentives. Also, the inclination towards EVs is enhanced when consumers experience the amalgamation of remarkable design and radical technology. Pertaining to these factors and comprehending the rising value of EVs, certain organizations have come up with affordable, accessible and comprehensive EV charging solutions which are proďŹ ciently complementing the industry, its purpose and encouraging its ubiquity. Recognizing such organizations, Insights Success brings to you, â&#x20AC;&#x153;The 10 Smart EV Charging Solution Providers, 2018â&#x20AC;? which have now strengthened their foothold in the EV industry and are unfailingly delivering contemporary EV charging solutions. This list of companies include, Chargemaster, which manufactures a full range of charging equipment from home chargers to rapid chargers, as well as operates POLAR, the UK's largest public charge point network; Electric Motor Werks, a subsidiary of Enel X, which is revolutionizing the electric vehicle (EV) charging market with its grid-integrated JuiceBox charging stations and JuiceNet IoT platform; Motiv Power Systems, which designs and manufactures the EPIC all-electric chassis; Octopus Energy, is an electric car specialist, and a one stop shop for all your EV needs; Verdek, which offers a full range of EV chargers, CNG compressors, LNG mini plants and Biogas processing equipment; and XCharge, which specializes in High Power Intelligent Charging solutions. Its founders were some of the earliest members of Tesla's charging program.

Abhishaj Sajeev

CONTENTS Expert’s Viwepoint The Rise of EV’s – A Curse or a Blessing?

22 Internet of Internet Internetof Things is present in every Product we use. How has IOT changed the lives of humans?

28 Maestros Insights The Revolution of our Roads Driving the UK to zero carbon transportation

ARTICLES E-Mobility and Smartgrid

E-Mobility:Pioneering Transportation with Smart Grid

Recharging Environment

Wireless Charging: Future of Green Automotive

Digi Connection

Benets of Blockchain in the making of Smarter Energy Grids

Cyber-Talk Mentor’s Opinion How Technology is Changing Supply Chain Management for the Better

Cybersecurity: A Key Factor to be considered in the Utility Space

Chargemaster

Creating an Adequate EV Charging Infrastructure

eMotorWerks

Revolutionizing the EV Charging Market

Motiv Power Systems

Eliminating Fossil Fuel Dependency

Octopus Electric Vehicles

Making our roads Carbon Free

Verdek LLC

Revolutionizing EV Charging Solutions Globally

Xcharge

Empowering the World of EV Technology

Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor Executive Editor Assistant Editors Contributing Editors Visualiser Art & Design Director Associate Designer Co-designer

Pooja M. Bansal Anish Miller Bhushan Kadam Jenny Fernandes Hitesh Dhamani Abhishaj Sajeev Shubham Khampariya David King Amol Kamble Shubham Mahadik Poonam Mahajan

Art & Picture Editors Paul Belin Jayant Khanna Senior Sales Manager Passi D. Business Development Manager George Henry Marketing Manager John Matthew Business Development Executives Steve, Joe, Alan Sales Executives David, Kevin, Mark, Gemson Technical Head Jacob Smile Technical Specialists Amar, Pratiksha Digital Marketing Manager Marry D’Souza Online Marketing Strategists Alina Sege, Shubham, Vaibhav K SME-SMO Executives Prashant Chevale, Uma Dhenge, Gemson, Irfan Research Analyst Patrik James Circulation Managers Robert, Tanaji Database Management Stella Andrew Technology Consultant David Stokes sales@insightssuccess.com

November, 2018 Corporate Ofces: Insights Success Media Tech LLC 555 Metro Place North, Suite 100, Dublin, OH 43017, United States Phone - (614)-602-1754 Email: info@insightssuccess.com For Subscription: www.insightssuccess.com

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Company Name

Management

Brief

ChargeMaster chargeyourcar.org.uk

ChargeMaster Founder & CEO

Chargemaster manufactures a full range of charging equipment from home chargers to rapid chargers, as well as operates POLAR, the UK’s largest public charge point network.

CLEVER clever.dk

Casper KirketerpMøller CEO

CLEVER is recognised as one of the leading Electric Mobility Service Providers having innovated new Energy Streaming Solutions in Europe having partnerships with all major OEMs.

Electric Motor Werks emotorwerks.com

Val Miftakhov CEO

eMotorWerks, a subsidiary of Enel X, is revolutionizing the electric vehicle (EV) charging market with its grid-integrated JuiceBox charging stations and JuiceNet IoT platform.

IES Synergy ies-synergy.com/en/

Jean-Michel Cornille President & CEO

IES is a major international player in the creation and manufacture of battery charging solutions for all new generations of electric vehicles or cars.

Motiv Power Systems motivps.com

Jim Castelaz Founder & CEO

Motiv Power Systems designs and manufactures the EPIC allelectric chassis.

Octopus Energy octopus.energy

Fiona Howarth CEO

Octopus Electric Vehicles is an electric car specialist, and a one stop shop for all your EV needs.

OVO Energy ovoenergy.com

Stephen Fitzpatrick CEO and Founder

OVO is the UK’s leading independent energy technology company and supplier serving nearly one million customers with intelligent energy services.

Verdek verdek.com

Nick Day CEO

Verdek offers a full range of EV chargers, CNG compressors, LNG mini plants and Biogas processing equipment..

wall box chargers wallbox.com

Enric Asunción CEO

Wallbox is a company whose main goal is to design, manufacture and distribute innovative charging systems to support the advent of sustainable transport.

Xcharge xcharge.com

Ray Ding Founder & CEO

Xcharge specializes in High Power Intelligent Charging solutions. Its founders were some of the earliest members of Tesla’s charging program.

Expert’s Viwepoint

The Rise of EV’s – A Curse or a Blessing?

very week there is yet again a new big natural disaster or inﬂuence of climate change hitting us. The voices are swelling towards taking faster and more tangible actions towards a decarbonized energy system to hopefully not get to an un-changeable and very costly tipping point in our global ecosystem. Green energy production “plants” are increasing and the way the underlying economics of the energy system works this is pushing out more and more stable base-loads like gas and nuclear which in turn increases the volatility of the system. System failures and lack of power at some points in time where not known in the Western world already quite a long time but are now coming back. On the consumption side EVs are at a rise too and predictions are adjusted every quarter to higher percentages of total car sales and each time earlier in time and with more OEMs providing more models. Soon we will hit the point that EVs are from a total cost of ownership better than their competitive “fuel brothers”, but the true inﬂection point will come when the purchase price parity is hit on the common car-model types. At that time also the range anxiety will have been taken away with most people due to higher electrical battery capacities, more abundant available (semi and fast) charging points and in general good feedback from the earlier adopters.

Stefan Lodeweyckx Founder & CEO

Enervalis

However with the increasing grid/power problems the general public also starts thinking that EV’s are a bad evolution because “we already have electrical energy problems now”. It is fundamentally important that these voices are informed well about the reality and the positive effects EV can have and thus don’t hamper growth of EV due to half information/knowledge.

November 2018

About the Author Stefan Lodeweyckx, Founder & CEO of Enervalis is an internationally experienced and an all-encompassing manager in the technology sector with handson and managerial knowledge ranging from start-ups, business development, engineering, operations, change to customer service and product/project/people management/planning. His professional experience is endorsed by a solid educational blend of engineering and business degrees (MSc/MBA). Apart from being the Co-founder of Ego-LogiQ, which focuses on the mental aspect of individuals to increase their personal and professional performance, Stefan’s Enervalis is a high tech start-up company which provides smart grid software, service and solutions. He is also the Managing Director at Ubisin, a consultancy rm in the high-tech sector on various domains such as business development, project and product management, strategy, and overall management. To start off, the current EV penetration is so small that the energy usage is marginal in comparison with an overall country’s usage. Looking at the mid-term (2030) would give lead to an overall modest % of EVs (100+ Millions worldwide) which would still only on average consume 46% of the overall electrical production which again is a marginal step-up of what we have now. So far seemingly no issue but here looms the real danger … electrical grids need to be in balance and a key balance period on EU level is 15min in which supply and demand need to be in equilibrium. One can easily imagine that if worst case all EVs would charge at the same time there can be a significant increase in energy need on 15 minute level. This relates to typical human/societal group behavior and e.g. the current approximate 1million + EVs can realistically give lead to 1,2GW of instantaneous power need. This equates to about 3-4 gas fired power plants or nearly 2 nuclear power plants. As an analogy a country like Belgium on average would need about 8-10GW of power and thus if all these EVs would be concentrated on that single country one can easily see that this causes a significant problem. Coming back on the 2030 targets, the 100 million+ EVs would pose an average 10% extra power requirement which is also not insignificant anymore, but overall there are no real national level issues to be expected the next 10+ years with the EV introduction. The real shorter-term issues will (and are already) arise within concentrated EV deployments (e.g. a group of 100 houses with 5-10 EVs can worst case already impact the power peeks up to 20% which is the danger-zone of typical dimensioned normal low-voltage network). Here smart EV charging technology can become a blessing to spread out the charging process over a longer period such that the local grid nearly does not see any power issue and November 2018

