Siemens Smart Infrastructure has launched Depot360, a portfolio that goes beyond the installation and maintenance of electric and charging infrastructure to cover the entire electrification of fleets.

 As part of the Siemen Xcelerator, Depot360 is designed as a comprehensive and integrated service that is “independent of the charging infrastructure, requires no capital expenditure and offers maximum scalability, improved operations and lower energy costs”. The portfolio will initially focus on logistics vehicles, municipal transport companies and private bus fleets in depots, warehouses and terminals. At launch, the offer is available in Germany, France, the UK, Sweden, Norway, the US and Canada.

““In the near future, many cities will only allow zero-emissions logistics vehicles into their centers, making the need to accelerate fleet electrification paramount,” said Thomas Kiessling, CTO of Siemens Smart Infrastructure. “We have created an AI-driven energy and charging management platform to operate electric fleet depots, further driving innovation in depot and warehouse infrastructure, Distributed Energy Resources (DERs), and renewable energy integration.”

The Depot360 Managed Services, designed to optimize charging and fleet infrastructure, is an integralpart of Depot360 CaaS, but is also available as a standalone offering for existing infrastructure or when cutomers prefer different financing models. Siemens has developed the Depot360 AI platform for this purpose. “Using this platform, an expert team from the Siemens 24/7 Network Operations Center (NOC) can continuously leverage fleet-centric algorithms to monitor and manage the charging infrastructure’s performance. This enables them to identify and proactively solve issues based on data-driven decisions to improve and upgrade fleet operations, and ultimately provide full transparency into operations. With guaranteed charging station uptime and vehicle state of charge (SoC) readiness for optimized route completion, customers will enjoy lower energy costs, and reduced cost-per-mile,” according to the company.

As upfront costs can be a limiting factor in the transition to electrification, Siemens offers financing solutions through Siemens Financial Services (SFS). In addition, Siemens is working with other financial institutions such as GEFA BANK, a leading vehicle leasing specialist in the German market with a detailed understanding of fleet customers’ requirements. “The move toward zero-emission transportation is a significant challenge for many businesses, requiring large investments and careful management of technological complexities,” says André Rolfes, Head of Sustainable Finance Solutions at GEFA BANK. “Through our partnership with Siemens, we offer companies access to advanced equipment along with customized financing solutions, enabling them to navigate this transition more effectively and sustainably.”

For the new technological insights, the German company also relies on partners such as telematics specialist Getoab. According to Siemens, this will enable it to “access real-time vehicle data, providing the insight required to further improve fleet operations”. “We are thrilled to work with Siemens toward our shared goal of derisking the scaling of EV infrastructure for fleets,” says Eric Mallia, Vice President of Sustainability Solutions at Geotab. “Together with Geotab’s leading EV telematics capability, Siemens’ Depot360 will help ensure that vehicles are properly charged when needed, while also optimizing charging schedules to minimize costs and carbon emissions.”