Easton Increases Shopper Dwell Time with Cutting-Edge Fast Charging Technology

The EV Trend

EV ownership is growing nationwide, and sales are increasing especially fast in Ohio, at a rate of nearly 40% year over year. Due to these trends, Easton wanted to deploy EV charging as a guest service in order to achieve several goals:

• Encourage EV drivers to visit Easton
• Offer the best possible charging experience
• Increase customer satisfaction
• Set Easton apart from other shopping destinations
• Demonstrate a strong commitment to sustainability

The ChargePoint Solution

To serve EV drivers, Easton installed five networked EV charging stations from ChargePoint: three ChargePoint Express 200 DC fast charging stations and two CT4000 Level 2 charging stations. Using cutting-edge technology, the DC fast chargers can add up to 200 miles of range in one hour, perfect for short stops, while Level 2 charging stations add about 25 miles of range per hour and are a good choice for longer shopping trips, dining or seeing a movie. The five stations increase existing capacity at Easton so guests always have the best possible experience, even when demand for charging is high. Based on the success of EV charging so far, Easton plans to add stations so even more EV drivers can benefit from the convenience of charging.

Easton subscribes to ChargePoint’s Commercial Plan for remote station monitoring and configuration. Under the plan, ChargePoint support provides proactive monitoring, eliminating the need for Easton to check on stations manually. Most EV drivers develop the habit of charging up wherever they go, so they depend heavily on charging stations to be up and running when they stop at a destination. At the same time, EV charging is new territory for many businesses, so they appreciate thorough and responsive support. The Commercial Plan includes in-depth reporting so Easton can understand when and for how long drivers are charging, as well as how many greenhouse gas emissions they’re preventing as an organization.

EV drivers can easily locate the stations at Easton using the free ChargePoint mobile app or Apple Maps, which displays EV Charger badges. When drivers find stations they want to use, they can check availability and start charging with a quick tap on their phone. While shopping, dining or enjoying a movie, drivers can see charging details in the app and get text or email alerts when their EV is fully charged.

Results

Since installing EV charging stations, Easton has seen promising results.

• About 40% of drivers who charge spend more than the average time at Easton
• More than 10,000 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions have been prevented
• Around 350 EV drivers use the new stations each month
• Usage has been rising since the stations were installed