Shannon loves her Electric Truck at Frito-Lay!

Shannon Douglas is a pioneer...she's 1 of 176 people at Frito-Lay who is assigned to drive a new electric delivery truck...and she loves it.

Frito-Lay announced in September 2010 year that they were starting the deployment of largest fleet of electric delivery trucks in North America.  Just a few states got some of the 176 "Newton" model 24ft delivery trucks from Smith Electric Vehicles...and Orlando scored 10 of them.  Frito-Lay expects to save 500,000 gallons of diesel fuel a year from these 176 trucks...which is $2 Million a year if it stays at $4/Gal!

I attended an Open House in Orlando where Frito-Lay discussed their EV strategy and allowed us to climb around their new vehicles...I even went for a ride around the block in one!

One of the reasons why Orlando was chosen to get these cutting-edge trucks is because Orlando Fleet Manager Jack Dignan wanted them here, as he's very interested in lowering fuel cost and maintenance.  Jack already trains his drivers to drive fuel efficiently and displays each driver's fuel usage to inspire some competition between drivers to use less fuel.

EV's are an incredibly smart choice for short haul delivery vehicles (like Frito-Lay snack foods), as

1. Fuel is much cheaper - Diesel is $4 a gallon and rising quickly and electricity is $0.12 and rising slowly.
2. They don't pollute...which important in urban delivery areas.  Each truck emits no tailpipe emissions and 75% less greenhouse gases than a conventional diesel truck.
3. They're very quiet!
4. EVs eliminate the added wear and additional pollution when you start an internal combustion engine...and delivery vehicles start/stop many times a day.
5. They are much easier to maintain...no oil changes (that's a lot of oil!), no air filters, no exhaust, etc. 

These trucks hold the same amount of product as the diesel trucks, and have A/C, heating, and a backup camera...so they do the same work as their noisy, smelly, and carbon emitting diesel versions.  Since drivers drive the same route each day, range anxiety can be designed out.

The classic knock on EV's is that they fill up slower, as they take 8 hours to recharge, but so what since the trucks are parked all night anyway.  Frito-Lay can lower their fuel cost even more by delaying charging to get off-peak rates.

Now getting back to Shannon...

Shannon has been driving her new EV for 3 months now.  Her route is 59 miles down to Kissimmee which has some highway and city driving.  When I asked her how she liked her truck, she said she loved it and wouldn't go back to a diesel!  Why?  I heard three reasons...

1. Easy Driver Maintenance.  Drivers have to perform maintenance to their truck each day, which means running though a checklist, touching greasy stuff like dipsticks, and filling up the truck with smelly diesel fuel.  Shannon's checklist for her EV is much shorter, the trucks are cleaner, and the truck is fully fueled with electrons when she leaves the depot every morning since she plugged in the night before.
2. It's Comfy.  The cab is quiet and cool since you're not sitting on a hot and noisy engine anymore.
3. It's Cool.  Shannon gets questions all the time from people asking about the truck and how she likes driving it.  It's fun to be on the leading edge of something that is only positive to the people she passes each day...no noise, no pollution.

Here are some factoids about the trucks...

• Can run up to 100 miles on a single charge of their 220kW Lithium Battery (for comparison, a Nissan Leaf's battery is 24 kW)
• Takes 8 hours to recharge using 75Amp Level 2 Chargers from Clipper Creek
• Has regenerative braking to capture energy normally lost when stopping
• Can haul 16,000 pounds (7,250kg)
• They emit zero tailpipe emissions and 75 percent less greenhouse gases than diesel when you count the emissions from the electric power plant.
• They operate virtually silently, eliminating noise pollution
• They provide a long term economically viable solution...the bean counters love low O&M!

Kudo's for Frito-Lay for pioneering EVs in their fleets.  Without risk-taking, progressive company's like Frito-Lay (and DHL, FedEx, UPS, and several others who are deploying similar trucks), EVs would take longer to get to economies of scale which will make them cheaper for the rest of the world.