hence again no issues are expected because the increased energy demand is relatively low. Another value is that these EV-drivers typically work for employers which are becoming increasingly aware of the need for sustainability and also have solar panels on their business’ roof which with smart charging technology again can be absorbed nearly fully avoiding peek-injection of the solar panels and lowering the charging costs by means of a lower cost of own produced green energy versus net-energy. Finally imagine that all the above mentioned 1M+ EVs in EU would be bi-directional and thus would be able to also provide the network of energy when there are high periods of need of energy during short periods of time. This situation does realistically occur (recall more volatility on the green production side) and at that point in time the EVs could avoid the need to use 3-4 gas-ﬁred power-plants which more and more are still kept alive for these short imbalance periods. This would save 100’s of millions of euros only of these type of power plants using latent available EV batteries. This seems far off, but currently in small scale it is already running in projects fully automatically proving the viability of advanced AI technology to perform this type of charging without discomforting the EV driver who needs to get to his next location. To summarize, EVs are not at all a curse for the electrical grid, but rather a blessing when combined with advanced smart EV charging algorithms. The result will be a more stable, greener and cost-effective energy grid which is what we are striving for, so let’s all embrace and positively stimulate the EV growth to help save our planet and make a better world for our children.

Smart EV

The

Charging

Solutions Providers 2018

Chargemaster: Creating an Adequate EV Charging Infrastructure

eople are gearing up to be a part of the Electric Vehicles (EVs) revolution. According to International Energy Agency, the world’s ﬂeet of electric vehicles grew 54 % to about 3.1 million in 2017 and is expected to grow continuously. However, the development of robust charging infrastructure stays prerequisite for the adoption of electric vehicles. Presently, due to advancements in battery technology and wellestablished charging ecosystem, the switch to EVs is arising globally in a profound way.

In a country like UK, access to adequate and affordable power is one of the most signiﬁcant challenges faced while providing EV charging. One of the UK’s leading providers of EV charging infrastructure, Chargemaster, now part of BP, manufactures a full range of charging equipment from home chargers to rapid chargers, as well as operates POLAR, the UK’s largest public charge point network. While Chargemaster is often funding the creation of new connections for rapid chargers and other devices across the UK, there are some areas where this is more challenging. The charge point industry requires the support of the six Distribution Network Operator (DNO) groups across the country to ensure that power is distributed and reinforced appropriately to manage the future deployment of EV charging at scale. A Rapid Charging Network

vehicles. The company is trusted by thousands of owners, businesses and councils and has expanded with over 50,000 customers across the UK and Europe. It has served with more than 45,000 charging points for EV drivers’ home, and more than 5,000 public and commercially-operated charging points. With the POLAR public charging network, Chargemaster makes it possible for EV drivers to drive around the UK without the need to use services from multiple providers. The network has been developed over the past seven years and provides the ability for EV drivers to get from one end of the country to the other, and drive across it from coast to coast. Beyond its charging network, Chargemaster also makes its 50kW DC rapid charger in the UK and is the only company to do so. The ‘Ultracharge’ rapid charger is one of the world’s most compact 50kW DC chargers, standing less than 1.6 metres tall with a small footprint. It is also very quiet, which makes it suitable for urban applications, including roadside use and deployment in areas next to residential properties. A Pioneer in the EV Sector Chargemaster was founded by a pioneer in the electric vehicle sector, David Martell, the CEO in 2008. David founded Chargemaster to provide reliable, convenient and sustainable charging for electric vehicle drivers.

Chargemaster is rapidly evolving in all areas across the business to serve an ever growing demand for electric

November 2018

“

Chargemaster exists to ensure that driving an electric vehicle in the UK is as easy, convenient and affordable as possible.

Martell — David Founder & CEO Chargemaster

Prior to founding Chargemaster, he was founder and CEO of Trafficmaster. David was recently ranked as the 10th most influential person in the world leading the move to electrification of transport. He was also honoured by the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership in the UK as Outstanding Individual in Promoting Low Carbon Transport. Being Customer-Centric Chargemaster has established partnerships with multiple car manufacturers in the UK. Through this, it is helping to deliver charging solutions to their drivers, as well as major fleet and leasing companies. In operating its public network, the company is ahead of rivals in offering 24/7 customer support, which is important for helping drivers adapting to EV charging as a new form of technology. For its Homecharge operations, it talks oneto-one with all its customers, November 2018

ensuring that it guides them through the application and installation process, as it has learned that many customers require additional support. For example, to understand whether it is possible for them to have a Homecharge point installed based on their home and where they park their car. Chargemaster wants to ensure that drivers can charge reliably and conveniently across the country. It is increasingly ﬁnding that EV drivers are relying on the POLAR network to get them around, wherever they live in the UK.

authorised installer of charging points. After this acquisition, the company announced an investment of €15 million in its charging network to create 2,000 new charging points. This initiative was undertaken to signiﬁcantly expand the amount of public charging infrastructure, and charge points on the POLAR network are now accessible on both a pay-as-you-go basis with either contactless or smartphone app payment, as well as its unique subscription solution, POLAR plus, with easy RFID card access.

Smart Acquisitions Chargemaster took smart initiatives in the form of acquisitions to expand its robust charging infrastructure. In 2015, it acquired Hereford based GB Electrical, a national electrical contractor specialising in the installation of EV charging points. Since 2013, GB Electrical had been working with Chargemaster and is an

E-Mobility

E-Mobility: Pioneering Transportation with

Smart Grid

he electric automobile is associated with the integration of transportation, which is resulted according to the customer needs. Customer demands are initiated towards renewable energies in terms of a zero-emission and sustainable mobility. The "Smart Grid" could be a hypothetic methodology with electrically collected from vehicles that run on renewable resources. However, E-mobility consequently specializing in customer demands and build an effective source of energy through mobility.

Rendering ahead with Smart Grid The move towards a low-carbon society would require gy production and in e-mobility. progress in renewable energy The success of e-mobility is connected to smart grid ging infrastructure development that helps intelligent charging for big scale acceptance of electric vehicles. The dependency works both ways in which comparable to massive scale acceptance of e-mobility helps massive scale infrastructure investments to be proﬁtable. Functionalities of E-Mobility

Electro mobility or E-mobility suggests clean and environment-friendly transport through electric vehicles. It conjointly delivers climate-friendly technology with massive growth potential. In the automotive industry, electricity suppliers and government inﬂuencers are also pushing e-mobility within the ﬁeld of standardization. For sequencing to the perfection, utilities and network operators are heavily investing under development of ‘intelligent’ electricity distribution systems. Smart Grid Communication for economical E-Mobility In smart grid, smart energy network depends upon comprehensive communication with integrated charging stations. The communication with the smart grid is incessantly measured and controlled through an IP-based connection. It additionally permits load compensation with the assistance of interconnecting charging stations. Additionally, vehicle-to-grid communication makes it potential to integrate special charge models and supply new services. Moreover, in future the vehicles connected to the smart grid unit expected to perform batteries for storing extra energy as needed.

ferent kinds of plug-in electric vehicles, There are two different such as plug-in hybrid vehicle and pure electric vehicle. ere plug-in hybrid vehicles are equipped with a Were combustion engine and pure electric vehicle encompass pure electric connectivity. The proper electricity-production drastically reduces CO2 emissions compared to traditional combustion engine cars. From the perspective of the electrical grid, people’s habits and daily schedules can probably cause peak demand at certain times of day, which may cause electricity network congestion or voltages below normal. Revolutionary Trends of Electrical Grid In an electrical grid, the energy system becomes progressively relied on renewable energy sources. The wants to the electrical grid are ever-changing with latest trends. The alternative energy is generally non-controllable, suburbanized and unsteady. E-mobility brings purposeful technology which reinforces the transportation medium and efﬁcient method.

