Too many vehicle recyclers are sticking their head in the sand and not doing anything to understand high voltage technology; to understand the risks associated with electric and hybrid vehicles; to understand the opportunities that these vehicles bring them and to understand how their business needs to change and adapt to accommodate these vehicles.
Sales of Battery Electric Vehicles and Plug In Hybrid vehicles rose by 43% and 34% respectively across Europe in 2017, sales increases in the UK were 31% and 23% in both categories.
Vehicle manufacturers are predicting massive increases in sales volumes of these vehicles, with VW group expecting to annual sales of 2.5 million electric vehicles by 2025 and Bloomberg forecasting that full electric and plug in hybrid vehicles will form an ever larger percentage of vehicle sales in the coming years.
Why is this happening? Because vehicle manufacturers are being forced to reduce vehicle emissions; add in high oil prices, the decisions by many countries to ban the sale of new internal combustion engined vehicles at some stage in the future, the ever reducing cost of producing high voltage batteries, the increasing range that full electric vehicles offer, the increasing volume of charge points and the current debate around diesel vehicles and some could debate that the perfect storm has been created to condemn internal combustion engined vehicles.
These changes will have major knock-on effects to many different industries across the automotive marketplace, and the vehicle recycling industry will have to change and adapt to the new automotive landscape that will be created.
Progressive and forward thinking vehicle recyclers are already working on this, learning how the vehicles operate, looking at the opportunities this new technology brings, investigating the risks to their business, their staff and themselves, working out how to change, adapt, grow and minimise any risks, and how to provide the best service to their suppliers, customers and work providers.
You can find out more at the Salvage Wire Skills Lab at CARS on the 11 and 12 July, see https://www.cars-expo.com/show-features/skills-lab/ for more details.
Salvage Wire also have training courses scheduled for July:
- Wednesday 18 July in Edinburgh
- Thursday 19 July in Warrington
Places are limited so contact Salvage Wire now to reserve your place