Dan Lawrence-Eyre, co-founder and COO at Diode, believes the impact of fleet electrification should be considered for every vehicle. As pressure mounts to decarbonise fleets – whether through
Dan Lawrence-Eyre, co-founder and COO at Diode, believes the impact of fleet electrification should be considered for every vehicle.
As pressure mounts to decarbonise fleets – whether through ZEV mandates, corporate ESG commitments, or cost-cutting – fleet managers face a critical challenge: how to transition efficiently and minimise charging downtime. The smartest operators aren’t just asking which vehicles can go electric – they want to understand the practicalities for each vehicle in the switch, too.
While the urgency is clear for fleet managers to get a grip of their transition strategy, their concerns must be addressed for each vehicle individually. Charging access. Sufficient driving range. Charging downtime. Uncertain ROI. These are the real concerns keeping operators up at night.
And yet, these barriers can now be overcome with detailed insights for each vehicle, allowing fleets to make informed and confident decisions about where to begin and how far to go.
Here’s how data-driven fleet managers are using vehicle-level insights to cut through the complexity and transition to electric vehicles with minimal disruption.
The most obvious wins are vehicles that can charge either at the depot or at the driver’s home – where charging happens passively at overnight when the vehicle isn’t in use. Using telematics data, these vehicles can be quickly identified and prioritised. They represent low-risk, high-confidence opportunities for electrification, allowing fleet managers to begin the transition without operational impact.
Early success here matters. It builds internal momentum, wins around drivers and paves the way for wider EV adoption.
For many vehicles, public or en-route charging may be required – especially for those covering long distances or operating outside depot or home charging windows.
But needing to charge on the road isn’t a blocker. It’s a data question. What matters is assessing the downtime introduced by en-route charging and determining whether it’s manageable within your operational framework – all while leveraging natural dwell times as opportunities to charge.
Our platform calculates this downtime at an individual vehicle level, turning assumptions into facts. Armed with this insight, fleet managers can weigh the trade-offs with confidence.
Beyond downtime, we provide each vehicle with: recommended WLTP range; charging split forecasts (home, depot, public destination, en route); dwell time analysis to spot optimal locations with charging opportunities and sufficient natural time to charge; trip pattern breakdowns and daily mileage insights and real-world energy consumption estimates. The decision is no longer a binary “EV or not?” one. It’s a nuanced evaluation – powered by robust, real-world data.
Even if a vehicle is technically suitable for electrification, the EV replacement must match the job profile. That includes route length, payload, usage pattern and charging compatibility. Our vehicle comparator tool allows fleet managers to match each existing vehicle with the most suitable electric alternative – based on actual operating data.
Spoiler: not every vehicle in your fleet will be right for electrification today. And that’s okay! What matters is knowing which ones are – and which aren’t right now – so that you can build a phased, intelligent rollout plan grounded in operational reality.
The most successful fleet electrification programmes are not necessarily the fastest, they are the most strategic. By understanding the impact for every vehicle before making the switch to EV, you reduce risk, preserve operational performance and futureproof your decision-making.
Electrification is no longer a leap of faith. It’s a data-driven evolution. And for the fleet managers who get it right, the competitive, environmental and financial advantages are clear.
Finally, if you’re a leasing company, why not add value and increase EV sales with a white-labelled solution. Vehicle leasing companies can proactively help their customers by analysing their telematics data and making recommendations for which vehicles to switch to EV.
