What does Load Management mean?

Explanation

Load management is the practice of controlling how much total electrical power a group of chargers draws from the grid or building supply. Every building has a maximum power capacity determined by its grid connection. If chargers pull too much power, they can overload the supply, trip breakers, or incur expensive penalty charges from the utility.

Load management systems monitor the site's total power draw in real time and adjust charger output to stay within safe limits. If the building's other loads increase (air conditioning, machinery), the system may reduce charging power to compensate. When those loads decrease, more power becomes available for charging.

For drivers, load management is usually invisible. You might notice that your workplace charger delivers different speeds at different times of day, or that your charging speed drops when more cars plug in at the same location. This is load management doing its job, keeping the site within its electrical budget.

For current specifications, see Open Charge Alliance.

Where you'll see this

• In charging network apps

Common confusion

Load management and load balancing are closely related but slightly different. Load balancing distributes power among chargers. Load management controls total site power draw relative to the building's electrical capacity.

Example

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