Manufacturing the Charging Stations of the Future

OVERVIEW

A2A, the Seeker for this Wazoku Crowd Challenge, is searching for established manufacturers of EV charging technology systems to produce the City Plug, its innovative public charger.

The City Plug’s low-power and renewable energy supply has been rolled out across Brescia to great effect and will help A2A to lead the energy transition in Italy. However, this requires a greater scale of production to serve more consumers and to-date, the City Plug has not yet reached economies of scale.

This Scouting Challenge is designed to find proven expert companies in EV charging systems with the ability to bring the City Plug to market quickly, reliably, and at scale. Your application should detail your business’s credentials in the technology area, proven track record at scaling up products to market, and give example series costs given the technical details of the City Plug. Additional technical requirements and specifications of the City Plug are available in this Challenge’s attachment.

Shortlisted companies will be invited to RFI and RFQ with A2A, in order to define future collaborations, services, or partnerships with the City Plug across Italy, Europe, and beyond.

This is a Scouting Challenge seeking a partner or supplier to provide systems or expertise to solve A2A’s business challenge; the Solver is invited to submit a written proposal to be evaluated by A2A with the goal of establishing a collaborative partnership.

WIN Scouts are very much invited to participate, this being any Solver who can propose a potentially suitable partner (startup or expert) from your network. As a WIN Scout, by referring a relevant partner you will be recognized with a share of a separate $1,000 recognition award if your referral meets certain minimum criteria of detail, relevance, and format.

The input required is guided during the submission process for WIN Scouts below.

Submissions to this Challenge must be received by 11:59 PM (US Eastern Time) on November 18, 2024.

- Login or register your interest to start collaborating and scouting!

ABOUT THE SEEKER & ELIGIBILITY

The A2A Group is the largest Italian multi-utility, at the forefront of territorial services and technological solutions. We design smart and sustainable cities, with respect for the citizens, we are protagonists of energy transition, and we implement the principle of the circular economy in all our activities. With a far-reaching strategic plan, we manage the generation, sale and distribution of electricity and gas, district heating, waste collection and recovery, e-mobility, public lighting, and the integrated water services.

Employees of ­­­­A2A are ineligible to receive an award for this Challenge.

Wazoku welcomes WIN Scouts and referred partners to become active members of Wazoku Innovation Networks (WIN).

WIN Scouts are invited to participate in this Challenge, this being any Solver who can propose a potentially suitable partner from your network.

Find out more about participation in Wazoku Crowd Challenges.

THE CHALLENGE

Background

As part of the green transition, electric cars are becoming more available and prevalent – but not everyone has the space or possibility to install a personal, domestic wallbox to recharge their electric or hybrid cars at home.

To reach zero CO₂ emissions targets by 2030, the Italian Transport & Environment office suggests that 3 million public charging columns will be needed across Europe, with over 100,000 in Italy alone. A2A’s solution is a new kind of public column, offering diverse charging solutions for more and more drivers to adopt electric or hybrid vehicles.

Starting in Brescia, Italy, A2A have introduced the City Plug®, a public charger powered by 100% renewable energy. This station does not have a time limit and, due to using low-power energy, consumers can charge their vehicles slowly and take advantage of a cheaper rate/cost per charge.

The City Plug infrastructure columns are small and reach only 7 kilowatts (kW) per plug, unlike traditional columns that can achieve 22kW or above. This lower wattage also enables the City Plugs to charge up to 14 vehicles at the same time, compared to analogous fast-chargers that can only charge two electric or hybrid cars simultaneously. In the initial installations, the meter to which the City Plug stations are connected is on average 30kW (not mandatory).

Further information about the mandatory characteristics and to-date dimensions of the City Plug are relayed in the attachment, available to Solvers after signing the Challenge Agreement: A2A City Plug Manufacturer Scouting - Additional Information and Specifications.

The Challenge

In order to widely introduce their innovative public e-charging column design, A2A is searching for producers, manufacturers, or Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) with the capability to scale up the production of the City Plug electric vehicle (EV) charging system.

A2A is aiming to bring greater efficiency to City Plug production, benefit from established manufacturers’ insights into mechanical improvement opportunities, and enable a path to quickly and reliably scale the product across Italy and the global market (commercial expansion with business terms to be defined, in certain foreign markets, to be evaluated)

To give further context about the City Plug’s desired characteristics and features at scale, A2A has provided the following requirements:

1. Standard connector – at least one standard socket compatible with the main types of electric vehicles (e.g. Type 2 in Europe).

2. Safety – safety certifications such as CE, with overload and short circuit protections.

3. Ease of use – simple and intuitive interface for the user, with clear indications on the status of charging and any errors (currently each City Plug has a screen).

4. Weather protection – the charging station of the City Plug must be encased in a weatherproof enclosure.

5. Energy management system – the City Plug should be able to limit the power output to avoid overloading.

Additionally, the A2A team has listed nice-to-have features of the City Plug, including:

i) RFID and 4G/5G wi-fi connection– to monitor or manage charging via a mobile app and card, which would also allow for firmware updates over-the-air.

ii) Integrated payment system – the options for on-site payment via an app or RFID card.

iii) LED indicators and display – to clearly and distinctly indicate charging status (in progress, complete, and error signals).

