Charging Stations and the Perseverance of Modern Technology

Will we ever live in a world where charging stations can be found every mile or two down the road? The changing landscape of the automotive industry has proven that through innovation, there is no need to be set in our ways. In other words, for those who have made the statement of never switching from their gas or diesel vehicles to electric should highly reconsider. Charging stations are not only taking the nation, but also the world by storm.

Tesla Supercharger Stations 

According to The People's Daily, “A total of 167,000 charging piles have now been connected to the telematics platform of the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC), making it the world’s largest electric vehicle (EV) charging network.” This is significant for China as their land mass consists of 9.6 million square kilometers. As for the United States, our footprint of charging stations is fairly small with only 945 Tesla supercharger stations. This is due to the current Tesla sales of only 100,000 vehicles per year. However, with Tesla’s introduction of the new Model 3, which is an affordable model intended for the mass audience, we can expect a large influx of electric vehicles filling our streets here in the United States.

Therefore, this answers our original question. Through innovation we can expect this reality of charging stations to be installed in every street corner as the developing technology and affordability of fully integrated electric vehicles becomes prevalent in our modern society. We need to give the public a reason to consume these electric vehicles. Without the incentive of having the ability to charge your vehicle in a plethora of locations, this evolution in mobility will lack significant growth.

Founder, Robert Slass

I recall in my early years at Rotor Clip Company, when the late founder Robert Slass brought the first Toyota Prius hybrid model to work in 2003. I vividly remember bursting into laughter questioning his sons, now the current co-owners Craig and Jonathan Slass, “what is your father driving?” The car even had a bumper sticker that said “Eat My Voltage.” Of course as an engineer, this was no laughing matter to Mr. Slass as he took pride in new technologies that could eventually sweep the nation.

Now, fourteen years later, Co-owner Craig Slass brought up our foolishness of not realizing what his father was trying to tell us back then. Robert made a statement to his employees and sons that we must keep our eyes on the future of automotive innovation.

In 2003, it didn't necessarily seem like a reality that we would inhabit a world of vehicles run solely on the electric grid. However, technology, especially in the automotive industry, has proven to further exponential growth decade after decade. As a result, this represents the reason why Tesla is such a successful modern automotive brand. Instead of closing off the market, Elon Musk opened the doors to competition, which not only elevates the Tesla brand, but also helps facilitate a major growth for electric vehicles. Overall, automotive suppliers should not be afraid of the changing landscape of this evolving industry, but rather learn how to adapt. 

Robert Slass taught us a very valuable lesson and that is to always appreciate a developing technology, as it can eventually have a major role in our future society.

Evan Slass is a Digital Marketing Communications Specialist for Rotor Clip Company.