November 2018

Flexible property of E-Mobility E-mobility may be a versatile electrical transportation medium immensely capturing client demands. The ﬂexibility of e-mobility helps to reduce costs of network investments and electricity bills with grid operators. The network has the ﬂexibility to deal with worst case situation. It additionally reduces energy and absorbs excessive energy generation, and additionally things and voltage issues. Nissan Integrates E-Mobility with Smart Grid The well-known automobile brand, Nissan is introducing its own electronic vehicle or e-mobility vehicle with smart grid technology. Nissan additionally proposes to introduce technology and business ties between electric driving and smart grid. Moreover, Nissan is on the point of introducing energy storage for a vehicle for domestic usage supported second-life batteries. Nissan’s is aiming to provide concerning one hundred electric vehicle charging stations for each non-public and business purpose. The automotive November 2018

users are ready to of offer the battery capacity to vehicles and to create energy for grid. Hence, Nissan drives its e-mobility vehicles ef effectively with unified consumer experience. Confronting Future with E-Mobility The future of electric vehicles is remodeling within the field of energy and quality happening in the fields of energy and quality. E-mobility is influenced by market factors and forthcoming trends that are nearly unbeatable. The conjunction of e-mobility and smart grid is a chance for many automobile industries. Through automobile, businesses have many possibilities to head in the market. Henceforth, e-mobility delivers significant solutions to automobile industry comprises with a smart grid. It’s a revolutionary step towards automobile segmentation comprises with electric transport mobility solutions.

Smart EV

The

Charging

Solutions Providers 2018

eMotorWerks: Revolutionizing the EV Charging Market

n an interview with Insights Success, Preston Roper, the COO and CMO of eMotorWerks, unveils his valuable insights on developing smart grid EV charging networks that further increase the value of electric vehicles. Below are the highlights of interview:

Give a brief overview of eMotorWerks, its uniqueness and its vision. eMotorWerks, a subsidiary of Enel X, is revolutionizing the electric vehicle (EV) charging market with its gridintegrated JuiceBox charging stations and JuiceNet IoT platform. JuiceNet enables devices to maximize charging ging speed and efﬁciency while providing drivers and ﬂeet managers an intuitive control and visibility, via mobile apps and online dashboards. By shifting when and how much electricity connected stations draw from the grid, eMotorWerks helps utilities and grid operators reduce electricity costs, ease grid congestion, and maximize the use of solar and wind power. Our partnerships with EVSE and EV manufacturers also allow us to grow the EV charging ecosystem, provide an extensive aggregation cloud platform for grid balancing and optimization, and deliver new value streams through its energy services. What are the cutting-edge products/solutions offered by eMotorWerks? For hardware, we offer the JuiceBox Pro —the easiest, fastest, and smartest EV charging station for home or work. We also have developed JuiceNet to control and aggregate residential and

commercial EV charging stations. JuiceNet provides real-time demand ﬂexibility to the grid, optimizes the economic value of distributed energy resources, and offers drivers a way to save on EV charging. We also offer JuiceNet Enterprise, powerful asset management platform for EVSE ﬂeet administrators. It offers the ability to control charging station access, collect revenue, expand EV charging operations without infrastructure upgrades, manage demand charges, monitor and report on system activity activity, and more.

Give a detailed description of the management’s inﬂuence over the company and the EV industry. eMotorWerks’s management team has led the charge in vehicle-grid integration by turning a talked-about liability—electric vehicles placing large demands on the grid—into an opportunity for all. With the industryleading JuiceNet cloud platform, our team is transforming connected EV batteries everywhere into a “virtual battery” able to provide real-time demand ﬂexibility to the grid. In

connecting their EVs to JuiceNet, drivers everywhere can simultaneously save on charging costs and contribute to making a cleaner, cheaper, and more reliable grid. Describe the experiences, achievements or lessons learnt that have shaped the journey of the company. eMotorWerks began as an electric car company, built on the idea of converting gas cars to electric vehicles. As EV sales grew in the early and mid-2010s with the launch of the Tesla Model S, Nissan Leaf, Chevy Bolt, and BMW i3, we pivoted to support smart grid EV charging, leveraging EV load to deliver flexible capacity to the grid. JuiceBox, the award-winning home charging station, was launched in 2014. The JuiceNet IoT platform, which provides real-time demand flexibility to the grid and delivers savings to commercial and residential users, was released in late 2015. Since then, we have sold thousands of JuiceBoxes to consumers and businesses worldwide, and we have built out partnerships with automotive manufacturers and utilities to offer JuiceNet to broader audiences and deliver even more flexibility to the grid. In 2017, eMotorWerks was acquired by Enel, a multinational energy company and a leading integrated player in the global, electricity, gas and renewable energy markets. The acquisition has allowed us to expand and provide electric mobility solutions worldwide.

November 2018

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We reduce the need for dirty peaker plants, enable growth in renewable generation, and provide exible capacity to the grid. Roper — Preston COO & CMO eMotorWerks

In the last two years, eMotorWerks has leveraged JuiceNet to deploy a 30 megawatt, highly distributed virtual energy storage battery within California. With an energy capacity of 70 megawatt-hours, the eMotorWerks virtual battery is active in California Independent System Operator (CAISO) wholesale day-ahead and real-time markets, dynamically managing charging loads to balance grid demand, reduce wholesale energy costs and mitigate the intermittency of renewables. In 2018, we announced our partnership with Honda to provide smart charging via the cloud-based JuiceNet to Honda Fit EV owners. With this partnership, drivers can set their vehicles to charge when electricity demand is low and the availability of renewable energy is high, saving money on charging and ensuring charging is from clean sources. Also in 2018, eMotorWerks launched JuiceNet Enterprise, offering powerful and ﬂexible smart grid EV charging management solutions for commercial entities. With JuiceNet Enterprise, businesses can manage EV charging intelligently and affordably via features that support participation in cost-saving smart grid programs and that optimize local EV load. What are the current industry challenges and how is eMotorWerks tackling them? The industry has come a long way in mitigating early adopter challenges, from range anxiety to interoperability to providing enough EV charging infrastructure for drivers to feel conﬁdent in the transition to electric drive. Still, new challenges will arise as automakers, EV service providers, utilities and other stakeholders work to make this transition possible.

been a key focus for eMotorWerks. By deferring charging when electricity is more affordable and cleaner, JuiceBox customers pay less for charging, help in reducing pressure on the grid during peak hours, and lower carbon emissions. This is the sine qua non to scaling the EV industry sustainably. Everyone wins when incentives are aligned, and eMotorWerks is the ﬁrst and only EV charging station provider to participate in wholesale energy markets. What according to you could be the potential future of EV charging and how does eMotorWerks envision sustaining its competency? The future of EV charging is smart EV charging. We see a future full of electric vehicles connected together by JuiceNet to provide a dynamic grid resource. This future has started with our efforts in select energy markets, and will continue to grow. Our nationwide—and worldwide—virtual batteries provide a smart alternative to dirty “peaker” power plants, and complement stationary energy storage systems. Client testimonial “Today, we have around 3,800 EVs in Sonoma County and anticipate 10,000 in the next three years. Our partnership with eMotorWerks allows us to intelligently incorporate and communicate with these EVs on our grid. Given the continuing increase in local renewable energy resources, and the growth of EV charging, we see the opportunity to leverage the eMotorWerks technology to anticipate and modulate electrical demand to meet all of our customer’s needs as critical to reliability and scalability of our services.” - Geof Syphers, Chief Executive Ofﬁcer, Sonoma Clean Power

Eighty percent of EV charging happens at home, so providing smart chargers to meet residential demand has

November 2018

Internet of Internet

Dhruvil Sanghvi CEO & Co-founder

About The Author

Internet of Things is present in every Product we use. How has IOT changed thelives of humans? 22

Dhruvil Sanghvi, CEO and Co-founder of LogiNext, youngest tech business head in Forbes India 30 under 30 (2017), started his journey post Carnegie Mellon University and effectively led LogiNext, the fastest growing logistics and eld workforce optimization SaaS enterprise, to the glory.

oes anyone remember a time before the Internet? Most of us have seen it, but it’s hard to recreate it in our mind. It only exists in long tales which we tell the young, tales of yesteryears where life wasn't occupied by technology. But we love technology. And the next evolution of the Internet would make the current time become another yesteryear tale. What is this next Internet evolution? It’s the Internet of Things. We know that Internet is where we access relevant and non-relevant information; connect with friends, peers, companies, and customers; and utilize to conduct our daily business and activities. So, what is the Internet of Things or IoT? IoT is when the devices which we use to connect and interact with Internet talk to each other. ‘Talk’ is exchange data among the devices with a view to facilitating better solutions and faster processes.

