We sat down with one of our customers: Egil Svendsen, board member of the Hotvet Strand B3 Condo in Drammen.
A few years ago, they wanted to be forward-thinking and installed charging boxes for all residents. But, when the manufacturer discontinued the management system, they switched to CURRENT.
- “We have charging boxes in the car park. They came with a management system that relied on manual calculation and invoicing for the Condo’s 54 units,” says Egil.
Egil had to do the manual calculation and invoicing for all of the Condo’s 54 units himself.
- “It took a lot of time when I did the monthly invoicing, even at my most effective I spent about four hours every time I had to send out invoices,” says Egil.
After the Condo switched the system from CURRENT, this is time he has gotten back.
When asked if he has any advice for others who are considering switching systems, Egil recommends cleaning up the e-mail register.
- “There were a lot of strange things in there. Lots people had used old work emails and so on. We had to clean up and collect new e-mail addresses for several of our residents before making the switch,” he says. “But we would have had to do that, anyway.”
Egil and the rest of the board at the Condo wanted at the possibility of automating the sending of invoices. They contacted the installer - who also services the chargers - and asked what they should do.
- “It was the installer who recommended CURRENT, so we went for it. We haven’t regretted it,” says Egil. “The system works well for us and we are very happy. We haven’t had a single complaint from anyone in the Condo. everything works as it should.
In addition to automatic billing and management, the ability to set up two different charging systems was important to the board.
- “We have a two-part system, with chargers in the garages and chargers in the car park. Those who don’t have parking in the garage use these,” says Egil.
“The chargers outside are connected to charging cards, so those who want to use them have to activate the charging by adding their card. This prevents people who don’t live here from coming here and charging for free.
For the board and residents of Hotvet Strand B3, CURRENT’s telephone support has been important.
- “We have several older residents. So when we switched to a new system, it was important that it was possible to call someone and get help on the phone. It has made the transition very easy,” says Egil.
Egil is clear that the CURRENT system-and the transition to it-is working well. He himself now saves several hours a month on invoicing and administration. The only time the board has to think about the chargers is when they discuss prices at the board meeting. However that might change, the board is considering the transition to spot price from CURRENT. In which case, they’ll never have to think about the pricing.
- “CURRENT has worked very well for us. We’re delighted,” concludes Egil.