The lowest-cost staff charging is the charging you do not have to build. If your premises already have a suitable socket near the parking, one EV-ACS3210E portable can cover staff cars during the working day: it plugs into the existing socket, adjusts from 10 A to 32 A, and its app records the energy each session uses. Two conditions apply: the socket must be fit for hours of continuous load (an electrician’s check), and the records are energy records, not a billing system.
Key Takeaways
- A portable on an existing, checked socket is the lowest-cost way to start staff charging — there is no construction.
- One EV-ACS3210E serves staff cars in half-day turns at up to about 7 kW.
- The app records each session’s energy; cost fairness is that record times your own tariff.
- Per-user billing is not claimed today — OCPP-ready is a path to confirm in writing, not a billing service.
What “Low-Cost” Means Here
A fixed workplace charger is a small building project: mounting, cabling and electrical work, and it stays when you move premises. The portable route skips the construction entirely. The spend is the unit plus one professional check of the socket you already have. Our guide to choosing a charger for a small business covers the fixed options.
Be clear about what this setup is not. It is not a public charging offer, it does not take payments, and it does not suit cars that come and go hourly. It suits one pattern: a handful of staff cars, parked all day, a few metres from the building.
The Working Day Does the Scheduling
Staff cars sit parked for hours, which makes them the easiest charging case there is. At its top setting the unit delivers about 7 kW, so a half-day turn adds a labelled 20–24 kWh after losses — a commute-sized top-up, as arithmetic, not a promise. One car in the morning, another after lunch: that is usually the whole system. At lower settings, matched to what the socket’s circuit can carry continuously, the same turns add less.
Because the unit is portable, the arrangement stays flexible:
- Store it indoors. Unplug it at closing time and the charger, the cable and the temptation leave the car park overnight.
- Move it. A second suitable socket near another parking row works the same way.
- Set the current to the socket. The 10–32 A range exists for exactly this: set the unit to what the circuit can carry, not the other way round.
Records Without a Billing Platform
Fairness between staff needs one number: how many kilowatt-hours each session used. The EV-ACS3210E’s app provides energy monitoring, so each session leaves a record. Multiply a session’s energy by your own electricity price and you have its cost — that method, with your tariff, is the whole calculation.
| Job | What the portable covers | What to confirm or plan separately |
|---|---|---|
| Day-to-day charging | Plugs into an existing suitable socket; current set to the circuit | An electrician confirms the socket and its circuit are fit for continuous load |
| Knowing what a session cost | App energy monitoring records the kWh in each session | Your tariff — the record is energy, not money; the split rule is yours to write down |
| Fair turns for staff | Predictable half-day turns at about 7 kW | A simple rota and a one-line rule everyone can see |
| Per-user billing and managed access | Not claimed for this unit today | The unit is OCPP-ready — confirm any managed-service scope in writing before relying on it |
The last row matters: OCPP-ready means the connectivity path is there, not a tested, managed billing service. The distinction is set out in our explainer on OCPP for charge point operators; the structured route, once you grow into one, is the workplace EV charging program guide.
The Unit, Plainly
The EV-ACS3210E is a single-phase Type 2 portable charger, adjustable from 10 A to 32 A for up to about 7 kW, sealed to IP66, with a 7.5 m cable, an app with energy monitoring, and OCPP-ready connectivity. EVDANCE’s wider commercial EV charging range covers the fixed, managed end for when a business outgrows it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a staff top-up cost the business?
Multiply the session’s energy from the app record by your electricity price. As a labelled example only: 20 kWh at an example price of €0.30 per kWh costs €6.00. Your tariff decides the real figure.
Can customers or visitors use it too?
Anyone you allow can plug in — access is controlled by possession, not by accounts on this unit. Most small businesses keep it staff-only and store the unit indoors out of hours.
When do we outgrow one portable?
When staff EVs outnumber the turns in the day, or you need per-user billing and controlled access. That is the point for fixed managed charging, such as the EV-AC03201T dual-connector station with OCPP 1.6J and RFID.
Related Reading
- What Is the Best EV Charger for a Small Business? How to Choose
- How to Plan a Workplace EV Charging Program
- OCPP Explained: What Charge Point Operators Need From EV Charger Hardware
