Hitachi ZeroCarbon launches fleet electrification platform
Hitachi says the new ZeroCarbon platform is a “one stop shop… designed to simplify every step of fleet electrification”. In practice, what this looks like is end-to-end tools ranging from planning, strategy and financing through to day-to-day vehicle and battery operations.
The platform is broken down into four main solutions. ZeroCarbon Fleet combines Hitachi’s charging and battery management offerings into a single integrated solution. It gathers data from both chargers and batteries to generate insights into vehicle safety and performance. Additionally, the software can identify ‘opportunities for revenue generation’ – such as offering unused charging infrastructure for commercial use, or repurposing batteries for on-site energy storage.
Meanwhile, ZeroCarbon Charge provides real-time insights into vehicle activity, load balancing and tariff optimisation. Practically, this means ‘smart’ charging schedules for vehicles, tracking of current charging sessions, and moving charging to off-peak times to save money and energy. Hitachi states it is an inherently scalable tool which can work with a wide range of commercial vehicles.
This pairs with another tool, ZeroCarbon BatteryManager. This is essentially an advanced service and analytics platform to enhance battery performance, lifespan and safety. It takes the form of a live, fleet-wide battery analytics dashboard which allows operators to examine the overview of all battery assets. Additionally, it can be used to validate warranties, identify battery risks and provide safety alerts, and provide non-technical data visualisation of short- and long-term battery health. The software also provides annual battery asset health and forecasting reports. Hitachi is also offering battery financing through the platform via its ‘battery-as-a-service’ model.
The final component of the ZeroCarbon platform isn’t really software, but linked to consulting. ZeroCarbon Strategy essentially gives companies access to Hitachi consultants who can analyse their existing commercial fleet operations and create a roadmap for electrification. Hitachi states this includes cost of ownership projects, charger and power requirements, site infrastructure recommendations, and more.
Stig Tvergrov of Posten Bring, a customer of ZeroCarbon, said that the ZeroCarbon tools integrated ‘seamlessly’ into his company’s existing infrastructure. Tvergrov said: “Through our deployment of ZeroCarbon Charge, we achieved complete visibility into the health and performance of our key battery assets, so we can optimise our vehicles based on route, journey or condition.” He added: “It led to us having complete visibility over both vehicles and chargers.”
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