November 2018

Now, your smartphone can connect to your television and laptop even when they aren’t in the same room. You can sync all your systems so that any change done at one place would reflect everywhere else. “Where to?” Self-driving cars around the corner! The true essence of IoT comes out when it is coupled with machine learning. Fast forward into a world of automation where self-driven cars aren’t fiction. The system in your car operates the engine, the sensors around the vehicle, the breaking, and everything else. It connects to the cloud, observing the traffic and weather patterns along the route you are about to take. It auto adjusts to the passing vehicles, all the while ensuring the safety of its passengers.’ There have been some issues with this as a couple of crashes being reported. This tech can’t be forced live due to market pressures as the cost of mistakes is too high. Once autonomous cars do hit the roads, they would have to be perfect. But this isn’t more than a couple of years away. For now, let’s look at something that is already running and showing great results. ‘How do we get there?” Perfect route optimization is here! We are used to having the best products and fastest services. To make this happen, people and goods must be constant on the move somewhere or the other. Be it from the manufacturers to warehouses or distributors, distributors to retailers, or directly to the customer's door, there are a lot of assets constantly moving.’ How is this logistics movement managed, tracked, and directed?

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Technology, like that of LogiNext, tracks vehicles through GPS right from the time they are loaded to the point they finish their replenishment duties. Delivery personnel and field agents such as technicians, supervisors, sales folks, etc. are tracked using their smartphones. The agents use our app to streamline their daily activities and sync live information gathered onground with their company’s central system. This tech is not just the need of the hour; it’s what keeping the everexpanding need for cost-friendly logistics management in check. Spiraling logistics costs arising from increased volume movement with a growing driver storage. Even the trend of same day/next day deliveries means that some vehicles are left underutilized. Sensors and trackers, backed by a base machine learning based system, can now help managers optimize the capacities of their vehicles, assign the right load to the right driver/delivery associate, and eventually set the best route devoid of traffic and other bottlenecks to ensure on-time deliveries. Delivery route planning and optimization, hence, is not just cutting down costs, but also incentivizing market evolution. Companies like Amazon and Walmart can ensure better customer service with timely deliveries and end-to-end order tracking. This helps create value for the customer, the company, and the economy. “What's in the box?” Automated warehousing streamlines it!

distribution centers or warehouses. Some high-value companies have already part automated the operations in these centers. As mentioned earlier, the sheer increase in the volume of goods moved nowadays means that the lead time even at warehouses must be shortened to the minimum. If the order must reach a customer in a day, it can’t really spend about half of that at the center itself. The entire sorting and allocation system is automated. Some companies have even robotized some mundane functions within the warehouses. “Do as I Say” Voice Controlled Logistics Movement We are well aware of the latest in virtual assistants such as Alexa, Siri, Google Home, etc. It's a handy way to automate activities around yourself. You can just ask Alexa to book a cab while playing your favorite songs. Google recently demonstrated proper AI capable bots which could even have impromptu conversations and book appointments. The obvious extension of this came with voice-controlled logistics management. Using the same ease of household directions, managers can automate the planning of delivery routes, dispatch shipments, tracking vehicles, etc. using just their voice. They can talk to the system and do all of these things. The idea is simple. IoT is going deeper and deeper into our lives, not just how we handle our phones, but also how we handle our businesses. Above all, we must remember that it’s only a tool. It's how we use it that would deﬁne our future.

With the development of machine learning backed logistics optimization, companies are investing in large

Recharging Environment

Future of Green Automotive

ill now we have witnessed about wireless charging for electronic gadgets and devices only, but now we can also charge electric bikes, cars and buses wirelessly. Imagine that, we are driving on highway and our car’s battery drains. Now, instead of ﬁnding a fuel pump, electric power source, adapter, cable, etc. we just have to stop or park our car on wireless charging platform for short time, available at any shopping complex or food malls, again no need to come-out of the car, besides anyone’s assistance. This is really an amazing idea and this is going to true. History Electromagnetic Induction, which dates to inventors such as Michael Faraday in the year 1831 and Joseph Henry in the year 1832. Faraday was the ﬁrst to publish the results of his experiments. Nikola Tesla utilized electromagnetic energy to transmit the power between two coils in the early 1900s.

Faraday’s law of induction is a basic law of electromagnetism forecasting how a magnetic ﬁeld will interact with an electric circuit and produces an electromotive force (EMF)—a phenomenon called electromagnetic induction. It is the fundamental working principle of transformers, inductors, and many types of electrical motors, generators, solenoids and wireless charging. Functioning Working of wireless charging is nearly same as ‘electric transformer’, but difference is in application only—Transformers are used to increase or decrease the alternating voltages in electric power applications through electromagnetic induction and Wireless Charger are used to transfer energy between two objects using electromagnetic ﬁeld. How exactly it Works

Electric vehicle (EV) with wireless charging is having secondary coil fitted at bottom of vehicle and primary coil is securely installed on ground (i.e. charging platform). The basic wireless charging system needs two coils. The primary coil, encased in a pad that sits on the floor of a garage or parking platform, is connected to a power source. Alternating current flows from an outlet into the coil, set up an electromagnetic field that enables the power to jump to a secondary coil in a pad attached to the bottom of the vehicle. When the vehicle parks in the proper position over the primary coil pad, an indicator light goes on and charging begins. The two coils must be facing within about 8 inches of each other for effective charging. Pre-eminence over Cable Charging Wireless Charging gives a convenient, safe, and reliable way to charge and power electrical vehicles at home, in the workplace and in industry. Wireless power maintains safe, continuous, and reliable transfer of power for all types of electric vehicles. Wireless charging eliminates the use of physical connectors and cables. It provides a number of efficiency, cost and safety pre-eminence over the traditional charging cable. This make possible to install it anywhere like; on the side of highways, parking lots, malls, multiplexes, toll plazas, etc. Experts predict more powerful wireless stations will be like to appear at office buildings, shopping centers and restaurants. When anyone parks vehicle at office or at restaurant it will get charged automatically in that space of time. Due to this effortless frequent power availability and safety, a vehicle does not need large batteries unlike for conventional cable charging. It makes vehicle light and compact, that tends to increase overall efficiency of vehicle.

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Plug-in stations can be easily damaged in crowded metro cities. A number of municipalities have reported problems that thieves have cut EV charging cables to steal the copper from the wires. High-powered Level 3 stations, also called DC fast-charge, have large cables, which make them even more attractive to thieves. “Imagine wireless electric-vehicle charging being as easy and widespread as Wi-Fi is today,” said Chris Borroni-Bird, former director of advanced technology vehicle concepts for General Motors and who is a vice president of strategic development at Qualcomm Technologies. Implementation is in Progress Wireless charging technology is almost ready for the big stage. It is on the verge of initial deployment, starting from the Mercedes-Benz S500e plug-in hybrid sedan next year. They plan to ﬁt wireless charging on the S500e plug-in hybrid sedan in 2017. BMW is also working together with Mercedes-Benz on the technology, to develop a wireless charging system for its i3 electric vehicle and i8 plug-in hybrid. A prototype test version, made by Qualcomm technologies, is already in use in the BMW i8 safety car in the Formula E electric-vehicle November 2018

race series. Qualcomm has exhibited its Halo system in various vehicles, including the Drayson B12/69 electric racing car. Evatran’s Plugless aftermarket system is now commercially available for the LEAF and the Volt, and a Model Scompatible version is likely to come. Several major automakers have indicated that they’re working on offering wireless charging for future EVs. Tesla is also on the way of introducing its EV’s with wireless charging. It is also already being piloted by some community bus systems. Buses need to take number of stoppage in city. A wireless charger can be installed on a stopping platform— tends to reduce size of batteries— will improve efﬁciency electric bus. Wireless charging technology is really amazing as invention of electric current. It is interesting to see how it will put back the conventional fossil fuel powered vehicle with clean, green, safe, silent and efﬁcient electric vehicles with wireless charging for healthy future of planet Earth.

