In the first of a new series of interviews, Andrew Gaved talks to Vestel’s Ali Khan about its plans for the smart ecosystem.
Electronic equipment manufacturer Vestel isn’t a household name in the UK, despite the fact it makes one in three of every TV and display screen sold in Europe for well-known brands, alongside a full suite of household appliances.
But now the company intends to change all that and is bursting on the scene at InstallerSHOW with a wide range of Vestel-branded EV chargers. Its expertise is already proven by five years of building chargers for carmakers, charging stations and electricity providers under the Powered by Vestel badge.
But chargers are only the start of Vestel’s ambitions says EV Business Development Manager, Ali Khan – the company has plans to become a full-service supplier of electric technology, and a big player in the ‘smart ecosystem’ – this could take in anything from solar PV to its own heat pumps in the future. “The sky’s the limit,” he says wryly.
At InstallerSHOW, the focus is firmly on charging technology, but here Ali has some more headline-grabbing Vestel ambitions to build on, starting with its plan to be the number one EV charging brand in Europe.
This is a pretty bold plan, but it is based on some solid foundations, he notes. For a start, Vestel is already doing well in continental Europe, with 170,000 units already sold in Germany alone. The products are also backed by a robust largely European component supply chain which sets them apart from rivals, he says: “We don’t have any third-party collaborations on components. Other manufacturers have been having to buy their way into the components market.”
Designed for the UK
What is distinctive about the charger range that visitors will see at the show is that it has been designed specifically to meet the exacting demands of the UK market – or more accurately, the UK regulators and their exacting electrical safety requirements. “None of our chargers need to depend on exemptions, as they are built from the ground up for the UK market.”
Building the charger range to be UK-compliant will in turn enable Vestel to be ready for the rest of the world, he says, because no other country has the same level of safety regulation. But the government’s current heavily regulated position, Ali warns, is in danger of holding back the development of the charger market: “I think there is a lack of leadership from the government when it comes to encouraging the expansion of electrification. You just have to look at countries such as Norway, which are miles ahead, or Japan, which already have solar roads, to see what is possible. The UK regulations come into force in 2030, which means that as an industry we have seven years to catch up on about 15 years’ worth of development.”
Another natural advantage of Vestel’s linear supply chain and manufacturing scale – a clue to this is that the Turkish factory where it builds all its products is called Vestel City, a 1.3 million square metre complex – is its effect on the price of the finished product, Ali says: “Our goal is to make your EV charger properly affordable, so you are not paying £1500 for the residential version, you are paying under £900.”
The same applies to the bigger DC chargers, he says, with a promise that the Vestel versions will come in at up to 25% less than its rivals.
The dedicated manufacturing complex in Turkey is key to all this too – providing the consistent component supply and a lead time that compares well to those importing from China. “We are working to a 10-to-15-day lead time, which is far better than those who rely on Chinese manufacturing. We have also thoroughly tested the products for UK compliance – we’ve tested them into the ground.”
Load balancing
The aim is that the range is future-proof too, with a CT clamp provided on the chargers to allow users to load-balance if and when their electricity provider allows for it. “Load balancing is one of those areas where we need to help to educate the consumer – and the installer. But our philosophy with the charger range is that ‘we will do the hard work for you’. We don’t want charging to be a burden on the consumer.”
This philosophy applies equally to the installer base, he says, and Vestel is at InstallerSHOW to talk to installers and potential installers: “We wanted to make it as easy for the installer as for the consumer, so there is a straightforward commissioning process via the app and there is a simple backplate arrangement, allowing the charger to be hard-wired while in-hand, then a simple two-screw assembly to complete the fixings.”
The dedicated factory makes for a quick turnaround if any changes need to be made to designs too, Ali says: “We don’t have to wait around for weeks to change a mould, our manufacturing capabilities allows us to introduce new designs into our production lines without too much hassle”.
But amidst all this ambition from Vestel, Ali is keen to emphasise that quality is the overriding driver for the manufacturer. “The company is genuinely interested in more than simply driving profit.”
The site also has copious room for expansion he adds – and this means new production capacity can be brought on stream to complement the EV line. The fact that Ali joined Vestel from Octopus gives an indication to the direction of travel for the manufacturer:
“What Vestel is interested in is the smart ecosystem and so we are looking at integrated systems to complement the charging technology,” he says. The manufacturer is already looking at complementary technology and solar PV systems and heat pumps are expected to be part of the future manufacturing mix.
However, the future success of this integration depends on collaboration, Ali believes. “There is so much room for manufacturers to work together and so much scope for market growth that collaborating on controls protocols makes absolute sense, to make sure that you’re integrated with everyone.”
He points to the level of integration of EV systems in Norway as an example of the way things could be in the UK: “We could build a premium version of Oslo.”
Ali concludes by summing up the challenges in the market as he sees them. “For residential systems, it is all about educating the consumer and lowering the prices of the vehicles and their chargers, whereas for public systems, the challenge is simply reliability. It is not acceptable in 2023 for so many systems to be failing. We want to change all that.”
Vestel is exhibiting in The Future Is Electric at InstallerSHOW
The Vestel range
The three models set to be exhibited at InstallerSHOW are:
EVC01 (AKA The Mini) – a small residential unit with a neat design and lots of colour options. It offers basic functionality, and is available in single or 3-phase at a ‘very appealing price,’ the company says.
EVC04 – a fully-featured consumer and small business charger. This is based on Vestel’s successful EVC04 in Europe, but designed for UK regulations.
EVC10 – an affordable dual-output EV charger for small-to-medium businesses, corporate and smaller public spaces such as shopping centres.
The company is set to roll out further models in the range, based on their European portfolio, though details have yet to be released – more information will be available from Vestel staff at the show.
Free registration: installershow.com
