Volvo Trucks has partnered with SWARCO Smart Charging and Clarke EV to install electric vehicle charging infrastructure at 27 of its wholly-owned dealerships in the UK, as part of a million-pound investment to support the move to an electric courtesy car fleet.
Clarke EV is installing 180 SWARCO Smart Charging EV charging points, including a mix of AC charging posts and DC charging stations, across the Volvo Truck and Bus Centre North & Scotland and Volvo Truck and Bus Centre South & East dealer networks. The work is expected to be completed by June 2022.
Once installed, customers booking a courtesy car while their truck is being serviced will be given the keys to a Renault Zoe electric car, with 130 due to enter service over the coming months – eliminating tailpipe emissions from the courtesy car fleet altogether.
John Twitchen, Group Truck Purchasing Manager – Indirect Products & Services at Volvo Group, who led the project with Andy Mason, Regional Operations Manager, says: “We are focused on making electromobility easy for our customers, so naturally we wanted to lead by example within our own fleet. For us, it’s not just about selling electric, but taking the journey ourselves too.
“By working closely with SWARCO Smart Charging and Clarke EV, we have been able to select infrastructure and a software back-office package which will future proof our network and allow us to charge more than just cars. Initially, the focus is on ensuring our courtesy car fleet is 100 per cent electric by June 2022; but the next stage will be looking at electrifying our van fleet too.”
All Renault Zoe cars will be fully charged when they leave the dealership and customers will benefit from access to a rapidly growing charging network across the country, including more than 2,000 SWARCO charging points.
Ken Stott, Director of Clarke EV, comments: “We are really excited to be working with a company which is committed to its own road to zero journey, as well as helping its customers with theirs. Clarke EV is delivering a whole solution approach including not only the EV charging infrastructure but also delivering upgraded power to site through our Independent Connection Provider (ICP) status. The scope of the project has also reinforced our UK-wide capability, installing charging points at depots from Croydon up to Inverness.”
Justin Meyer, Managing Director of SWARCO Smart Charging, says: “This is a significant project for Volvo Trucks and it paves the way for its future electromobility plans. We are pleased to be working with partners who recognise our long-term commitment to supporting customers, and which are looking for quality and reliability. Our charging infrastructure and smart charging solutions will underpin this project and we look forward to supporting the long-term operation of the network.”
The initiative aligns with Volvo Trucks’ wider electromobility plans to transition half of all sales to electric products by 2030. It began serial production of electric trucks in 2019, as one of the very first truck brands to do so. The range now includes five electric truck models in the UK and Ireland – the Volvo FH, Volvo FM, Volvo FMX, Volvo FE and Volvo FL Electric.
SWARCO Smart Charging has more than 8,000 charging points installed across the UK with an uptime of 99.1 per cent. SWARCO Smart Charging is part of SWARCO – an international group providing the complete range of products, systems, services and solutions for road safety and intelligent traffic management to support the mobility needs of society and lower-transport-related emissions.
Clarke EV, a division of Clarke Telecom, is an OZEV (Office of Zero Emission Vehicles) and NICEIC (National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting) accredited EV infrastructure provider. As an EV solutions provider, Clarke EV provides a market-leading capability from consultancy to design, civils, electrical installation, planning and ICP. Operating across the UK, the business has been serving the mobile telecoms and EV charging sectors for over 20 years and prides itself on its superior achievements both in safety standards, accreditations, and awards.
