This article provides an overview and a definition of the term load management as well as a comparison between its two applicable variations, dynamic and static load management. The reev Balancer can be activated for both dynamic or static load management, depending on your business needs.


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Load management with the reev Balancer

As the number of electric cars increases, some fear that the electricity grid will be overloaded. To counteract this, charging stations are equipped with a backend and load management is set up. This ensures optimal utilization of charging stations and prevents grid overloads.


Load management refers to strategies and technologies for optimizing the charging process of electric vehicles in order to balance the electrical load in the power grid, ensure efficient energy use and prevent overloading of the electrical infrastructure.


A distinction is made between static and dynamic load management.


Static load management

Static load management refers to a pre-set approach to distributing the electrical load when charging electric vehicles, where the maximum power allocation is set in advance and does not change in real time. It then coordinates the individual charging points and uses intelligent communication between the chargers to distribute the available power evenly between them.

In addition, certain charging stations can be prioritized. If a wallbox reports that a car is almost charged and a second vehicle is connected, the power can be distributed in favor of the less charged car.


Static load management is characterized by:


Fixed maximum power allocation: The maximum amount of power allocated for charging EVs is set by the user during the reev Balancer onboarding and used by the system to optimize the distribution of available load across all charging EVs.

Simplicity: Easy to implement as no additional components need to be installed on site and the system can be operated completely remotely.



Dynamic load management

With dynamic load management, the distribution of the electrical load for charging electric vehicles is actively adjusted in real time based on the current grid conditions and demand. It regulates the total amount of electricity available to the charging connections so that no load peaks or overloads occur.


If the charging infrastructure places too heavy a load on the grid, load management intervenes and reduces power consumption. Nevertheless, a minimum supply is maintained at the charging stations so that the charging process can continue reliably.


The available power is strategically allocated to the various consumption points. Certain points of consumption can be given priority, e.g. the production facilities before the charging stations. This avoids grid overloads and ensures the supply of critical systems - e.g. production facilities that are required for daily operations.


Dynamic load management is characterized by:


Variable power allocation: The maximum power allocated to EV charging stations can vary based on real-time conditions such as grid demand, building consumption and number of vehicles being charged.


On-site measurements: With the reev Balancer Gateway, we continuously monitor the power consumption of the EV infrastructure and the consumption of external loads. The reev Balancer Gateway is installed on site, simply coupled with the reev Balancer and then used to feed in the necessary data for extended charging functionalities.



What is the reev Balancer Gateway?

For dynamic load management, the building's consumption must be carefully monitored so that the reev Balancer can react accordingly and allocate the right amount of power to the EV infrastructure to protect the entire infrastructure from potential overload. Therefore, the reev Balancer Gateway should be installed on site as part of the commissioning process of the reev Balancer.


The reev Balancer Gateway consists of two main components:

  • Energy meter: continuously measures consumption
  • IoT Gateway: sends this data to the cloud, where the reev Balancer uses it to exercise control over the charging infrastructure.

Summary

Static load management is characterized by a fixed maximum power allocation for the EV infrastructure and offers easy installation and predictability.


Dynamic load management offers real-time adjustments based on current conditions, which increases efficiency and flexibility, but requires additional components on site.


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