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Motiv Power Systems: Eliminating Fossil Fuel Dependency

ossil fuels are non-renewable energy resources. They take millions of years to form and the known viable reserves are being depleted much faster than new ones are being made. Once these resources are used, they cannot be replenished. They are limited in supply and will one day be depleted completely. Moreover, fossil fuels are the largest source of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas which contributes to climate change, and their production causes both environmental and human health impacts. Fossil fuel production also carries severe economic, environmental and social costs. Much of the concern arises from the emission of compounds like carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere, resulting in potentially devastating long-term contamination of land, air and water resources. These concerns are triggering the world to look at alternate sources of energy that are both less harmful and renewable. Motiv Power Systems is taking great initiative to reduce the dependence on fossil fuels by producing all-electric equivalents to internal combustion powered chassis commonly found in medium duty commercial fleet vehicles. In addition to returning a lower cost of ownership, when factoring in dramatically reduced operating and servicing costs as compared to internal combustion powered vehicles, Motiv’s EPIC all-electric chassis produces zero-emissions. Creating Healthier Environment Founded in 2009, and headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, Motiv Power Systems is committed to freeing fleets from their dependence on fossil fuels. EPIC (Electric Powered Intelligent Chassis) are CARB certified, GSA approved, and available for many configurations including walk-in

vans, box trucks, work trucks, shuttle buses, school buses, trolleys, and other specialty vehicles. An EPIC offers uncompromised performance and functionality without the pollution, noise, heat, and vibration of gasoline or diesel power. Motiv is a Ford eQVM-approved provider of all-electric chassis for commercial trucks and buses and benefits from engineering insights and support from Ford to ensure safety and reliability. With more than 450,000 miles logged in Fortune 50 fleet deployments throughout North America, the EPIC family eliminates 100% of vehicle emissions, dramatically reduces operating and maintenance costs, and creates a healthier environment for riders and communities, while also reducing driver fatigue. EPIC, Complete All-Electric Equivalent In its early days, Motiv provided consultative engineering services towards vehicle electrification as it developed its own technology. This eventually matured into providing component parts solutions to upfitters in converting combustion engine powered vehicles to electric. Along the way, Motiv developed and matured its offerings to a comprehensive drop-in chassis solution, EPIC, which represents its current market offering. Today, Motiv Power Systems offers its Electric Powered Intelligent Chassis (EPIC); a complete, body-ready, all-electric equivalent to the internal combustion powered chassis fleets use in their mediumduty vehicles An EPIC all-electric chassis offers the same performance and functionality as a diesel or gasoline

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Motiv’s mission is freeing eets from fossil fuels. Castelaz — Jim Founder & CEO Motiv Power Systems

equipped equivalent, eliminates 100% of vehicle emissions, features smooth and nearly silent operation, and creates a healthier environment for its drivers, riders, and the communities it serves. Freeing Fleets from Fossil fuels Jim Castelaz is the Founder and CEO of Motiv Power Systems. Jim leads Motiv’s vision to Free Fleets from Fossil Fuels – a vision that summarizes his professional and personal passion. He has led Motiv from an idea in his living room to becoming the US market leader in common- platform electric truck and bus chassis. Having raised over $60M for Motiv to date, Jim’s experience includes capital formation, government grants, developing IP portfolios and building a world-class team aligned around a shared purpose. Jim holds an MSEE from Stanford University and BS in Engineering and Economics from Harvey Mudd College. He has done graduate studies in optimization, stochastic calculus, dynamic systems, modern

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control, optoelectronics, MEMS, environmental entrepreneurship, electric vehicle venture formation, high-tech strategy. He has an engineering experience in power system design, embedded system design, advanced battery packaging, state-based control, solidstate transformers, smart, selfpowered fault indicators for power utilities, solar panel and inverter remote monitoring system, MEMSbased power devices, hydrogen embrittlement of metals, radiation damage in semiconductors, largevolume gaseous neutron detectors, radiation mapping, directional radiation detection systems. Jim is a leading electric vehicle entrepreneur, trained as an electrical engineer with expertise in power and embedded systems. Jim lives in Alameda with his wife and kids and is an avid alpinist and outdoorsman in his free time.

of challenges – both logistical and ﬁnancial – Instead Motiv works with its customers to ensure that these are addressed to help streamline the process of converting ﬂeets to battery electric power. Exciting Developments There are a number of exciting developments in the EV charging space including decreasing charging speeds, and solutions like inductive charging and automation that can help remove the perceived barrier of having to plug a vehicle in overnight as a point of objection over converting to electric power. Customers often say that plugging in at the end of a shift is vastly preferable to interrupting working hours to re-fuel a vehicle, the prevailing current model.

Solutions through Customers Motiv doesn’t directly offer charging solutions as these are provided through partners. There are a number

Maestros Insights

The Revolution of our Roads Driving the UK to zero carbon transportation

reen number plates for electric vehicles. Zero Emissions Zone trials. Grants for any employer installing EV charge points. Ideas and initiatives for boosting the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) have accelerated recently, in an effort to make electric vehicles the norm rather than the exception on UK roads. In September, Theresa May announced further support for the industry at the very ﬁrst Zero Emission Vehicle Summit, outlining a plan to ensure Britain “leads from the front” in the widespread adoption of electric vehicles, committing £106m in funding for research and development into EV technology. She also elaborated on the 2040 target to make all manufactured cars emission-free, saying that this should be reﬂected in all cars on the road just ten years later. Government backing This government’s commitment to electric vehicles is being matched by an increase in interest from drivers, as the perceived hurdles - including the initial cost of switching to an electric car, and the mile range compared to traditional petrol and diesel cars - are being cleared. Last month EVs accounted for one in every 12 new cars purchased in the UK. That’s been attributed to a number of factors, including the availability of a range of cars that do at least 150miles on a single charge, EV drivers are

About the Author Fiona Howarth, CEO of Octopus Electric Vehicles, Biography Fiona leads the Octopus Electric Vehicle business - a start-up from Octopus Energy. With a passion for renewable energy, fantastic cars and using tech to create great customer experiences, this is absolutely Fiona’s dream job! Having studied Engineering at Oxford University, she spent her early career at Dyson and BMW - developing efﬁcient motors and hydrogen powered cars. She then went on to work with major energy companies and government while at Bain & Company, before joining British Connected Homes start up AlertMe. A move to British Gas, saw her take Hive, by British Gas, from a tech pilot to a household name that today has more than one million customers. “Octopus EV is offering the electric vehicle equivalent of Sweden’s famous baby box,” says Octopus Electric Vehicles CEO Fiona Howarth

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reducing their fuel spend by 90%, and with an increase in the number and visibility of charge points and a decrease in the cost of the electric vehicles themselves. There’s also been better proof of the environmental impact of EVs, such as a recent European Climate Foundationcommissioned report which found that EVs emit half the CO2 emissions of a petrol or diesel car through the course of their lifetime, and the overall effect has now been shown to be positive. A new breed of EV One company is on a mission to help drive the adoption of electric vehicles. Octopus Electric Vehicles is pioneering an ‘EV bundle’ which will give drivers everything they need to make the switch, for one monthly price. The innovation has come from energy supplier Octopus Energy, which is driven by a mission ‘to make buying energy as easy as buying cornﬂakes’. Similarly, the team at Octopus EV wants to help to make the switch to EV as easy as possible, for as many people as possible. CEO of Octopus Electric Vehicles, Fiona Howarth says: “For us, the EV journey begins long before we start talking about leasing options and charge point installation. There’s a big education job to do - many people still believe that they’ll need to stop every few miles to recharge and that the range of models is limited. Our Drive Day roadshow has proved enormously popular, touring the country and letting people come and see the cars for themselves, as well as question EV experts about exactly how it all works” These events have not only demonstrated the massive leap forward that the industry has taken in the past few years, but also provided people with a chance to test drive the latest models. From the sporty BMW i3 to the family friendly Nissan LEAF, the cars have been carefully selected as the best EVs on the market, with each

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Fiona Howarth CEO

Octopus Electric Vehicles

offering at least 150 miles of driving per charge.

electric vehicles at a fraction of the cost.”

Continues Howarth: “We’ve found that people are often surprised at what an electric car can do. I think there’s a general misconception that the technology and the pricing has stayed largely the same since EVs came to market a few years ago, whereas in fact today’s electric car is almost unrecognisable from its older incarnation, and a hell of a lot cheaper. Battery costs came down 80% in six years – unlocking a better range of

All-in-one EV solution After education, the challenge has been how to best help customers with the changes needed to go electric. Here, Octopus Electric Vehicles is pioneering adoption with their ‘EV bundle’. “We’re offering the electric vehicle equivalent of Sweden’s famous baby box, giving the driver everything they need to make the switch” says Howarth “and unlike babies, our vehicles come with instructions!”

About Powerloop How Vehicle-to-Grid is changing the game Electric vehicles have been criticised for placing more demand on an already overloaded grid. But a consortium of industry experts is hoping that electric vehicles could be the solution to the grid’s capacity issues, rather than a problem. Led by Octopus EV and Octopus Energy, the consortium has won over £3m of funding from Innovate UK (backed by government departments DfT and BEIS) to test the viability of vehicle-to-grid charging on UK roads. The Powerloop project offers EV drivers the chance to help balance demand by supplying the grid with power from their car batteries during the peak hours of 4-7pm, before recharging in the early hours of the morning while demand is lowest. In return for plugging in their cars 12 times a month to supply charge during the evening, Powerloop drivers will get money off their monthly leasing cost. As well as the monthly lease of an electric vehicle, Octopus EV organises the installation of a home charge point and smart meter. The monthly lease cost can also include insurance, service and maintenance, as well as help and support for the duration of the contract. There’s even a bespoke electricity tariff, designed speciﬁcally with EV drivers in mind. Dubbed Octopus Go, it offers renewable electricity at just 5p/kWh between the hours of 12.30am and 4.30am, allowing people to charge their cars for just a fraction of the daytime cost for 70% less than a standard variable tariff from a Big 6 supplier. Octopus EV has also partnered with myenergi, to offer the innovative Zappi charge point, which automates charging to take advantage of these prices.

