St. John Properties Installs EV Charging Stations!

Pictured left to right Mahi Reddy, CEO and Founder of SemaConnect; Jerry Wit, Senior Vice President of St. John Properties and Justin Schaub, Director of Sustainability for St. John Properties.

ST. JOHN PROPERTIES UNVEILS SEMACONNECT ELECTRIC VEHICLE (EV) CHARGING STATIONS AT CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS AND MAPLE LAWN

Effort Supports Maryland EV Infrastructure Program

ANNAPOLIS, Dec. 13, 2011 – St. John Properties, Inc., one of the Mid-Atlantic region’s largest privately-held commercial real estate firms, and SemaConnect, a leading developer and producer of smart networked electric vehicle charging stations and sophisticated electric vehicle (EV) station software, today unveiled several ChargePro EV charging stations at two of its business parks: St. John Properties’ corporate headquarters in Baltimore County, and Maple Lawn, a Class “A” business community in Howard County. An event will be held at St. John Properties’ headquarters (2560 Lord Baltimore Drive, Baltimore MD 21244) on December 14 at 10:00am.

“Through Maryland’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program we’ve built a complete network of charging stations,” said Mahi Reddy, CEO of SemaConnect. “Companies such as St. John Properties make it possible for us to continue building this EV charging network in Maryland and bring Maryland to the forefront as one of the most sustainable states on the East Coast.”

The Maryland Energy Administration allocated approximately $600,000 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to aid the development and integration of electric transportation into Maryland’s transportation system. The investment resulted in the construction of 65 charging stations throughout the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area, providing the necessary infrastructure to allow electric vehicle owners to travel throughout the region. The Baltimore-Washington Electric Vehicle Initiative (BEVI) in partnership with SemaConnect is developing 55 electric charging stations.

“We are constantly looking for creative ways to incorporate sustainable products and techniques into everyday living, and we view the use of electrically-powered transportation as a rapidly emerging trend in the United States,” stated Jerry Wit, Senior Vice President, Marketing for St. John Properties. “Our employees and tenants, as well as visitors to our office buildings, now have the opportunity to recharge their electric charge batteries in a safe and trouble-free manner.” 

The need for convenient, public charging is quickly emerging as most major automakers are producing electric cars, or intend to in the near future. The early focus on EV infrastructure has been focused on installing charging equipment in homes and municipal garages. However, many commercial locations lack public charging.

St. John’s Maple Lawn includes three multi-story Class "A" offices buildings totaling over 285,000 square feet of space, with a fourth multi-story (100,000 square feet) due for delivery in Q4 2011. These top-notch properties feature attractive lobby environments and state-of-the-art mechanical and energy managements systems. The office buildings enjoy easy access to the region’s extensive transportation network, low-cost fitness center access, nearby childcare and a full range of dining, shopping and personal services within walking distance, making it the perfect location for EV charging stations.

The ChargePro 620 is Level II (240VAC, 30Amps) and can recharge a Volt vehicle in three to four hours and a 100% electric Nissan Leaf car in approximately six to seven hours. It comes with a J1772 plug that enables all new electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles to recharge, made possible through the initiatives at the Society of Automotive Engineers. Specifically designed for commercial-grade applications, SemaConnect’s ChargePro Charging Station is an intelligent, network-based EV charging system with features such as:

·         Smart Card authentication – for open or restricted access.

·         Smart Grid Integration – for easy energy metering and demand response.

·         Automatic billing/payment system – for easy revenue generation.

·         Sustainability Reporting–easily report your electricity usage and fossil fuel offset.

About St. John Properties

St. John Properties, Inc., founded in 1971 as MIE Properties, owns and has developed more than 15 million square feet of R&D/flex, office, retail and warehouse space in Maryland, Colorado, Louisiana, Virginia and Wisconsin. For more information about the company, visit www.sjpi.com.

About SemaConnect, Inc.

SemaConnect is a leading provider of electric vehicle charging stations and sophisticated software for station owners and electric vehicle drivers. Our ChargePro Charging Stations utilize CDMA and Zigbee Wireless technology and offer advanced features such as smart-grid integration, RFID card authentication, sustainability reporting and more. To purchase your charging station, contact us at (410) 384 – 4223, or visit www.SemaConnect.com. Follow us on Twitter @Sema_Connect and learn more about EV infrastructure on our YouTube Channel, SemaConnect.

Media Contact for St. John Properties:

Al Cunniff

acunniff@sjpi.com
Phone: 410-369-1277

Media Contact for SemaConnect:

Naly Yang

naly.yang@semaconnect.com

Phone: 410-384-4223

ChargePro Charging Station with Solar Tracking Device!