After registering for the Challenge, more details about the City Plug’s requirements, dimensions, fixation, connectivity and regulations are available in the linked attachment, titled: “A2A City Plug Manufacturer Scouting – Additional Information and Specifications”. This document is also available through GoogleDrive here.

A2A would like to understand producer, manufacturer, and developer applicants’ ability to produce the City Plug at a target cost of €1,000–2,000 per unit (the target price for the volumes indicated in the plan could be €1,200 per each City Plug). A2A’s stated target price excludes cost related to engineering, production line setup, and product certifications: with these costs being paid separately as a one-time expense. A2A’s desire is for purchase volumes from the successful manufacturer(s) in the range of 7,000 to 10,000 units over 6-7 years. This means your company, startup, or manufacturer must have experience producing similar technologies at this scale.

This Scouting Challenge invites details about existing EV charging station infrastructure manufacturers, startups with established credentials in charging technologies, and OEMs with supply chains capable of handling high-volume, custom manufacturing.

Please detail your company’s credentials in high-volume series manufacturing, expertise in the technical area of EV charging stations or charging technologies, and your initial series production cost estimates for the City Plug at volumes of prototypes, 1,000 series, and 10,000 series productions.

Shortlisted company applicants will then be invited to further RFI (request for information) and RFQ (request for quote) stages with A2A in order to determine the feasibility of future collaboration, partnerships, or service agreements.

SOLUTION REQUIREMENTS

A2A is primarily interested in applications from companies with the potential to meet the following requirements:

1. Proven track record of production in EV charging station technologies
   • Given the custom nature of the product, A2A welcomes OEMs and start-ups to apply alongside larger companies.
   • Please detail if you have already produced and scaled EV charging systems.
   • Knowledge of OCPP 1.6J and OCPP 2.0.1 communication protocol
2. Ability to manufacture the City Plug at scale
   • Estimated series production numbers of 7,000-10,000 units over the next 6-7 years are expected by A2A.
   • Required target cost of €1,000-2,000 per unit.
3. Capability to improve the City Plug and its production, including:
   • Reduction in production costs (bill of materials);
   • Easier assembly (wiring and installation) and maintenance;
   • And speed and cost of production.
4. Detailed descriptions of production technology, unit and series cost examples, and ability to enhance the City Plug through mechanical improvements
5. Excellent warehouse management and speed-flexibility in product delivery

Solutions with Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) 7-9 are invited.

This Scouting Challenge has the following features:
 

1. A2A will evaluate your submission to determine their interest to contact you for further business and collaboration discussions.
2. Shortlisted companies will be invited to RFI and RFQ with A2A, in order to define future collaborations, services, or partnerships with the City Plug across Italy, Europe, and beyond.
3. You will then have scope to  negotiate the terms of any contract (including scope of work, tasks and duration) directly with A2A.
4. The monetary value of any contract will vary depending on the amount of work to be delivered and the agreed-upon time frame.
5. A2A may subsequently directly request that certain IP arrangements are agreed should a partnership be pursued.
6. WIN Scouts are invited to participate by A2A, this being any Solver who can propose a potentially suitable partner organization from your network. As a WIN Scout, by referring a relevant partner you will be recognized with a share of the $1,000 recognition award if your referral meets certain minimum criteria of detail, relevance, and format. The input required is guided during the submission process for WIN Scouts below. 

YOUR SUBMISSION

Please login and register your interest, to complete the submission form.

The submitted proposals must be written in English and can include:

1. Participation Type – you will first be asked to inform us how you are participating in this challenge, as a Solver (Individual), Solver (Organization), or WIN Scout (submission uses an alternative form).
2. Solution Level - the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of your proposal.
3. Problem & Opportunity - highlight the innovation in your approach to the Problem, its point of difference, and the specific advantages/benefits this brings (up to 500 words).
4. Solution Overview - detail the features of your proposal and how they address the SOLUTION REQUIREMENTS (500 words, there is space to add more in the summary field, and attach supporting data, diagrams, etc).
5. Experience - Expertise, use cases and skills you or your organization have in relation to your proposal (up to 500 words).
6. Solution Risks - any risks you see with your solution and how you would plan for this (up to 500 words).
7. Timeline, capability and costs - describe what you think is required to deliver the solution, estimated time and cost (up to 500 words).
8. Online References - provide links to any publications, articles or press releases of relevance (up to 500 words).

Wazoku encourages the use by Solvers of AI approaches to help develop their submissions, though any produced solely with generative AI are not of interest.

Find out more about participation in Wazoku Crowd Challenges.

Submissions to this Challenge must be received by 11:59 PM (US Eastern Time) on November 18, 2024.

Late submissions will not be considered.

Your submission will be evaluated by the evaluation team first reviewing the information and content you have submitted at the submission form, with attachments used as additional context to your form submission. Submissions relying solely on attachments will receive less attention from the evaluation team.

After the Challenge submission close date, A2A will complete the review process and make a decision with regards to potential collaboration(s) according to the timeline in the Challenge header. All Solvers who submit a proposal will be notified about the status of their submissions.