15 October 2024
Now that winter is approaching, we are quite sure that you have some upcoming trips planned to warmer weather in France or Italy. Or a stopover in Austria to do some skiing with the family. We are even more sure you have not planned for your trip to end abruptly due to an out-of-order charging station. Allego is in the business of avoiding your plan changes by ensuring our charging stations work. Allego offers customers certainty with KPN IoT in no fewer than 16 European countries.
With over 35,000 charging points at more than 12,500 locations, Allego has one of Europe’s largest networks for ‘high-performance charging.’ Whether in the countryside or a busy city, in 16 European countries, there is almost always a charging point nearby. “Our job is to ensure that they always work so that customers do not experience any problems with (fast) charging,” says Roel van der Linden, Head of Procurement & Supply Chain Management at Allego.
According to Van der Linden, Allego has more and more options to monitor their charging stations. The stations are connected to Allego’s central management system via the Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP). “If something is wrong with a charging station, we see it immediately. In addition, charging stations are becoming increasingly smarter thanks to sensors. By analyzing sensor data, we can predict problems and intervene proactively.”
Reliable connections
“We want to know exactly how our charging stations are doing at all times. For this, we need a stable and reliable connection in all countries where we are active,” explains Joost Groeneveld, Head of Operations at Allego.
This connection is crucial for monitoring, authorizing charging sessions, and invoicing. Groeneveld says, “All these processes take place within milliseconds. And if a customer calls with a problem, we want to have real-time insight into the status of the charging station.”
International network with integrated SIM card
Allego has been working with KPN IoT for years in the field of connectivity. “KPN IoT can offer a comprehensive network in all countries where we are active,” says Groeneveld.
“We prefer to work with one supplier at European level,” he continues. “That way, you only have to invest once in setting up the connections, and you can manage all SIM cards centrally. In our case, this is done via the KPN IoT Control Center. At KPN, we can also trust that the connections are secure, which is essential for our operation.”
IoT knowledge partner
“For us, KPN IoT is more than just a connectivity provider; they are also our knowledge partner,” Groeneveld emphasizes. There is always someone available to help us if we have questions.”
“KPN also gave us excellent advice on modem specifications,” Van der Linden adds. Their technological advice helps us to refine our requirements and thus ensure better connectivity. We also appreciate that KPN IoT is an open organization that is easy to work with.”
From a SIM card to a future-proof e-SIM
A possible next step is to replace the physical SIM cards with the digital variant, the e-SIM. Van der Linden: “We currently order the SIM cards from KPN IoT, after which the manufacturer of the charging stations inserts them before they go to the location. With e-SIM, this process becomes easier: the digital SIM card is already in the modem, and we can configure the connectivity by placing a profile on it. This saves much time.”
“Thanks to KPN IoT, we do not experience any problems with the connectivity of our charging stations in any country,” Groeneveld concludes. “The connections are improving, which is essential for our growth in Europe.”