Missed the event?

Here are the photos from our recent event that includes photos of our charging station that was installed with a solar tracking device!  Thanks to everyone who came out and helped us welcome this new technology!

Thank You & Happy Charging!

- ChargePro

*All photos courtesy of Governor O'Malley photographer.  You can view more photos HERE.

Governor O'Malley & SemaConnect Charging Stations

Happy Earth Day! 

This morning was a great event!

Governor Martin O'Malley, Delegates Jim Malone and Jon Cardin, Jill Sorensen of BEVI, Paul Wiedefeld of BWI and SemaConnect CEO Mahi Reddy celebrated Earth Day by unveiling 8 new ChargePro Charging Stations and the roll out of over 80 EV charging stations in the state of Maryland by June 2011.

We're so happy and proud to be part of this initiative!  We look forward to helping EV drivers fuel their vehicles and manage their charging through our software.

Check out some of the photos!  Please excuse the grainy texture of the photos.  Will upload better quality ones soon.  Consider this the sneak peak version.

Governor Martin O'Malley plugging in SemaConnect's ChargePro Charging Station

SemaConnect CEO, Mahi Reddy, and Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley proudly unveiling 8 charging stations at BWI Thurgood Marshal Airport

Mahi Reddy, Jill Sorensen, Dan McDonald, Governor O'Malley, and Malcolm Woolf

 A million thanks to everyone who made this possible!

(Photos: Click here)

Incentives hold key to future of electric cars

ANNAPOLIS — In a small office tucked away in the Chesapeake Innovation Center, SemaConnect engineers hand assemble prototypes of electric vehicle charging stations.

The future of the roughly 3-year-old Maryland startup is tied directly to an anticipated boom in the electric vehicle market. And to some degree, the company’s success relies on what happens about five miles away from its headquarters —- at the State House.

“For Maryland to look at this issue and set the right incentives and policies is critical,” said Mahi Reddy, SemaConnect’s CEO.

As the first generation of electric cars produced by major automakers trickles into the market, Maryland lawmakers are considering a trio of proposals intended to spur sales and lay the foundation for the high-tech autos.

Electric vehicles aren’t expected to zoom around in mass for years, analysts say. But the planning starts now because Maryland and Washington, D.C., are projected to be among the top areas for electric vehicle adoption.

“I think a lot of people in this area are progressive minded and willing to take the steps to move forward with this type of technology,” said Ivan Haggins, one of the first Marylanders to invest in an electric vehicle made by General Motors.

Haggins slapped his name on a waiting list in July for GM’s plug-in electric hybrid vehicle, the Chevrolet Volt. He drove the car off a dealer lot in Silver Spring on Christmas Eve, making him one of the so-called early adopters of the technology.

“The thought of an electric car is not just that I want to have the first one,” he said. “But it’s one of those things we need to move into the future on, and I wanted to make sure I’m a part of that.”

The electric vehicle package is part of Gov. Martin O’Malley’s legislative agenda, which is rife with renewable energy proposals. So far, the electric vehicle bills are part of a small cluster of the governor’s legislative priorities that have advanced to the full House or Senate.

The Senate on Friday approved a measure to create a policy and planning body to guide statewide decisions on infrastructure for electric vehicles. The House did the same with a similar bill last week.

Last month, the Senate voted unanimously to pass a proposal that requires the Public Service Commission to start a pilot program to create incentives for consumers to plug in their vehicles at night when the energy grid has excess capacity.

The third, and possibly most critical component, is a tax credit of up to 20 percent for electric charging stations. Supporters have called this part of the legislative package, which would award up to $1.5 million in tax credits over three years, “the backbone of a robust electric vehicle infrastructure.”

The tax credit bills are still in House and Senate committees.

Government is playing a growing role in helping nudge forward the electric vehicle market.

President Barack Obama pumped billions of stimulus dollars into rebate programs for first-generation electric vehicle owners. That includes a tax credit up to $7,500 toward the purchase of an electric auto.

O’Malley and the General Assembly sweetened the pot last year when Maryland approved a $2,000 tax credit of its own and granted drivers of the futuristic autos use of HOV commuter lanes regardless of their passenger count.

“This is going to be the wave of the future,” said Sen. Rob Garagiola, a Montgomery Democrat and a co-sponsor of the electric-vehicle package. “We need to be agile and move quickly to position ourselves so we can develop the roadmap for the future of electric vehicles.”

GM lobbyists, along with representatives from other big companies with a stake in the future of electric autos, have been making the rounds for weeks at committee hearings, pressing lawmakers to pass the package.

