Almost 11 years ago SWARCO charge points arrived in Scotland and recently the firm has boosted its operations here with its new base at the Michelin Scotland Innovation Parc (MSIP) in Dundee.
SWARCO is responsible for operation of the ChargePlace Scotland electric vehicle charging network across Scotland.
For Justin Meyer, managing director of SWARCO Smart Charging, it was the perfect pairing for SWARCO to move into the £60million MSIP.
He said: “It ticked the box for SWARCO with it being a low carbon technology and innovation parc.
“From inception of our business we have been targeting opportunities in Scotland because it is a very green and environmentally conscious country. We have expanded our team here and we will continue to invest in Scotland.”
Smart charging points now across Scotland
All SWARCO’s call centre operations are now in the MSIP, located in Blyth House, the former headquarters of Michelin. Around 18 new jobs were created, bringing the total number of SWARCO employees in Scotland to 33, which includes sales and project managers and service engineers.
All play a vital part in the expansion and operation of the country’s EV infrastructure network. There are currently 2,600 charge points that SWARCO is responsible for in Scotland and if any EV drivers have an issue with a charger, then they call the helpline on the charge point and are put through to the call centre in the MSIP.
Rapid and fast EV charging in Dundee
Since 2010, SWARCO has been promoting the benefits of driving an electric vehicle. Much of this work has been done through its partnership with Dundee City Council.
During that time, SWARCO has helped deliver Dundee’s charging infrastructure, as well as deploying a number of other exciting projects for the city.
Justin Meyer, at SWARCO, has been involved since the beginning and explained one standout project: “It’s the charging hub at princes Street that is particularly close to my heart. It is a really impressive site with rapid and fast charging, carports with solar panels and energy storage.
“It was our first hub in Scotland and is a shining example of how different sustainable technologies can come together in a single site,” Justin added.
New electric street sweeper arrives in Dundee
Not only has Dundee City Council expanded its fleet of electric bin lorries, it has also welcomed a new street sweeper, run entirely on electricity.
The battery-operated vehicles, which can be charged at one of the council’s hubs, can run on its custom-designed 63kWh power pack for eight hours, meaning the sweeper driver can complete a whole shift on one charge.
Look out for the new sweeper which will not only have no emissions, but will be much quieter too, reducing noise (as well as air) pollution.
The arrival of the electric street sweeper is another step closer to Dundee City Council having fully electric vehicles in its fleet as the local authority continues to replace diesel/petrol cars to battery-powered ones.
Like its fellow new electric bin lorries, the street sweeper has been named. It is called Lightening McClean!
To find out more about the EV offering in Dundee, visit the Drive Dundee Electric website.