Octopus can arrange the installation of the Zappi via trusted installers that can help unlock the £500 home charge point grant from the government. This world-ﬁrst tariff is possible thanks to Octopus EV’s relationship with Octopus Energy. The supplier is already taking advantage of the potential of smart meters with the Agile Octopus tariff, which lets customers see the ﬂuctuations in wholesale energy prices and adjust their usage accordingly. It’s just the beginning of how the company intends to use smart meter technology, which allows them to measure and record electricity usage in real-time and offer cheaper electricity when demand on the grid is low. Fiona Howarth believes this will be a landmark year for electric vehicle adoption in the UK. “Tesla has revolutionised the market and now all other vehicle manufacturers are rapidly bringing their EVs to the market. Think of the switch from analogue phones to smart phones - we’re in a similar transitory phase. If the Government can deliver on their EV plans, and we think they can, the carpark of tomorrow is going to look very different to the gas-guzzling lot of today.”

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Octopus Electric Vehicles: Making our roads Carbon Free

ritish brand Octopus Electric Vehicles, the electric vehicle specialist, is a start-up from Octopus Energy. Launched in 2018, Octopus EV is a onestop shop for everything EV – bringing together great offers on a handpicked range of the best electric cars, smart chargers for home and workplaces that save you money when you charge, 100% renewable electricity tariff specifically designed for EV drivers, and a free VIP support helpline to help you on your carbon-free journey. As the UK’s only company to offer a full specialist service to the electric vehicle arena giving expert advice on finance, maintenance, EV charge point installations, special electric vehicle tariffs and the latest vehicles from BMW, Jaguar, Nissan, Renault and Tesla, it has everything that customers need to get on the road and lead the UK towards zero carbon transportation. Octopus EV and Octopus Energy form part of the Octopus Group, which seeks to improve the lives of a million people by transforming the industries it operates in. The Octopus Group also incorporates Octopus Healthcare, Octopus Investments, Octopus Property, Octopus Ventures, and Octopus Labs. A Prominent Leader Fiona Howarth, the CEO of Octopus Electric Vehicles, is a sharp, strategic and analytical thinker. She also understands each and every detail to run a complicated product development process. Early on, she recognised the importance of giving customers a go-to place for impartial advice on the vehicles, charging and financial incentives. Fiona and her team now run events with communities and businesses across the UK to answer

each and every query on electric vehicles and enable customers to test them out for themselves. Furthermore, Fiona has also pulled together partnerships with leading companies across the market to create the best offerings for every customer and client – from leading EV manufacturers like from BMW and Tesla; to EV-savvy leasing companies and dealers offering contract hire, salary sacriﬁce and outright purchase of the cars; to EV charge point companies and expert installation businesses; to the innovative renewable energy supplier Octopus Energy – all coming together to make it easy for customers to transition to EVs. Journey of Adherence Recalling the early days, Octopus EV wanted to test the appetite of UK consumers for electric cars. The company found that people were excited about the new technology – with “petrol-heads” that loved cars that can do 0-60 mph in 2.5 seconds to individuals that wanted to ﬁnd ways to reduce their carbon footprint. Just by spreading the word and getting drivers behind the wheel of this new way of driving, Octopus EV found that people are ready to make the switch to electric. The company was engaging with interested customers early about changing their cars to electric, and it found they valued a whole solution – not just the car. Octopus EV has really led the way with this bundle and is now beginning to see other companies follow suit. In addition, Octopus EV is leading the demonstration of Vehicle to Grid technology for homes. Incorporating this technology, EV batteries have become power packs and customers can charge whenever the energy demand is low and electricity is cheap. The customers are then able to

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We have everything you need to get you on the carbon-free road. Howarth — Fiona CEO Octopus Electric Vehicles

use the power within the car battery for their home and even for neighbours when demand is high and electricity is expensive. Similarly, if technology is used this effectively, it is estimated that the UK could save £50bn in grid upgrade costs by 2050. Overcoming the Hurdles One hurdle for EV charging solutions was to ﬁnd the best product that suits customer needs and enables them to charge their car at the times when electricity is cheapest. According to early research, many charge points that have been installed are not smart and have no “brains”. This limits the functionality for the customer. One of the effective products to overcome this situation is the Zappi charger from myenergi that allows EV drivers to automatically charge their car at the cheapest times of the days. The Future Calling According to Octopus EV, as more EVs are being charged at home, it will create more demand for electricity and could put more strain on the electricity grid. At this point, smart charging becomes even more November 2018

important and doing it right will enable the UK to save billions while unlocking new ways for customers to access cheap electricity by charging at cheaper times of day, and even make money from their electric cars with technology such as vehicle to grid. Octopus EV is leading the charge in a consortium with six other members, and you can now pre-register for the Powerloop vehicle to grid the bundle. Sculpting Revolution Octopus EV is at the forefront of the EV revolution, and it is helping customers at every step of their journey. Today, EV drivers are enjoying the running costs of 1p/mile; a fraction of the cost of cars running on petrol or diesel, that cost around 10p/mile and sometimes much more. In addition, given there as few as 20 moving parts in an EV compared to around 2,000 in a standard car, servicing and maintenance costs can be 30-40% lower. EV drivers no longer need to detour to ﬁll up, they just charge while doing things they love from shopping, working out or going to the cinema. Along with the latest smart charging systems and the ever-growing on-street charging

network, they can even charge while they sleep and start each day with a fully charged battery. Octopus EV is helping homeowners and businesses across the UK to take advantage of fantastic government incentives for EVs and charge points, including: £3,500 from the government plug-in car grant, up to £500 off a charging point at home or work, and up to 40% off monthly car costs by getting it on a salary sacriﬁce scheme that enables employees to save income tax and national insurance. Octopus EV has done the legwork to pull it all together, making it simple to make the switch and take advantage of all incentives.

Digi Connection

Smarter Energy Grids

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uman beings have always looked up to nature and made efforts to learn from its basic principles. Sonars were inspired by dolphins, light bulbs by fireflies, suction cups by octopus and robots itself to replicate human beings. One such instance that has been enthused by microorganisms is distributed ledger technology (DLT), widely known as blockchain. “The blockchain is an incorruptible digital ledger of economic transactions that can be programmed to record not just financial transactions but virtually everything of value.” -Don & Alex Tapscott. It records transactions between two clients without any third party authentication which is an efficient process when it comes to stable data. Blockchain provides data management without the threat of unauthorized access or manipulations. It is proving to be a solution for frequent problems in various fields. Blockchain technology has the capability to disrupt approximately every industry ranging from finance, to education to power.

Smart Meters Smart meters are used to record electrical usage. These meters enable us to monitor our electrical consumption more precisely which will help consumers make better energy choices. Through blockchain, clients can directly get the amount spent which eradicates middleman thus saving money. This creates a more resilient network for gadgets to run on. Smart meters can also provide accurate data to the provider without needing a direct link to the meter of particular users. With the help of blockchain, producers of smart grids do not have to invest a humongous amount. Here the producers get paid instantly, which leads to less capital expenditure. Besides this, blockchain can play a serious role in adjusting power ﬂows through the amalgamation and optimization of local grids measured by the public or consortium modes. It can aid in the maintenance of permanent records by servicers, giving a ﬂawless view of a particular object or part of infrastructure at any given time. This information can be retrieved easily as the structure is built on a shared platform, while retaining the authenticity of the record.