In those hearings, GM hasn’t been shy to remind lawmakers about the company’s recent commitments to the state. Those include a nearly $250 million investment to build electric motors at a manufacturing plant in Baltimore County, and the decision to tap Maryland along with the District as early roll-out markets for the Volt.

The Volt, which can run for about 40 miles on a full charge before a gas engine kicks in, is the first of the autos produced by major manufacturers to arrive in Maryland. Nissan’s all-electric Leaf will hit dealer showrooms across the state this spring. Ford’s initial electric offering is slated to become available in the District later this year.

About 2,000 electric autos will commute on Maryland roads by the end of 2012, according to a report from the Ann Arbor, Mich.-based Center for Automotive Research. By 2015, more than 11,600 electric vehicles are projected to be registered in the state, ranking Maryland among the top 15 states for electric auto registrations.

That same year, the number of plug-ins and electric autos on roads across the country is expected to reach more than 469,000, according to the report.

Ultimately, consumer demand will be influenced by incentives offered by state and local governments, ranging from grants, rebates, tax credits and fee exemptions.

The cars, rebates and the legislative package debated at the State House are all signs of the first wave of vehicle electrification in Maryland. Lawmakers are hopeful electric vehicles will play a part in reinvigorating the state’s post-recession economy.

O’Malley’s administration estimates that GM’s decision to build electric motors in Maryland will attract 800 direct and spinoff jobs by 2018.

At SemaConnect, the Annapolis-based startup that specializes in building commercial charging stations, the company is readying for expansion as production of electric vehicles ramps up.

The six-man firm is busy building 55 charging stations as part of a roughly $367,000 state contract, the company’s first major deal. The charging stations are expected to be up and running by this summer at 15 locations across Maryland, including select metro stations, municipal buildings and the Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.

By the end of June, SemaConnect’s Reddy estimates about100 public charging stations will populate the state. In the future, they’ll be commonly installed in apartment buildings, parking lots, hotels and shopping centers, he said.

Each charging station, Reddy said, will have a ripple effect for employment — from the engineers and programmers that design the stations to laborers who dig trenches for installation.

“Across the spectrum, from one end of the blue collar to the other end of the white collar, you got job creation,” Reddy said.

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This story was originally posted here.

POSTED: 5:31 PM MON, MARCH 21, 2011
BY CAPITAL NEWS SERVICE
DAVID SALEH RAUF

EV's in Maryland & O'Malley's plan

[Image from here.]

The O’Malley-Brown Administration is proposing three initiatives to promote electric vehicles in Maryland:

Description #1:                        Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Council:  The Administration is proposing legislation to create an Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Council to help prepare the State for the rapid integration of electric vehicles into Maryland communities.  The Council will include representatives of State and local governments, utilities, automobile manufacturers, and environmental and energy experts.  The Council will develop strategies relating to the development of metering and charging infrastructure, home charging requirements, streamlining permits, updating building codes and parking rules, electricity demands and grid stability, incentives to increase consumer adoption of electric vehicles, and public education.  Other states, including California and Connecticut, have created similar Councils.

Description #2:                        Demand Response Pilot Program for Charging Electric Vehicles.  Most electric vehicles will be charged using Level 2 charging systems, which require 240 volts and can fully recharge of a vehicle in approximately 4 hours.  The long-term challenge for utility companies is to get consumers and businesses to recharge their vehicles during off-peak hours when the electric grid has excess capacity and energy is cheaper (typically from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.)  Governor O’Malley is proposing legislation to require the Public Service Commission to implement a pilot program that permits utilities to offer homeowners and businesses incentives to recharge vehicle during off-peak hours as prescribed by their electric companies.  Incentives may include time-of-day pricing of electricity, credits on electric distribution charges, or rebates on the purchase of EV charging systems.

Description #3:                        Tax Credits for Charging Stations for Business Electric Vehicle Fleets:  Given the range limitations of first generation electric vehicles, one of the most likely markets for electric vehicles in the early years of adoption will be businesses with vehicle fleets that travel less than 100 miles per day and can be recharged at night.  The Administration is proposing a State income tax credit of 20% of the cost of a electric vehicle recharging equipment that, along with the federal tax credit, will incentivize individuals and companies to invest in electric vehicle technology.  Other states, including Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Louisiana, New York, Oklahoma, and Oregon, offer tax credits for charging infrastructure.  The tax credit will be limited to 3 years, with a total cap of $400,000 in tax year 2011, $500,000 in tax year 2012, and $600,000 in tax year 2013.  The program will be paid for out of proceeds from our greenhouse gas emissions auction proceeds.


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-ChargePro