July 18, 2024
Top Advantages of Hiring an EV Professional for Your Commercial EV Charging Station Installation
8 Min. Read
Following significant growth in at-home EV charging and increasing trends in EV adoption that show strong future forecasts, commercial property owners are increasingly following suit by installing Level 2 EV Chargers and DC Fast Charging Stations (DCFC) across their properties.
EV charging offers convenience for office building occupants and employees, draws traffic for retail businesses, supports sustainability goals in ESG (environmental, social, and governance) programs, and creates the potential for a profitable new revenue stream.
While there are incredible benefits to implementing commercial charging stations at your property, reliability, efficiency, safety, and quality are crucial for growth and adaptation and a commercial EV charging installation should be seen as a long-term investment that requires careful and correct planning done by a professional with EV charger expertise.
Hiring a professional with specific expertise and industry knowledge in electrification to guide you from the initial planning stages of your commercial EV charging station installation project through to any necessary maintenance afterward will help ensure your project is completed safely and efficiently—fully supporting your business needs both now and in the future.
In this article, we’ll explore the top reasons for and advantages of hiring an EV professional for your commercial EV charging station installation.
EV Charging Professionals – Installation Expertise and Industry Knowledge
While standard electricians are well versed in most types of electrical work due to their excellent apprenticeship requirements and rigorous standards of general electrical training, they may not have the expertise to work on commercial EV charging station installation projects.
EV chargers are unlike any other type of appliance, and with many moving parts that require specialist knowledge to install correctly, commercial EV charging station installation will often require additional training beyond standard EV charger installation certifications meaning that even electricians with the skills to install residential EV chargers may not be skilled in commercial EV charging station installation.
Fortunately, training and certification are readily available to electricians who wish to become skilled in commercial EV charging station installation. For example, the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Training Program (EVITP) provides a comprehensive curriculum supported by a partnership of automakers, utilities, and EV technology manufacturers, equipping electricians with extensive expertise for EV charger installations, and many commercial EV charging station manufacturers will offer specialized training for their specific EVSE models once an electrician is EVITP-certified.
Such knowledge is essential to ensure that EV charging stations are safe, functional, and can perform at their optimum levels. The best way to provide a quality, high-performance charging experience at your commercial property is to use properly trained electricians with commercial EV charging station installation expertise to install and maintain your chargers.
Mistakes are costly and installations lacking reliability, safety, efficiency, and visual appeal will lose customers, cost you money for repairs and renovations in addition to interrupting your revenue flow from the charging stations, and damage your reputation with customers, partners, and employees alike.
Failure to plan and implement preventive maintenance programs will lead to low usage, frequent downtime, and even potential safety hazards. This negligence can lead to customer injuries or vehicle damage, potentially triggering costly lawsuits that are easily avoidable with proper care and maintenance.
Involve Electricians with EV Expertise Early
You should hire electricians with EV expertise even before you begin the planning process, starting with defining the project scope. The specialized knowledge that an experienced EV charger installer can bring to your project will help ensure that the installation is properly planned and executed from the very beginning.
Establishing a strategy and the scope of your project should include considerations of the customer base you will serve. Selecting the right EV charging stations for your commercial property will depend on when you expect customers to charge, how often they will likely stay, and how frequently you anticipate charging stations being used. Additionally, the type of individuals using the chargers will also play a role in this—will your chargers be used by employees working on-site, by customers, by business partners, or by other visitors to your property?
Once you’ve established the type of customer and frequency of charging to select the best charger types for your property, the next step will be site selection. This is a critical step for your EV charger installer as you may need electrical upgrades, service upgrades, or other types of electrical work to support adding EV charging stations to your property and they can advise you through this process. Keep in mind that the further the distance from the power source such as electrical panel or battery storage the more wiring and materials will be needed and the greater the cost of your project.
Additionally, you must work closely with utilities at this step to discuss interconnections, rates, and utility infrastructure needs, in addition to a review with your municipality.
Your expert EV charger installer can ensure a solid plan from the beginning by helping you select the right charger level, knowing how to seamlessly manage interactions with utility companies and municipalities, and even providing support in ensuring your installation is properly installed and eligible to receive any qualifying rebates or incentives.
