Innovation Exchange challenge: Electric Vehicle Charging Stations for modular building units
Portakabin, working with Innovate UK KTN, seeks organisations to help develop a modular and portable Electric Vehicle (EV) charging station.
Opportunity Details
When
Registration Opens
07/08/2023
Registration Closes
15/09/2023
Award
The commercialisation route within the challenge capitalises on the leading position of Portakabin in the UK and European markets for modular buildings and portable cabins. Leveraging its growing fleet, with thousands of buildings deployed every year, the company aims to scale the deployment of EV charging stations to meet the demand across thousands of buildings domestically and internationally.
The charging station must be a modular plug-and-play solution, durable, easily transportable, scalable, and compatible with different charging standards while being cost-effective and upgradeable. The solution should offer a seamless user experience for EV owners and include both hardware and software components.
Background
Portakabin is a market leader in the design, manufacture and installation of modular buildings, and a pioneer of advanced offsite construction, but it wasn’t always so.
Founded in 1961 by Donald Shepherd, Portakabin was an immediate success due to the uniqueness and innovation of its products, and so began its UK footprint and expansion into Europe in the 1970s gathering many awards along the way.
As innovators in the modular world, Portakabin provides buildings for hire and sale, as well as supplying refurbished buildings and construction site accommodation. They deliver building solutions for organisations of any size, in sectors ranging from manufacturing, education and health to transport, utilities and construction.
Portakabin remains in the ownership of the York-based Shepherd family and now employs more than 2000 people across ten European countries.
Portakabin is known for its commitment to sustainability and to support the company growth and the move to EV vehicles Portakabin wishes to explore an added value product offer within the hire aspect of their business.