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EV Load Management Systems

What is an EV charging Load Management System?

An EV charging Load Management System (LMS) is a control system which manages one or more EV chargers to get the most efficient and effective use out of the available power.

The LMS manages the time of day when charging occurs so as to minimize the cost of the electricity used to charge the EVs.

When there are multiple chargers connected to the LMS, the system balances the energy amongst the chargers to ensure that the EVs can be charged in the way that delivers the best outcomes for the drivers or the organisation.

Often this will mean that equitable charging for all users is the goal, and less frequently there may be a need to charge particular vehicles with priority (what we call VIP functionality).

How does the LMS avoid overloading the building’s supply?

There are two typical methods for managing the total load of an EV charging setpoint:

Static set point

Let’s say you have 400Amps supply at the main switchboard and a from data logging, it is known that the other services use less than 200Amps in total at all times. A static set point of 160Amps might be provided to the LMS. The LMS will manage all connected EV chargers within the total allowable load of 160Amps.

Dynamic set point

This is a slightly more sophisticated installation, where we place a Power Meter at the Main Switchboard to constantly monitor the energy being used in the whole installation. The Power Meter sends this information to the EV LMS. The LMS varies the total allowable EV load up and down depending on how much spare capacity is available within the installation.

In both cases, the Load Management System ensures that there is never a situation where the EV load causes an overload of the site’s electrical installation.

Hardware LMS or Cloud LMS?

Load Management is all about preventing risk to the electrical installation and to building users. There’s not much point having the fastest EV Charging in town if the building users keep suffering blackouts. So it is imperative that Load Management is a priority because it is a matter of safety.

For that reason, we recommend an on-site hardware LMS rather than a Cloud LMS. Why? Because an on-site hardware LMS doesn’t need an internet connection or a server to keep operating effectively – It handles all the Load Management on site, 24/7 irrespective of internet faults, server faults and any other IT hassles.  An on-site hardware LMS provides the most reliable solution possible and reliability of our EV charging systems is what Electrify EV is all about.

A hardware LMS such as the Schneider Electric EcoStruxure™ EV Charging Expert can also take an input from your building’s fire detection system (or any other system for that matter) and shut down the chargers in a controlled way in case an emergency arises. 

Would you like to know more about Load Management Systems? Contact us today for a free consultation.

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