CASE STUDY: Vision Engineering Ltd.
Vision Engineering Increase Car Charging Capability by over 200%
Vision Engineering’s continual investment in green technology helps visitors and employees to leverage the latest in economic hybrid and electric cars.
“Vision Engineering is continually investing in infrastructure and facilities that ensure the business runs smoothly. The additional car chargers were essential for staff and visitors to charge their electric cars.
The installation went very smoothly, with minimum disruption to the business. UK Green Energy Installations were able to offer a maintenance package which enables us to receive the support if / when we need it and this is essential as the car chargers are always in use.”
Vision Engineering Ltd is a leading-edge manufacturer of patented optical and digital stereo microscopes and measuring systems.
Vision Engineering was founded in 1958 by Rob Freeman MBE (1933-2017) and in 1994 Vision Engineering introduced the World’s first ‘eyepiece-less’ stereo microscope, the original Mantis. The Mantis’ ergonomic design went on to win numerous innovation awards and was featured on the BBC TV programme Tomorrow’s World.
With numerous offices around the world and a continual focus on evolution, Vision Engineering has invested in additional electric car chargers at its head office in Send, Surrey.
Not only investing in a greener future, but ensuring they keep up with the demands of both visitors and employees.
the challenge
The installation of additional EV charge points at Vision Engineering required a few considerations that needed addressing at the planning stage including:
How the individual chargers could be monitored i.e. how payments for charging could be made and managed
What would make the best charger option for the pre-installed infrastructure, such as cables and circuit protection
Servicing and warranty options for the new chargers
Previous EV charger installations at Vision Engineering (including charge points supplied and installed by BP) gave the facilities team at Vision Engineering some insight into what problems could occur when charge points require maintenance or repair. This meant the facilities team knew what was needed, which in-turn helped them to decide upon a reliable commercial charger and a installation company that could provide immediate support if required.
OUR SOLUTION
Rolec’s AUTOCHARGE commercial charger points have the option of a premium back office software, allowing for desktop monitoring of the chargers. VendElectric Chargepoint Management System provides functionality that allows tariffs for individual drivers / vehicles to be configured accordingly i.e. you can set tariffs for visitors, company vans / cars, and individuals at different rates. Everything is activated by a free downloadable app or RFID cards (supplied separately if the app isn’t viable).
With Rolec providing various options of their AUTOCHARGE units, the single phase version providing two 32 Amp outlets at 7KW on each pillar fitted perfectly to the cables and circuit protection that had already been installed.
The two way configuration ensured two cars could charge simultaneously, maximising the capacity to a further ten points from the original three.
Rolec AUTOCHARGE car charging points with Mode 3 superfast charging
Peace of mind
Rolec AUTOCHARGE points are listed on the OZEV workplace list of approved charge points. As the chargers also came with three year parts warranty from Rolec, and a labour warranty of 12 months from UK Green Energy Installations, it provided peace of mind if anything should occur post installation that Vision Engineering were protected and would be supported.
A service contract was also provided to Vision Engineering, with regular six monthly visits to test & service the chargers.
Installing and Commissioning the chargers
Working with the facilities team at Vision Engineering helped to ensure the installation was a seamless experience, ensuring a non-disruptive focus to day-to-day work for the busy Surrey business.
Once installed and tested, the final part of commissioning was the back-office set up. This was all carried out remotely via emails with the final login details sent directly from VendElectric to Vision Engineering’s Facility Manager, including videos on how to set drivers up and navigation for general monitoring tasks.