Blockchain Technology in Smarter Grids One of the areas in the energy industry where blockchain technology can disrupt the market is smart grids. Lately, blockchain has been well-thought-out as one of the developing technologies that can be used for developing decentralized grid topologies and revising the distributed management of energy businesses. Blockchain database is shared by all the nodes in the system. A node is an active device which can be connected to internet and has an IP address. Examples of devices include computers, tablets, phones and even printers. The job of a node is to upkeep the network by maintaining a copy of the blockchain and process transactions. Beneﬁts of Blockchain in Smarter Grids Blockchain can aid numerous utility industry requirements. It can act as a foundation stone with the possibility of disrupting the prevailing ecosystem. With the promotion for e-vehicles and individuals shifting to electric cars, supply and demand of energy needs to keep pace. Here blockchain comes in the scenario with its peer-to-peer interconnectivity and sharing. This balances the demand from several foundations and makes the grid smarter by directing sharing. As there are small and compact smart grids, consumers with the help of blockchain can simply trade energy with one another thus saving time and earning a few dollars. In the power industry, blockchain technology can ensure a 5D Impact: decentralization, digitization, democratization, distribution and deregulation. November 2018

While the possible benefits of the Smart Grid are usually discussed in terms of renewable energy goals, economics and national security, it has the potential to help save money by managing your electricity usage and choosing the best times to purchase electricity. Consumers can save even more by generating their power with the help of blockchain. Lately, due to the speedy growth in the deployment of DEPs the smart grid organization problems can no longer be proficiently addressed using centralized approaches, thus, the necessity for visionary decentralized methodologies and architectures is widely recognized. It is assessed that the blockchain technology will add another $3.1 trillion by 2030. Lately, due to the speedy growth in the deployment of DEPs the smart grid organization problems can no longer be proficiently addressed using centralized approaches, thus, the necessity for visionary decentralized methodologies and architectures is widely recognized. Lastly, blockchain technology may eventually fast-track the evolution to what the power industry calls a “distributed world.” It is the sum of both small and large powergeneration structures for communities, businesses and home. To prosper in capitalizing the potential of distributed generation and supervising less foreseeable and more capricious renewable power sources, the trade's infrastructure must first become more agile and less centralized.

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Verdek LLC: Revolutionizing EV Charging Solutions Globally

n an interview with Insights Success, Guy Mannino, the Founder and CEO of Verdek, briefly describes the overview of his organization, some of the challenges it has faced and strategies he has incorporated to strengthen its foothold in the market. This charismatic, result focused, communicative, and fast charging leader has driven his company’s product offerings to a global scale with his modern and innovative management and operational expertise. Below are the highlights of the interview conducted between Guy and Insights Success: 1. Give a brief overview of the company, its uniqueness and its vision. Verdek LLC was founded in 2008 by Guy Mannino, the former CEO of Pirelli Tire North America. Verdek promotes the supporting infrastructure for alternative transportation such as electric and CNG vehicles. Verdek offers a full range of EV chargers, CNG (compressed natural gas) compressors, LNG (liquified natural gas) mini plants and Biogas processing equipment. Verdek’s EV Charging Division utilizes a variety of turnkey EV charging infrastructure solutions covering a full range of slow, fast and ultra-fast chargers as well as low cost reliable and practical solutions for residential use. Verdek furnishes solutions for fleets, parking areas in offices and multi-family properties. Some of the chargers that we provide are networked and they can be remotely controlled, some are non-network and can be used as “plug & charge” stations. Our objective is to provide the “right” EV charger and the lowest possible installation cost for the highest return on

investment for our customer. Verdek has developed over the years, a nationwide network of authorized installers trained to install all Verdek chargers and also capable of managing the after sales service and maintenance. We continue updating our product offering with a continuous search for the most competitive solutions from costing and performance stand point. 2. What are the cutting-edge products/solutions offered by Verdek? The EV charging world is moving rapidly; we have gone from plug-in hybrids to electric vehicles with a range of 80100miles and now with vehicles in the 200-350 miles. This breaks all range barriers and positions the EVs as a real alternative to gas engine driven cars and SUVs. The new EVs move from commuting, city vehicles to comprehensive vehicles capable of intercity mobility; this means to remove the range anxiety that has hindering the sales of EVs to the mass market. Verdek is committed to promote the EV fast and ultra-fast charging infrastructure which reduces the charging time from hours to minutes just like at a gas station. With this infrastructure in place EV drivers will resolve the range anxiety and EVs will enter the automobile mass market. Our customers rely on our experience to comply with their requirements. The utility companies are the most demanding and we have deployed large installations in Austin and San Antonio, TX. Whole Foods Market is a very progressive grocery chain servicing a market segment that is well versed to EV chargers. All new WFM stores are designed to offer EV charging facilities to their customers. Verdek has been providing EV chargers to WFM during the last 10 years. Capital One is a very progressive company committed to offer its employees the most welcoming environment including attracting the employees with Evs

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Verdek is a provider of turnkey charging solutions for sustainable transportation. Mannino — Guy Founder & CEO Verdek LLC

3. Describe the experiences, achievements or lessons learnt that have shaped the journey of the company. The most important experience is that the market moves at its own pace. We cannot speed it up. We started in 2008 promoting EV chargers perhaps ahead of the market. The only EVs where actually the Prius Hybrids using aftermarket EV conversion kit, well ahead of the Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf. It has taken 10 years for EVs to become popular. We understood early in the game that our customers were not looking for EV chargers, they were looking for EV charging solutions for the long term. Verdek made a mission of following its customers’ demands and quickly adjusted to them. 4. What are the challenges faced while providing EV charging solutions and how is Verdek serving to tackle them? Our ongoing challenge is to make Verdek a recognized brand in the EV charging industry. We work aggressively on market penetration, communication through social media, and participation to industry events to promote Verdek’s brand. We are moving from a product provider to solution provider, we have a national network of authorized installers, so we November 2018

can follow our national accounts in all States. We have strengthened our technical support team to address any customers’ request and grant a positive charging experience. Our customers count on Verdek to offer turnkey solutions and that we are capable to manage them, so we can offer a hassle free solution. 5. What according to you could be the potential future of EV charging and how does Verdek envision sustaining its competency? The initial phase of the EV market growth was linked to providing EV charging all around metropolitan areas. We are now moving from plugin Hybrid and EVs with 100-mile range to EVs with 250-350 mile range. In 2019 all major car manufacturers will have a line of electric vehicles and this is the beginning of the next phase of the EV market evolution. We are moving from using EVs around cities for short commutes to a full deployment of EVs for intercity transportation. This is a paradigm shift. Market studies project that the gas driven vehicles and electric vehicle will have comparable prices by 2023. With equal cost and long range autonomy, the EV market will grow

exponentially. Verdek is preparing to deal with the shear mass growth, adjusting the structure to sustain the sales growth, the installations project supervision, and the technical support. The EV market is fascinating; most of the consumers know little about it and do not have a good source of information in the car dealers that mainly promote gas driven vehicles. Verdek invests a lot of time in educating its current and potential customers on the advantages of electric vehicles and its related charging solutions. The Tesla Model 3 is changing the perspective of the consumers. Electric cars used to be ugly; now consumers are starting to notice their great design and performance. There is more curiosity, interest and the EV market is moving from the world of the “tree huggers” to the mass market.

Mentorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Opinion

Gary Cardenas President TOC Logistics

November 2018

he logistics and supply chain management industry is one that is constantly evolving and optimizing, and because of the competitive nature of the industry, innovation is key for success. Modern technologies have not only aided in the streamlining of supply chains and company processes, but have also set the industry on a technologically advanced path that many could not have even imagined fifteen or twenty years ago. From robotics in warehouses and autonomous ships and trucks, to computerized shipping and tracking, technology has changed the industry for the better and has provided new levels of visibility. With the aid of technology, supply chains of the future may be a bit more complex, but will certainly be more efficient and less expensive. A few of the technological advancements that have changed the game for the logistics and supply chain management industry are: Computerized Shipping and Tracking Modern technology has drastically impacted the shipping industry and has made for more efficient and accurate tracking. With a wide array of different supply chain management software programs on the market, logistics and supply chain professionals and their clients are able to keep an eye on their shipments during every step of the supply chain journey. With every second being crucial in the world of supply chain management, the ability to provide complete transparency to clients in terms of where their packages are and when they will arrive is something that is extremely valuable. Computerized shipping and tracking has also largely reduced the amount of time spent shipping, receiving, tracking packages and compiling shipment data, as all necessary data can be stored in one easy-to-access place. And in this case, saving time means saving money. Being able to digitally organize data and monitor shipping and tracking information also reduces the opportunities for human error. With digital records there is no longer a worry that sloppy handwriting or a misplaced piece of paper will throw a wrench in a shipment being delivered on time, or to the right place. “Futuristic” Autonomous Vehicles A big technological push in the industry right now is the advancement of autonomous vehicles, electrification, use of solar power, and energy storage, all of which will be used across the board to both reduce cost and increase efficiency. Right now, energy and transportation make up more than half of total supply chain costs and labor accounts for a little less than a third of costs. With further technological November 2018

advancements, the transportation and labor aspects of supply chains will eventually cost very, very little compared to what they do today. The eventual implementation of autonomous electric vehicles, which can be programmed to use the most efficient routes and run throughout the night without a driver, will drive down the cost of labor and increase capacity on the roads. Autonomous vehicles will also address the growing concern of truck driver shortages throughout the industry. Also on the very near horizon is the use of autonomous ships. Autonomous ships would address the issues of piracy, talent shortage in the ocean shipping industry and accidents caused by human error. Big Data Logistics and supply chain management professionals live and die by data. A recent study by the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals shows that 98 percent of third-party logistics firms and 93 percent of shippers feel that data-driven decision making is key to supply chain activities. Technological advancements have made it extremely easy to gather and analyze key pieces of data. Data surrounding shipping times, cargo weight, weather patterns, traffic routes, and more can lead to greater transparency, optimized routes, greater reliability and automated supply chains. Having a team that is able to accurately interpret big data is key to success, and will likely save a company both time and money. There is a reason UPS drivers don’t make left turns. Someone on the UPS team analyzed large amounts of data, which is now available thanks to technology, and determined that eliminating the majority of left turns would use 10 million less gallons of fuel, emit 20,000 tonnes less carbon dioxide into the air and help deliver 350,000 more packages every year. Technology is something that is hard to predict and often difficult to wrap your head around, but the logistics and supply chain industry is benefiting from every new technological advancement in our field. The supply chains that we are working with today will be drastically different in five or ten years’ time, and almost unrecognizable in twenty or thirty years. Technology has made supply chain management more efficient, transparent and cost-effective. It is important to have members of your team that are willing to embrace new ways of doing things and that are able to stay up-to-date on new forms of technology. This industry is constantly changing, and in order to be successful you need to be willing to change along with it.