Coulomb Charging Station Review

Coulomb CT-2021

Over the past year, I've overseen the installation of many Coulomb charging stations, and I gotta say, I'm real impressed with the product...both from a hardware and a software point of view. 

Given that the world is at the early stages of installing EV infrastructure, you would expect a new product to have some rough edges, but the Coulomb products are well designed and miles ahead of the competition.

Here's what I think of Coulomb's product from installing several CT-2100s and a few of the new dual CT-2021s...

Coulomb CT-2021 at the First Walgreens Electric Vehicle
Charging Station in Orlando,  CarCharging Group owns the
unit and Palmer Electric installed it.

Hardware

• High quality construction.  The product assembles easily, the small aluminum body looks good and it's strong.  The product can be installed on the wall, pole, or bollard...all using the same "guts" so they all look and work similar.  They even have a new model that has cord management.
• Lockable holsters.  When you walk up to a Coulomb unit, the J's (J1772 plug) are locked into the device and cannot be removed until you authenticate with the charging station.  This help's keep the J's from being stolen and it helps guide the customer through the charging experience by unlocking and lighting up the holster that they can use.
• The fluorescent display is bright and readable in all light except for direct sunlight.  The "host" (owner) of the charging station can even scroll a message across the front of the display to market or inform the customer.
• Brilliant networking built in.  There's no need to run a data line to each charging station with Coulomb products...they use a cell phone and Zigbee networking in a master/slave configuration.  This allows you to install them anywhere there is a Verizon or AT&T cell network. 
• The biggest opportunity I see for the hardware is that it needs a better display so it can tell the user how to operate it.  As it is, the Coulomb units don't give a new user clear instructions on how to use it...but once you know, it's simple. 

Software - The ChargePoint Network

Coulomb's Driver Portal shows you where all the
charging stations are and keeps track of your usage.

Although Coulomb makes a well designed commercial EVSE, it's their software that makes their product stand out.  Coulomb's SAAS/Cloud based software provides all of the cool features you get from connecting an EVSE to the network, such as:

• Tell drivers looking for an EV charger where they are located (GPS) and if they are being used at the moment.  You can find them via Coulomb's website, Google, Smartphones, and the GPS displays of Electric Vehicles. 
• Tell the customer getting a charge that their car is "filled up" or if the charge has been interrupted...like if someone removed the plug from your car and stuck it into their EV (charging will stop until the plug is returned to your car...it knows!)
• Allow reservation the charging station (new feature).  Coulomb units can be reserved so no one else can use it until you arrive.  While you won't know if someone parked in the space, you will know that the charger is waiting for you.
• Taking payment for a charge.  Owners of Coulomb units can easily setup pricing models so they can charge for usage (i.e. $2 for an hour weekdays, free on weekends).  The drivers can pay via Credit Card, Smartphone App, or Coulomb's ChargePass card (works like a Starbucks card).  Coulomb units do not have a magnetic card "swiper"...the card needs to have an RFID chip embedded inside it (i.e., Chase Blink Card or American Express Blue).  If you don't have a card with an RFID chip, you can use your SmartPhone or call the 1-800 number on the front of the unit.



Coulomb's Station Manager shows the EV Station Owner
stats on station use, energy use, allows configuration of
pricing, access, and marketing messages.

• Charging Station Control.  Each Owner gets access to an Internet Portal (Station Manager) showing all of their EV Chargers.  The owner can control the units, get reports on their usage, see how much energy each station has dispensed, plus many other features. 
• Driver Portal.  Once you setup an account with Coulomb, you have access to an Internet portal (Driver Portal) which shows you useful information like where the Coulomb chargers are, their availability, your history of usage, and how much energy your vehicle has received.
• Smartphone application support.  Coulomb has nice apps for the iPhone, Android, and Blackberry, which can show you where their chargers are located, guide you to them, and reserve them.

