LACI & ChargerHelp! Launch Nation’s First Multi-Manufacturer EV Charger Reliability Training Hub; Located in South Los Angeles, The Hub Complements LACI’S World Class Facility at the LADWP-Owned LA Kretz Innovation Campus

New Site to Serve as Headquarters for ChargerHelp! While Supporting the Workforce Development Training Needed for Skilled Technicians to Diagnose EV Chargers & Repair Non-Electrical Issues Across the U.S.; Project Made Possible through Funding Secured by U.S. Representative Kamlager-Dove

Los Angeles, July 17, 2024 – The Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator (LACI) and ChargerHelp! are proud to announce the launch of the nation’s first multi-manufacturer EV charger reliability training hub. Located in South Los Angeles, the facility provides a dedicated space for LACI and ChargerHelp! with dozens of chargers and equipment dedicated for EVSE charger reliability training. The new facility will also serve as the Los Angeles headquarters for LACI alumni company ChargerHelp! as the company continues to scale.

When public EV chargers do not work, 75% of the time the problem is a non-electrical issue. EVSE repair technicians diagnose and service chargers by updating firmware or software, resetting the WiFi, etc. This hub will operate for the next three years to train and equip reliability maintenance technicians to conduct non-electrical diagnostics, maintenance, and repair of EV chargers. The hub will also be made available to other qualified training providers that need access to such a facility.  

Through the leadership of Representative Sydney Kamlager-Dove (CA-37), LACI secured funding from the State of California for the facility. 

“I’m ecstatic for the grand opening of this first-of-its-kind training center, which will expand good-paying job opportunities for EV technicians in Los Angeles and beyond,” said Congresswoman Kamlager-Dove. “I was proud to lead the effort in the state legislature to secure funding for this workforce hub, and I look forward to continued partnership with LACI and ChargerHelp! to promote reliable clean transportation in our communities. Together, we will bring about a more resilient future for our labor force and our planet.”

“I want to commend LACI and ChagerHelp! for their continued work in moving Los Angeles toward a greener future,” said Mayor Karen Bass. “This announcement marks an important step toward ensuring that the local workforce needs for our electrified future will be met with the urgency, equity and support that they need while we confront the climate crisis and continue L.A.’s national leadership on transportation electrification.”

“California continues to lead in clean energy and clean transportation,” said Assemblymember Isaac Bryan. “Our local innovators like LACI and ChargerHelp! are contributing every day to building up our sustainable infrastructure. This is important work. We’re creating jobs, fighting climate change, and improving the conditions of life in our district and beyond.”

During a launch event at the new training hub, leaders from LACI and ChargerHelp! extolled the benefits of this first-of-its-kind facility:

“As we see more and more EVs on the road and chargers get installed across our communities, we are very excited to empower individuals to be trained to ensure chargers work when we need them,” said Matt Petersen, LACI President and CEO. “Thanks to the support of Congresswoman Kamlager-Dove, we are excited to open this facility with LACI portfolio company and now partner, ChargerHelp! Together, we will support the creation of good paying jobs and continue to set the conditions to advance our transportation electrification goals.” 

“This initiative between ChargerHelp! and LACI marks a major milestone in advancing EV technology and workforce development,” said Kameale Terry, CEO of ChargerHelp!. “By launching the first brand-agnostic training site in the nation–in South Los Angeles, we are not only addressing the technical needs of the EV industry but also empowering local communities with valuable skills and job opportunities. This collaboration signifies ChargerHelp’s commitment to innovation, inclusivity, the sustainable growth of the green economy, and further development of EV charging infrastructure.”

LACI’s Transportation Electrification Partnership (TEP), an unprecedented public-private partnership of local, regional, and state-level stakeholders committed to accelerating transportation electrification, has called for 129,000 public and workplace chargers in the Los Angeles region by the time of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The new South LA site will support progress toward that ambitious target and accelerate the transition to reliable clean transportation. 

Since 2019, LACI’s flagship workforce development program has trained 160 participants to repair and maintain EVSE infrastructure, including all-women and 18-24 year old specific cohorts. As shared with Yahoo! Finance, Kameale Terry and Evette Ellis helped LACI create their first EVSE non-electrical charger reliability workforce development program in 2019. Soon thereafter, Kameale took part in LACI’s Founders Business Accelerator in 2020 to develop the concept for ChargerHelp!, and after graduating, joined LACI’s intensive, two-year Incubation program. Kameale and co-founder Evette were able to pitch their company and introduce, respectively, Vice President Kamala Harris at LACI in 2023.

Given space limitations at the world-class, LA Department of Water and Power-owned La Kretz Innovation Campus that is LACI’s headquarters, the facility will be dedicated to EVSE non-electrical charger reliability training for LACI, ChargerHelp!, and in the future other organizations and companies across LA, California, and the U.S. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power has generously supported the build out of this new facility with electrical upgrades. 

With equipment onsite from a multitude of manufacturers (including Dunamis and LACI portfolio companies SparkCharge, Itselectric, and Xeal), the site will also help overcome the limitations posed by traditional single-manufacturer EVSE service training centers located across the United States, which are run by individual brands and can only train technicians on their specific technology in small groups. In a muli-technology environment, technicians will be able to train across all EVSE equipment at the new South LA facility. 

ABOUT LACI:
The Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator (LACI) is creating an inclusive green economy by unlocking innovation through scaling cleantech startups, transforming markets through catalytic partnerships with policymakers, innovators, and market leaders in transportation, energy, and sustainable cities, like the Transportation Electrification Partnership, and enhancing communities through green jobs workforce training, pilots and other programs. Founded as an economic development initiative by the City of Los Angeles and its Department of Water & Power (LADWP) in 2011, LACI is recognized as one of the top 10 innovative business incubators in the world by UBI. LACI has helped 422 portfolio companies raise over $1 billion in funding, generated $344 million in revenue, and created 2,626 jobs throughout the Los Angeles region, with a long term economic impact of more than $587 million. 

ABOUT CHARGERHELP!:
ChargerHelp!’s app-based dispatch and deployment system solves the industry-wide problem of downed electric vehicle charging stations by providing on-demand repairs and maintenance support from trained local workforces. This capability, provided at scale, is essential to support sharp growth in EV charging infrastructure and dramatically improve efficiency, turnaround time, and network availability while reducing costs across the networks. With the ChargerHelp!’s service offering, partner EV charging owners and operators can meet new service-level requirements and win new EVSE contracts to meet the exponential growth in charging demands. 

Charging hardware companies that would like to learn more about using the new facility as a training space can communicate their interest here. 

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