ChargePoint to introduce cut-resistant cables to combat vandalism
According to the press release, ChargePoint assumes that combining these two new solutions will benefit station owners, for example, by reducing the repair costs associated with vandalism. EV drivers will also benefit because the charging stations “work when and where they need them,” as ChagePoint puts it.
The first point with which the US company wants to curb vandalism is an obvious one: cut-resistant cables. These do not come from a supplier but were developed in-house. “ChargePoint leveraged its more than fifteen-year history of product innovation and charger design expertise to address the critical, industry-wide customer satisfaction issues related to charging cable theft and vandalism,” the company writes.
Of course, ChargePoint does not go into detail so as not to give away the technical solutions directly. It only states that the cables incorporate “cut-resistant materials” that “make the cable substantially more difficult for would-be vandals to cut while remaining flexible and easy for drivers to comfortably manoeuvre while in use.”
The company wants to make the new cables available for “its commercial and fleet charging stations.” ChargePoint is not only a charge point operator (CPO) but also a manufacturer of charging stations. However, the new cable will not only be available for use at ChargePoint’s own charging stations; the company intends to “selectively license the cable design to other charging station manufacturers as part of an industry leading effort to combat cable theft and vandalism.” This should happen by mid-2025.
The second point is the ‘ChargePoint Protect’ system, but this time only for ChargePoint’s own charging stations. It uses the existing loudspeakers, screens and lighting systems to create “a highly effective alarm system.” According to the company, it can detect “charging cable tampering in real time and automatically engaging the alarm system with the aim of deterring vandals.” As the hardware, such as loudspeakers and lighting are already in place, ‘ChargePoint Protect’ is a software-only solution that can be “activated on select charging station models at no additional cost to existing ChargePoint customers through a cloud-based software system upgrade” for selected charging station models. Operators can then be notified by text message or email that the system has been triggered. ‘ChargePoint Protect’ should be available in January.
For both measures, however, ChargePoint does not specify whether they are (initially) limited to the US domestic market or will be rolled out globally. ChargePoint is also active in Europe, with numerous of the manufacturer’s charging stations in operation in Germany.
“ChargePoint Protect and our cut-resistant cables demonstrate our relentless dedication to offering a dependable charging network. We do not view ourselves as victims of vandalism, but rather responsible for solving it, not only for our customers but for the industry,” said Rick Wilmer, CEO of ChargePoint. “We are sharing the technology to combat vandalism in the most aggressive way possible with the aim to eliminate charger reliability as a hinderance to EV adoption.”
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