Partnerships for Progress: Spotlight on Barlow Respiratory Hospital

Every now and then, if you’re lucky, you have the good fortune to engage with a strategic partner who shares your goals, values and vision. With acres of common ground, you effortlessly work hand in hand to advance causes that truly matter to the both of you. For EVCS, Barlow Respiratory Hospital is such a partner – one of those rare facilities that fully embodies our commitment to making the planet a safer, healthier, happier place, one person at a time.

Barlow was founded in 1902 with a mission to achieve the best possible quality of life for the greatest number of people. They specialize in medically complex patients with breathing problems and hold the distinction of being the only not-for-profit long-term care hospital in California. Esteemed honors include being dubbed a Passy-Muir Center of Excellence and receiving several AARC Quality Respiratory Care Awards.

In 2020, we installed two 50 kWh DCFCs on their property, each with CHAdeMO and CCS connectors and a customer-friendly interface powered by proprietary software technology that makes it easy to pay, charge, and track the status of your EV during the charging cycle. “It’s wonderful that we have these charging stations outside our hospital. We’re so pleased that they’re here. They’re just a natural extension of how we serve our patients,” says Julia Shimizu, Director of Public Relations for Barlow.

It was fairly soon after we completed the installation, however, that we began to notice a number of similarities between our two organizations:

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1) A Reliance on State-of-the-Art Technology

Both Barlow and EVCS utilize world-class science and tech for the advancement of humanity. The specific instruments may be different, but the end goal – creating a better quality of life for people – is essentially the same. “We specialize in ventilator weaning, which very simply is helping people regain the ability to breathe on their own after being on a ventilator,” explains Shimizu. “The ability to do that depends on cutting edge, top-of-the-line technology, just like making EVs and EV charging stations.” How true. Moreover, we’re both continuing to innovate so that we’re well-positioned to continue our missions into the 21st century.

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2) The Concern for Public Health

It’s no small coincidence that Barlow and EVCS are both fiercely committed to better respiratory conditions. Barlow has been on the front lines of the COVID pandemic doing what they’ve always done: helping people regain the ability to fill their own lungs with clean, fresh air. This dedication has led them to seek additional ways to serve the greatest number of people. “We’re actually preparing to build a new, state-of-the-art hospital that will allow us to use our topline respiratory technology to better serve our patients,” says Shimizu. EVCS is similarly looking to help folks breathe better, but by reducing carbon emissions through the expansion of clean fuel infrastructure. And we, too, are constantly seeking to expand our reach.

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3) Focus on Individual Customer Care

EVCS has always put the customer first. All the tech in the world is useless if a company doesn’t have a customer care team that gives you the personal attention you deserve. Well, Barlow is our kindred spirit in that regard as well. Patient-focused care is the hallmark of their institution and is driven by selfless, devoted employees who work behind the scenes, often without accolades or attribution, to advance the quality of life for countless individuals. Shimizu sums up the philosophy perfectly: “Our staff is really important to what we do because it’s the personal touch that makes the technology work so well.” We couldn’t have said it better ourselves.

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To learn more about Barlow and the tremendous work they’re doing in helping Los Angeles recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, please visit them here: https://www.barlowhospital.org/covid-19/

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Navigating California’s New EV Mandate

California’s going all in on electric. On August 25th, Governor Gavin Newsom made a very important announcement concerning the future of transportation in the Golden State: “We can solve this climate crisis if we focus on the big, bold steps necessary to cut pollution. California now has a groundbreaking, world-leading plan to achieve 100 percent zero-emission vehicle sales by 2035.” Big and bold, indeed. And while highly encouraging, it brings up a number of questions moving forward.

How EVCS is Repairing Reliability Concerns

One of the biggest concerns among EV drivers today is the reliability of public chargers. One recent survey from the Department of Bioengineering at UC Berkeley claims as many as 23% of public chargers in the Bay Area alone are, as Wired sums up, “nonfunctioning at any given time, stymied by broken screens, shoddy credit card or payment systems, network connection failures, or damaged plugs.” And that’s in a locale prioritizing the conversion to electric. Testimony from motorists seems to corroborate these findings. A CEC survey of 1,290 EV drivers found that fully 60% had experienced damaged or inoperable chargers, while almost half needed assistance from customer service. We find this wholly unacceptable and have taken measures to ensure that chargers in the EVCS network rise to the standard of operability our customers expect. Here are a few ways we’re doing that:

Installation of the Month (July 2022): Kenwood Inn & Spa

A key focus for us over the last several years has been the installation of additional chargers at holiday hot spots, tourist destinations, and other key points of interest. Not only will it help dispel long-range travel anxiety among many new EV drivers, but it will also lead to a significant reduction in carbon emissions otherwise generated by gas-guzzlers during peak vacation seasons. Moreover, our egalitarian approach to site selection means we’re just as likely to install a charger at a McDonald’s as we are at a Morton’s since we understand the value in catering to a broad clientele. However, higher net worth individuals continue to drive EV sales in the US (a June 2021 Fuels Institute study specifies middle-aged males with household incomes over $100,000), so catering to venues that offer a luxury experience will encourage even greater participation by this group while serving as a bellwether for lower-income drivers who are attracted to the idea of electric mobility as a symbol of status.

Mexico to Canada EV Road Trip: EVCS Interview

We sat down with EV owner and enthusiast Anthony Williams, a 60-year-old business owner from San Diego, who recently commemorated the 10-year anniversary of his first trans-American road trip in an EV by retracing the same route to see what had changed in the world of EV fast charging, for better or for worse. Below are some of his insights and feedback.

Installation of the Month (June 2022): KPC Anaheim Global Medical Center

“For us, healthcare is not only about caring for our patients, but also about investing in the people who live in our communities.” These are the words emblazoned across the home page of the KPC Anaheim Global Medical Center’s website. Facilities like these are attractive partners for us because, like us, their goal is the betterment of humanity. In fact, just replace “healthcare” with “electric mobility” and “patients” with “planet,” and you have the EVCS mission statement in a nutshell. Allying with kindred spirits creates a natural synergy for us through the sharing of core values like customer service and an improved quality of life. Imagine then our excitement when KPC decided to install four of our newest DC fast chargers on their Anaheim property, giving us the opportunity to continue expanding our network southward.