One of many largest impediments to a speedy transition from combustion automobiles to EVs is the shortage of ubiquitous, dependable, high-speed public charging, and there will probably be nobody silver bullet in reaching that purpose. As a substitute, a mess of corporations providing totally different options collectively will blanket the nation, and finally, the world.
Nevertheless, I lately checked out one such firm, Gravity Charging, a newcomer within the trade that opened up its first charging web site just a few weeks in the past in of all locations, the guts of New York Metropolis and it has the potential to be a game-changer.
I say “of all locations” as a result of if you consider massive electrical automobile DC Quick charging websites, you in all probability consider massive parking tons, with the chargers occupying a small nook of your complete location.
In New York Metropolis, in addition to in different main cities, actual property is expensive, and most parking areas are situated on the bottom ground of the buildings and infrequently underground. Moreover, most areas cannot present the facility mandatory with out costly infrastructure upgrades, however Gravity claims they’ve a manner round that drawback. For these causes, there are only a few DC quick chargers in Manhattan.
That has been an enormous drawback for electrical automobile adoption within the metropolis and different city areas and that is unlucky as a result of the use case for EVs in main cities is much more engaging than it’s for those who dwell within the suburbs or additional out within the nation.
Metropolis dwellers drive fewer miles as a result of every little thing is situated near the place they dwell and work, a lot in order that many do not personal a automobile in any respect. Subsequently, the decrease common driving vary of an EV will not be a problem—however charging it up when wanted is.
I do know this primary hand as a result of I dwell about 50 miles from New York Metropolis and over the previous 15 years I have been driving my EVs to town and have by no means had a spot to conveniently cost my vehicles in Manhattan. Revel has charging areas in Brooklyn and Queens, however nothing in Midtown, which I usually go to.
We began with a worth of $0.59 per kWh right here, however if you happen to go to one in all our (future) websites in an outer borough, the websites that we’ll announce, it’ll price rather a lot much less, and there will probably be websites which can be very, very low-cost… Moshe Cohen, CEO of Gravity Charging
A part of the issue has been the shortage of house within the garages the place inches matter and lots of areas can’t spare the wanted two to 3 toes of house in entrance of the parking spot for the DC Quick charger. Gravity solved that concern with its revolutionary compact chargers which can be wall-mounted up close to the ceiling and permit the automobiles to tug proper as much as the storage’s wall. Moreover, the ceiling-mounted cable administration system is designed such that the cable can attain any nook of the automobile parked within the spot.
The Gravity Charging Middle is situated at 401-471 West forty second Road, which is only one block from Occasions Sq.. There are twenty-four chargers, every with the power to ship as much as 500 kW and have been examined to offer such energy for a lot of days constantly, in order that’s not a peak energy restrict that the items can solely do for a brief time frame.
Gravity’s 200 kW curbside charging level in entrance of the primary charging middle on forty second avenue in New York Metropolis.
Throughout my go to, I used to be capable of converse with Gravity’s Founder and CEO, Moshe Cohen, and ask him some primary questions concerning the firm, comparable to how are they capable of ship a lot energy with out the necessity to improve the constructing’s electrical infrastructure.
Cohen defined that the system’s software program intelligently manages the out there surplus energy of your complete block, which at any given time is greater than sufficient to energy the positioning. I’d have appreciated to comply with up on this one particular subject, as a result of I believe there must be a extra detailed clarification of how that is achieved, however I used to be beneath a time constraint.
Cohen added the corporate has plans for growth throughout the nation, with areas not solely in inner-city garages however public parking tons and in addition curbside charging with Gravity’s pole-mounted charging answer. The pole-mounted charger is a 200 kW unit that has its energy cupboard put in at a distant location.
I’ve already reached out to Gravity to arrange a second interview so I can get a greater understanding of how Gravity’s energy administration software program works. If Cohen can actually repeat what he is performed on forty second Road round the remainder of New York Metropolis and different areas of the nation, with out spending a whole lot of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in utility upgrades, then Gravity has certainly taken an enormous step ahead within the DC quick charging trade.