As a long-term Z Energy customer, the Z team were on board to support Wellington Free Ambulance (WFA) when they began electrifying part of their fleet.
Z offered its business charging suite of products and services, including access to Z’s public EV charging network and workplace charging infrastructure solutions. A particular highlight for Z was the opportunity to donate 10 workplace electric vehicle (EV) chargers.
Beyond emergency care, WFA supports its communities in many other ways, including through its Patient Transfer Service (PTS). In recent years, while still providing secure and reliable transport, the PTS had been operating with an ageing fleet.
“Our fleet was still safe for our staff to drive and to meet patient needs, but we had to consider whether they would continue to be fit for purpose – and we wanted to think about our environmental impact as well," said Ratna Attli, Head of Patient Transfer Services.
After trialling various hybrid vehicles, WFA settled on acquiring six new Mitsubishi Outlander plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) for its PTS service.
With PHEVs set to make up a larger share of the PTS fleet, WFA needed a reliable EV charging infrastructure solution to support its new vehicles.
Andrew Bisset, Energy Business Solutions Manager at Z, explained how his team supported WFA’s unique requirements.
“We took a deep dive into WFA’s operations to develop a solution aimed at best supporting their unique needs. We began by analysing their utilisation patterns, including average kilometres driven and typical service routes to understand where and how their vehicles could be charged,” said Bisset
“From there, we helped WFA identify the most suitable depots for infrastructure installation, as well as public charging locations across the Z network that are convenient for them.”
Following site-specific assessments, Z successfully installed 10 donated workplace chargers across 10 of WFA’s depots in Wellington.
WFA’s Head of Fleet, Josh Brain, added that the benefits of having the ability to charge on-site meant that staff can charge while on a break or between split shifts.
"We have appreciated the support Z has provided throughout the entire process. They managed the installation of the chargers, which was a complexity we didn’t have to worry about, and they were quick at coming up with solutions on where to strategically place the chargers to minimise the installation cost where possible," said Brain.
Post-installation, the Z team continued to provide WFA with ongoing support for the workplace chargers through a charger management platform, maintenance services and access to a 24/7 customer support line.
“Our PTS operates 17 hours a day, seven days a week. Z's ongoing support and the availability of 24/7 assistance through the support line help us maintain the reliability of our charging infrastructure, so our team can focus on carrying out the critical work they do,” added Attli.
Moving forward, Attli said working with Z remains beneficial at many levels, including streamlining many processes.
"From a management perspective, the ability to use the charger management portal to monitor the team’s charging activity and see when vehicles have been charged by crew members is really valuable. We also find their public charging stations user-friendly and have made day-to-day operations easier,” said Attli.
“The positive difference we make to the community is what matters to me, and being able to provide the team with the right vehicles to be able to do their job well makes it very rewarding."
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