The company has been ramping up efforts to become more of a software company than a hardware company, so that other EVSE hardware vendors will leverage the ChargePoint Network to make their EVSE's "networked" - they call this program Onramp.

Pricing
Pricing is set through Coulomb's distribution channel, but they are competitive with the other networked commercial EVSE's that I know of...even though no other company offers as many features.  Coulomb charges the station owner an annual fee for these software features and the cellular access to their charging stations.  This fee is tiered based on how they will be used and the services that you need (Fleet, Retail, Service Provider, etc.).

Overall, I think the Coulomb charging system is like the iPhone: a high quality product packed with features that is simple to use.

How to get a Residential EV Charger

Getting an EV?  Excellent!  Here are three steps to getting a Residential EV Charger installed in your home...

1. Check for rebates and incentives in your area.  In addition to the US Federal "Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Tax Credit" which can save you some money on your home EVSE, you should check the US Government's nice database of incentives (http://www.dsireusa.org/ ) to see if there are other opportunities.  Ecotality, Coulomb and many utilities have programs/incentives in place that can pay for the hardware and possibly the installation of your home EVSE. 
2. Purchase and install the right EVSE for your car.  Here's an article to help you choose which EV Charger, and here are your basic options for getting one...
1. Buy it as an installed option when you purchase your car.  Nissan (AeroVironment), GM (SPX), and Fisker (EVConnect) are just a few car companies that have made installing a charging station very simple for the new owner...you just click a box and someone will be calling you for an installation time.  You'll pay a bit more for this simplicity, but you get a lot for it...especially if don't have the time to find a qualified/trained electrician that knows how/where to install these new devices.
2. Buy the device directly from the manufacturer.  Companies like Leviton and SPX sell their EVSE products right on their website at full retail prices.  Then you can install it yourself (if you're up for the challenge) or have an electrician install it.
3. Buy the device from a big box store like Best Buy or Lowes.  Very very soon these brands will be selling...and offering EVSE installation services...right in their stores (starting in California).  Since these big box stores don't have electricians on staff, you'll spend a bit more for the installation since they are outsourcing the actual installation to another business.
4. Buy it through your local electrician...and have it installed.  Your local electrician can order the EVSE at reseller prices and install it for you...giving you a package deal.
3. Submit for your Tax Credit and/or state rebates.  After your EVSE is installed, remember to submit the paperwork to claim your rebate.

If you live in a condo or apartment, your first step is talking with your property manager to see how they want to support EVs...and chances are, you'll have to school them about EVs...especially about how much EV's cost to charge.

Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE) Installations

Got an interesting EVSE installation you've seen or installed?  Send me a picture along with some details for the caption and I'll add it to the collection.  You can get my email address from the About Tab above.  Given this blog is viewed by many in other countries, I'd like to see your installations too.

Residential Level 2 EV Charger Roundup

Updated: 11/8/11
Looking to get a charge at home?  
There are now several choices on the market for residential EV chargers.  The right one for you depends on what you need it to do.

These EV Chargers will charge any car with the SAE J1772 standardized plug which all new cars in the US are using.  If you have Nissan Leaf or Chevy Volt, all you need is a 240V 15A device, since these cars only have a 3.3kW/h inverter built in.  Selecting an EV Charger with higher Max Amperage rating will not harm the car.

These EV Chargers are not "chargers" at all...they are safety devices to ensure that you don't get shocked while using it or drive away with your car attached to high voltage.  While they are pricy now (most are about $900 and up depending on features), the more they are sold, the faster they will decline in price...just like EVs themselves.

The cost to install varies with distance to power and difficulty to install.  This can range from real cheap ($200) to very expensive ($1500 to upgrade service and install).  If you buy a networked EV Charger, then you also have to factor in hooking it up to your router too.  In most cases, you'll also have to get them permitted.

See below for a list of scenarios and the complete list of Level 2 EVSE (or EV Chargers)...