HEALTHCARE EV CHARGING SYSTEMS
The sophisticated software that helps drive ‘transition’
Sara Sloman, Chief Strategy Officer at Paythru, argues that in order to deliver a successful EV transition across the healthcare estate, healthcare estates and healthcare engineering teams must ‘look beyond the chargepoint itself’, to digital solutions, and how to both maximise user convenience and secure the best return on their investment.
Healthcare estates are looking to a Net Zero future. As set out in the NHSE/I publication, Delivering a ‘Net Zero’ National Health Service, published in October 2020, the NHS is planning to deliver a commendable 80% reduction in emissions by 2045. A major element of this will be supporting the transition to electric vehicles (EV) – whether the organisation’s fleets of cars, bikes, and ambulances, or the vehicles that a growing number of its 1.27 million staff use to travel to work. The NHS is showing its ambition to be a trailblazer in this sphere. As the UK’s largest employer, and home to almost 500,000 car parking spaces, it has an advantage of scale that justifies considerable thought to getting its EV deployment strategy right – a strategy that will impact many, and many others may copy. Things are certainly happening.
The latest figures show that around half (51%) of NHS Trusts have an onsite EV charging infrastructure, and 43% are planning to install charging facilities over the next few years. This comes in the wake of complex and lengthy planning and car park reviews across the country, aimed at reducing single occupancy use on site.
Considerable thought required This drive toward greater take-up of EVs will only continue as NHS organisations – as well as private health providers – seek to reduce their carbon footprints, and support staff, patients, and visitors, to do so. Successful EV charging is, however, about so much more than simply getting chargers in the ground. To get the best from them, considerable thought must be given to how they will be used by drivers, and managed by healthcare estates over time, so that they can be designed to be operationally cost-effective throughout their lives. Before we look at the challenges and solutions of deployment, let’s reconsider the value of putting in EV chargers in the
116 Health Estate Journal October 2023 Paythru says cloud-based payment can ‘revolutionise’ the future of paying for parking.
first place. Among the key such benefits are: n Decarbonising your estate: This is the obvious one. Installing chargers means internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles can be replaced with cleaner electric ones.
n Employee perks: Staff could be given access to low-cost charging as a perk, incentivising them to switch to EVs. Many NHS staff will not have driveways at home, but guaranteed affordable charging at work could offer a significant incentive.
n Greater patient and visitor convenience: Easily accessible car park charging provides added convenience for patients, who can benefit from charging their electric vehicles during the ‘downtime’ of being in hospital or for people visiting.
n Generating extra income: Many chargers could be run at a profit, generating valuable revenue at scale for NHS Trusts.
n Positive public perception: ‘Going electric’ demonstrates the health
facility’s commitment to promoting sustainability, improving its public image. As community leaders and influencers, hospitals that embrace EV technology will be seen to encourage and motivate others to make the transition to more sustainable futures, reflecting a reputation as responsible and forward- thinking institutions.
n ‘Future-proofing’: By 2030, it is anticipated that there will be between 8 and 11 million hybrid or electric cars in the UK, if uptake is aligned with the Road to Zero (RTZ) targets. By 2040, the number of hybrid or electric cars could reach 25.5 million. Accommodating the growing EV driver numbers with accessible chargepoints could be highly beneficial for many types of facilities within the healthcare estates sector.
Consider the user experience Hardware and infrastructure are often the focus in electrification of transport, but lately there has been welcome attention on
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