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Initially, arranging for a charging station to be installed will be part of the buying process for your first electric vehicle (EV). All chargers approved by various manufacturers shall conform to the SAE J1772 standards for Electric Vehicles and Electrical Connectors.
You will not be able to buy a car unless you are willing to install a charging station in your home. Customers purchasing a Nissan Leaf will need to use their exclusive contractor, AeroVironment, to install a home charger. They may be able to install their own charging equipment if they sign a waiver.
The Chevy Volt will come standard with a 110-volt charger that will allow you to charge directly from your home wall outlet. For VoLTE customers who prefer to install a 240V rapid charger, SPX Service Solutions is the exclusive contractor for their rapid charging station installation.
There is a big difference in the range of vehicles due to the size of their battery packs. Chevrolet considers the Volt a hybrid vehicle that can be plugged in. GM describes the car as an extended range EV (electric vehicle) with a small battery. The LEAF is strictly electric with a very large battery pack that is 2-3 times the size of the Volt. The Chevy Volt’s 16kwh battery will probably only use 8 kw. The Leaf will have a 24 KWh battery, but will probably need to use 80-90% to extend battery life. To fully charge the LEAF, it needs to be plugged into a 110v outlet for a full day. It is expected that the cost of installing a Level II home charging unit will be around $2,200.
Because the Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt are expected to be the first cars to require the installation of Level 2 home chargers by 2012, it is expected that demand for home charging units will remain low until a surprising number of first owners Don’t choose to have rapid chargers professionally installed.
Now many companies are entering the charging station market. AeroVironment was the first company to dedicate itself to the development and manufacture of Level II home charging units. The reason they got the contract from Nissan was probably because they were the first to introduce the product. Most other companies that are developing and manufacturing charging stations focus on industrial units for commercial and municipal installations. That is changing though as the first mass-market electric vehicles prepare for launch.
Below are the current companies that manufacture electric vehicle charging stations
ECOtality- ETec
Now called ECOtality North America, ECOtality has been making electric charging stations for quite some time. Industrial equipment such as forklifts have used electric charging technology for some time. They have used their experience to market the Minute-Charger for both residential and commercial charging applications. The EV project managed by ECOtalty is looking to install thousands of charging stations over the next year in the 5 states where the EVs will be released first. ECOtality also installs stations made by other manufacturers. ECOtality makes both Level I and Level II chargers but does not make fast DC charging equipment. ECOtality recently introduced a new line of commercial and home Level II charging stations. It is believed that the new stations, designed by global industrial design firm Frog Design, will help update their conservative image.
spx
SPX has been selected by Chevrolet as the exclusive service provider for the purchase and installation of the Chevy Volt 240 Volt Rapid Home Charger. SPX will facilitate every aspect of the purchase and installation of rapid chargers that will charge the Volt in approximately 4 hours. The SPX team will advise homeowners on the needs to upgrade their electrical service to accommodate the home charging system and also assist them in taking the necessary steps to qualify for lower electric utility rates.
AeroVironment
AeroVironment was selected as the exclusive home charging installation contractor for the Nissan LEAF. Even though AeroVironment is mostly known for residential installations, they are one of the few companies that sell both Level II and Fast Charging DC chargers for commercial use. AeroVironment is a well-established company that has developed unmanned aircraft for the military for many years. The company was responsible for the Charger for the Impact, a precursor to the GM EV1 produced in the 1990s. They also developed charging stations for the EV1, so it’s only natural that they would be building newer versions of the charging stations.
coulomb technologies
Coulomb Technologies is one of the better known EV charging manufacturers. Coulomb is rapidly building out their membership charge point network which will allow their members to walk up to any of their stations and charge instantly. Most of the 300 stations they currently have installed are Level I, although they have now started installing Level II chargers as well.
clipper creek
A lesser-known company, Clipper Creek has been selling chargers for decades. The design of their devices is not as trendy and sleek as some of the newer styles. Their chargers are geared more towards fleet installations rather than residential or businesses. Clipper Creek has made it known that their products can be installed just about anywhere. They handle home charging installations for the Tesla Roadster. These charging stations are for Level II charging only and come in a variety of configurations to meet the needs of their customers.
general Electric
The newest entrant in the EV charging station market is GE. They have just introduced their new Watt Station charger. The first release is primarily for commercial installations, but there are plans to introduce a residential version later this year. The Watt station is known for its attractive design. Renowned designer Yves Bihar is the genius behind the attractive style of the Wat station. It is also the first model to include Wi-Fi Smart technology.
pep stations
A well-known company called PEP has started working with Ford to build a strong enough charging station that can handle rough use. These units are architectural in design with a concrete base and stainless steel top. These units are primarily marketed for commercial and municipal installations. This unknown company has no track record so their quality remains to be seen. The designers used high quality automotive grade components, so they are built to be strong.
better place
Better Place is known for battery switching technologies. They have now started setting up vehicle charging stations in Israel and Denmark. As of now they have no plans to sell their units for residential use. We are mentioning them here because they may change their strategy to offer residential charging options.
Levitan
Leviton is a huge and well-known power supply company. They are with established company with large number of service technicians. Leviton includes a 10-year warranty on their “Ever-Green” home and commercial charging stations. Leviton Ever-Green charging stations can support both Level I and Level II charging and will integrate with Charge Point charging stations. Leviton has also introduced a standard installation method that is the industry’s first pre-wired plug in system for their Level II chargers. The system would enable consumers to make their homes “plug in ready” before purchasing any electric car. This pre-wired system has a starting price of less than $200 that does not include installation and is designed to reduce installation costs and reduce installation time. The pre-wired kit needs to be installed by a Leviton-certified installer, but once the system is installed, a Level II charging station can easily be added later by the consumer.
Presently, they are the main players in the Electric Car Charging market place. Only time will tell who will emerge as the market leader and which new players will join the fray. If you’ve heard of any other players who are building electric car charging stations, please let me know so I can add them to this list.
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