1 The

Smart EV

Charging

Solutions Providers 2018

Empowering the World of EV Technology

n an interview with Insights Success, Ray Ding the Founder and CEO of XCharge shares his experience behind the remarkable success of his organization in the global marketplace and what inspired him to develop innovative EV charging solutions. Below are the highlights of the interview conducted between Ray and Insights Success:

What are the cutting-edge products/solutions offered by XCharge? Eyeing the future, XCharge launched its 480 kW Satellite DC Supercharger C9 this January, and made ultra-fast charging come to the real world. The product supports plug & charge and VIN recognition, which simpliﬁes the charging process and bringing more convenience to the EV owners.

Give a brief overview of the company, its uniqueness and its vision. Founded on May 4, 2015 by two of Tesla’s earliest employees in China, XCharge has been committed to providing industry-leading electric vehicle charging solutions to “electrify the future”.

The ultra-fast charger is also ultra-smart. XCloud-based operating platform ensures real-time communication and data transfer, and enables a series of smart functions such as over-the-air (OTA) device control and upgrade, auto diagnosis and push alert, parking management, operational data analysis and ﬁnancial management.

Leading a new IoT charging service trend, the company combines smart hardware with XCloud-based software in “one stop” and successfully helps its business clients in optimizing charging station O&M performance. State Grid, Didi, JD Logistics, GLP and Prime Union, are all beneﬁted from the “one stop” solutions.

Give a detailed description of the Founder/CEO/Management’s inﬂuence over the company and the EV industry. Charging demand surges as EV booms. Ray Ding, Founder and CEO of XCharge, has seen great market potential of charging infrastructures but a lack of smart solutions to support the healthy market growth.

In 2017, by establishing its wholly-owned subsidiary XCharge Europe GmbH in Hamburg, Germany, the company ofﬁcially launched its overseas business. To date, around 30,000 chargers produced by XCharge, are running in China and overseas countries, serving over 120 EV models and dispensing approximately 7GWh of energy per month.

With the belief to create an easy and fast way of charging for both CPOs and their clients, XCharge developed the “one stop” charging solution that successfully broke the “policy-driven but money-losing” curse of charging stations.

November 2018

“

We offer 'one stop' charging solutions for the upcoming e-mobility world. Charging shall no longer be a hindrance. Let the charging services accompany our march towards the electric future.

Ding — Ray Founder & CEO XCharge Describe the experiences, achievements or lessons learnt that have shaped the journey of the company. There was a time when XCharge was not 100% sure if it should stick to the original plan of being only a solution provider, or should also be an operator. But then they found out that negotiating with real estate developers and property owners was tricky. Once the charging station operating business turns to be profitable, the property owner would increase the rent or even take back the land, and other operators may also join the fight of interest. Rather than competing with these business clients, XCharge chose to empower them with “one stop” charging solutions. “The best way is to provide solutions and empowerment to achieve sustainability and maximize scale. We can guarantee a long-term and reasonable distribution of benefits.” said Simon Hou, COO& Cofounder of XCharge. What are the challenges faced while providing EV charging solutions and how is XCharge serving to tackle them? The industrial average usage rate of public chargers is very low at less than November 2018

15%, and most CPOs is not making profit. To tackle this industrial barrier and lead its business clients into profits, XCharge started strategic cooperation with mainstream navigation platforms and logistics companies to ensure continuous EV fleet flow to the charging stations that joined its “city charging partner program”. It also developed the Delay Fee Mechanism to increase the turnover. If an EV is fully charged but still occupying the parking spot, a penalty will be charged by the minute. Besides, CPOs can analyze the vehicle flow and adjust their pricing strategies using XCloud-based operating platform. According to latest numbers, the average usage rate from the city charging partner stations are close to 60% and a highest at 92%.. What according to you could be the potential future of EV charging and how does XCharge envision sustaining its competency? Charging market will boom in the next decade as transportation electrification accelerates. By 2030, there will be 40mn chargers across the globe serving

250mn EVs. Charging “fast and everywhere” will be the future trend. XCharge has been focusing on highpower charging. The latest product series C9 has a power output up to 480 kW, shortening the average charging session to 10-20 minutes. And the smart “one stop” charging solution and practice-proven business models will turn more charging stations proﬁtable and make charging everywhere possible. Testimonials from XCharge’s Clients: Thanks XCharge for the proﬁtable “one stop” charging solution. “We have opened more than 10 stations in one and a half years. The average usage time per charger is over 13 hours/day and some chargers even run for 15 hours a day. We could’ve never achieved this without XCharge.” – Chenghang Liu, Chairman of the Board, Prime Union.

Cyber-Talk

CYBERSECURITY I

n recent years, we’ve countersigned a significant swing towards the integration of open communication platforms, such as Ethernet and Transmission Control Protocol (TP)/IP, across all industries, including mining and manufacturing, utilities, electricity and water management. This implies that our critical industries are more open and connected as compared to the other segments. Out of these industries, the energy sector is at a particular risk. A recent research from a renowned institute indicates that cyber-attacks on the energy industry accounted for 41% of overall reported cyber-attacks on the public and private sector. On the other hand, attacks on government, health care and finance accounted for less than 4% separately. In this new space of operations, industrial equipment that may have once functioned individually has now become a part of a complex network. For instance, if we consider situation when the electricity is cut off in an isolated town due to the substation malfunction, the fault may be minor but can affect hundreds, thousands, or even millions. Current Challenges Today, various industries are spotting the severe attacks that could produce with each day. This has made the utility firms to secure their systems and to mitigate the threat of cyber-attack. In order to achieve a secured working environment, many organizations look for assistance from the matured cyber-security consultants in the IT space. This scenario has created a troublesome atmosphere as the IT approach is incompatible with the principles and priorities of facility operations. When it comes to protecting OT (Operational Technology), its continued operation is the most crucial thing than managing the data. The occurrence of attacks in the energy sector can be largely associated with the increase in digitized, integrated,

November 2018

and connected operations due to which power networks have become more ‘smart’. This has been mainly supported by the operational technology (OT) i.e. hardware and software technology which is used to monitor and control plant processes, equipment and devices, with the main purpose of making things work flawlessly. By implementing connectivity this way, energy businesses have been improving the uptime and apparently enhancing the productivity. However, the integrated technology brings in many business benefits. Yet, the reality remains constant - the more connected these enterprises are, more open they are to the cyber-security breaches. Way ahead to resolve the Issue To overcome the concerns related to cyber-attacks, protection against cyber threats in the OT environment requires greater cross-domain activity. Hence, the IT managers, security managers, and engineers are advised to share their expertise to rectify the potential threats and attacks. With the realms of congregating IT and OT, smarter and robust solutions are becoming a reality at a fast pace. The only key to augmenting Cybersecurity in the OT framework is to have the technology and the processes in place that goes well with the specific functions and features that underpin the infrastructure. However, mitigating risk and anticipating vulnerabilities to attack utility grids and systems include more than just installing technology. Utilities should also apply organizational processes that include continuous improvement of their cyber-security, physical security processes, and regular assessment. Furthermore, as utilities experience the convergence of IT and OT, it becomes mandatory to develop cross-functional teams to address the new challenges of technology that span both the worlds. As the energy sector is becoming increasingly hyper-connected, the need for Cybersecurity continues to rise. In today's digital as well as technology-driven economic landscape, hacking instrumental equipment can be the same as attacking a million. This is a very real and critical threat that organizations must begin to confront. With this high degree of risk involved, it has become crucial to act now to avoid the risk in the future.

November 2018