Additionally, a certified and trusted installer understands that regulatory compliance is essential for every EV charger project. If you violate regulations or local or national codes such as the National Electric Code (NEC), you expose yourself to work delays, fines, legal claims, and the costs to repair and replace the work to bring it up to code requirements.
Beyond ensuring your installation meets all safety regulations and code requirements, an electrical contractor with EV expertise will also know the necessities to file an appropriate permit and can ensure that your installations have proper permitting to avoid delay, issues with insurance compliance, and refiling. This professional insight will be carried through the whole project to ensure code compliance, safety, quality, and efficiency and will save you time, money, and frustration in the long-term.
Efficient and Safe Installation Process
In the next phase of your commercial EV charging project, it is critical to have an EV expert contractor install your chargers.
The experience and training of a knowledgeable EV charger installer is invaluable as they will complete the proper wiring and electrical construction to ensure the safety and longevity of your project. While this is arguably the most important step to have a specialized EV contractor, expertise in planning and performing scheduled repairs and maintenance ensures continued reliability.
It is recommended to use the same electrical contractor for both the installation and contract maintenance of your commercial EV charging stations, as this provides not only continuity and familiarity with the project, but the contractor also has a vested interest in a success story and ensuring the chargers are properly installed and well-maintained to avoid future issues or escalating problems.
If you can, negotiate including the scope and price of the maintenance contract to the installation contract as the prospect of ongoing revenue for the contractor may give you leverage on the overall contract price.
Tailored EV Charging Solutions for Business Needs
Every project is unique, and having a knowledgeable electrical contractor who can anticipate and address potential issues while also optimizing your space to its fullest potential will provide a better value for your investment.
Additionally, an experienced commercial EV charging station installer will help you consider your future needs as well as your present ones.
It’s important to allow space to expand your charging capabilities as required and you may want to consider incorporating your commercial EV charging with other electrification trends such as heat pumps, solar, electric water heaters, and even battery storage either now or in the future.
Integrating your EV charging with other energy transition technologies will further enable you to lower the cost of your charging station operational expenses, help protect the grid from increasing peak-time charging loads which can in turn offset your utility costs, and also provide increased energy resilience for your business.
In short, an experienced contractor will discuss and determine your goals and concerns, make recommendations based on these considerations, create a detailed plan to fit your needs, and present a comprehensive cost breakdown.
Developers also have several incentives to defray the cost of installing and maintaining EV charging projects. Most notable is a tax credit of up to 30% of the project cost provided in the federal Inflation Reduction Act, subject to specific requirements for labor used, and states and utilities offer even more incentives.
Let Qmerit Help You Find Local EV Charging Professionals
As a commercial property owner, hiring an electrical contractor with EV expertise to plan and implement your commercial EV charging station installation is a practical decision and a solid investment.
With deep knowledge of current technology and the ability to anticipate future trends, a skilled EV charger installer can customize the project design to fit your needs, while also ensuring a safe, high-quality installation that matches your expectations and protects your reputation and your property. Additionally, having a certified installer with a well-planned and well-executed maintenance program will keep your commercial EV charging stations operating dependably for years to come.
Beyond the safety and quality hiring a licensed EV charger installer will bring to your project, they can also help you maximize the incentives you can access to minimize the cost of your project, ensure your project meets and requirements for these savings, and provide an installation that meets your insurance requirements.
As the largest and most experienced EV charger installation network in North America, Qmerit’s extensive network of qualified electrical contractors has the experience and knowledge to simplify your choice of charging station and installer. Our dedicated team of professionals can take the heavy lifting out of selecting your EV chargers and budgeting your projects and will help you manage the EV transition from start to finish to mitigate risks all along the way and ensure your EV charger installation is seamless, safe, efficient, and completed on time.
Financial incentives at the state, utility, and federal levels are evolving all the time. With years of experience navigating the available incentives and evolving requirements for qualifications, we have the expertise to help you receive every benefit you are entitled to, without the stress.
With over 450,000 EV charging stations installed, the Qmerit Installer Network leads North America in electrification and our team is here to help you navigate all your energy transition needs.
Learn more about our turnkey solutions for Commercial EV Charging to see why we’re North America’s most trusted EV charger installer.
