Nothing is more current than the concept of sustainability and EV powered products.
Fast charging is therefore essential as part of the framework for the country to move towards compliance with all Government plans for a more planet-friendly future. Heliox provides fast charging infrastructure for some of the largest electric vehicle projects in Europe. Michael Colijn talks to Business Matters…
What products or services do you offer?
Heliox designs, builds, installs, maintains, and monitors that infrastructure based on partners’ needs, fast charging priorities, mid- to long-term scalability, and interoperability vehicle fleet and charging infrastructure.
We work on public transport, e-trucks and a number of different sectors to provide fast charging systems that can efficiently power electric vehicles, bringing convenience to businesses and consumers. We recently announced that over the past six months, we’ve delivered over 1,000,000 paid sessions, or 6,000 sessions per day. There are currently more than 25,000 commercial electric vehicles powered by Heliox globally. Going forward, Heliox is also enhancing its infrastructure monitoring capabilities to be able to provide smart energy insights.
What type of business do you work with?
We work with businesses across a number of sectors. From city planners to fleet owners, we work to ensure that businesses looking to implement more sustainable practices are supported. Heliox has undertaken some of the largest fleet of e-vehicle fast charging projects in Europe, with partnerships with First Bus Glasgow and Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, contributing towards the global net zero emissions target.
What problem does your company solve?
As environmental and sustainability goals become globally important, cities and companies are looking to transition to green and electric solutions. emissions, but ultimately need to impact all aspects of our daily lives. This is critical to the UK’s ambition to reach net-zero emissions by 2030, as well as complimenting a ban on diesel cars and heavy-duty petrol cars by 2040.
We are the facilitators of this transition, providing turnkey solutions that start with designing an e-mobility solution for a company, providing the hardware and future prospects for the company. scaling or other infrastructure/technology upgrades.
The infrastructure to support this ‘electronic transition’ is expected to double in the UK over the next few years, with an estimated 1,170 toll points per 100km of road expected to be required. in 2030.
What is your USP?
Our USP is a combination of 3 core practices to create the right solution for each partner:
- We are the only provider of fast charging that can be deployed at scale. This puts us in a unique position to support businesses looking to transition to deploying hundreds of e-vehicle fleets or increase their electric vehicle fleet and empower them to contribute to sustainability efforts. .
- We provide end-to-end tailored solutions including design, construction, installation, maintenance and monitoring.
- Given the vital role of e-mobility and its charging infrastructure, we manufacture and assemble only within continental Europe.
What is your company value? Have you ever been challenged by them and if so, how did you handle it?
As a company, we strongly believe in the current outlook and actions to meet the stated environmental and sustainability goals as set forth by our partners and the city. These goals are constantly under pressure, and the challenge only helps to create a better environment for research and innovation.
How do you ensure that you recruit a team that reflects your company values?
We constantly check our values to make sure the people we work with feel that we represent them.
We also have a specific step in the hiring process that focuses on our values. We work with a company called Seedlink to generate a score for each candidate, which is checked against our company values, so we can see which candidates are a good fit. Best. In addition, we conduct an annual value survey to find out if the priority of individual values changes in general in line with our company’s values.
Are you satisfied to offer a post-covid home/office hybrid working model?
Last year, we quickly adapted to the hybrid way of working and have seen a significant increase in productivity. We know that our teams are happiest when they have flexible working options, so we make sure our company policies reflect the 50/50 split between working from home and working. work at the office.
We believe this balance allows our team to get the benefits of both remote working and face-to-face collaboration.
Do you have any tips for effectively managing suppliers and customers?
We consider our suppliers just as important as our customers. They help keep us going, so working with them must be seen as a real partnership.
We work with our suppliers to set expectations for the high-quality chargers and installations we offer, and to ensure they fit our needs as we operate our business. we change.
With our clients, we always make sure we stay one step ahead when it comes to managing our communication. We put ourselves in their shoes, so we know how to bring them solutions and communicate them clearly, without the hassle of technical language.
Any finance or cash flow tips for businesses just starting out?
The most important thing to remember is that cash is king and even a large business can suffer if cash flow is not a priority. Focus on bringing in revenue and look 3-6 months ahead to make sure your system is as strong as possible.
If you could ask for one thing the government would change for businesses, what would it be?
This year’s COP26 conference in Glasgow will play a pivotal role in discussions on sustainability. So far, what we’ve seen has been promising – but the proof is in the pudding, so I’m asking that the promise be kept and that their investment in infrastructure demonstrates a commitment to incentivize usage rates. higher use of electric vehicles.
What is your attitude towards your competitors?
We see our competitors as an extraordinary driver of innovation, and we all have a common goal of making the world a better place.
It is important that we work with our competitors towards a more sustainable way of working and ensure that we are working together to make the energy transition.
The ultimate goal of industry acceleration lies beyond the interests of each company, but instead is the sum total of collaborative efforts.
Any thoughts on the future of the company and your dreams?
I’ve spent my entire career in the energy business, making sure the world is a better place for my daughter. The future of Heliox is ensuring that we are contributing to creating an environmentally viable, sustainable world to pass on to the next generations.
Cherry Martin
Cherry is the Associate Editor of Business Matters with responsibility for planning and writing future features, interviews, and more in-depth content for what is now the source of current business news and print journalism. UK’s largest.
