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EV adoption: How a construction company began the transition to a mixed-energy fleet
Dallas 1, a utility construction company based near Tampa, Florida, with 120 employees, performs specialty construction including site work and utility installation. They were interested in creating a mixed-energy fleet by introducing electric vehicles (EVs) to their existing fleet of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles.
Read on to learn how they developed an adoption strategy and partnered with WEX to add their first EVs to their fleet.
Who is Dallas 1?
Dallas 1 was founded in 1985 by Bart Azzarelli. His son, BJ Azzarelli, is the current president of this family-owned business. The company is driven by their faith and a desire to create a family atmosphere in their workplace where employees feel loved and cared for.
“We’re a ministry funded by construction,” shares BJ Azzarelli. He and James Boyd, Dallas 1’s CFO, share this vision for the company’s mission. “Our company culture is based on biblical values and we want to treat others how we’d like to be treated. So we try to encourage that and live that here at Dallas 1.”
Dallas 1 is a specialty construction company installing water lines, storm systems, sewer lines, and forced mainlines to move water. Half of their business is in the public sector, some of which includes replacing aging infrastructure.
“We do a lot of work with municipalities,” said Azzarelli. “The City of Tampa is one of our top customers where we do waterline installation. We also have an annual contract with them where we do emergency repair of their system. Also, we do site work for private subdivisions and commercial centers and work with developers and schools.”
Part of this work involves a requirement that the Dallas 1 team be on call around the clock for emergencies as they arise. “With the city of Tampa, we have an emergency contract where if there’s a leak or a main break, they will call us and have us come out and repair it. Sometimes, that call could be in the middle of the night and we have crews who will respond at a moment’s notice to get out there and mitigate the issue and then start the repair process.”
This is where Azzarelli and Boyd both feel immense pride in the Dallas 1 team and the “all in” attitude shared by their staff. As Boyd explains it, “When the water’s boiling up through the road in Tampa, they call us.”
Why EV?
According to an Experian Automotive Market Trends report from Q4 2023, there were about 3.3 million electric cars on the road in the U.S. This number is up from two million electric vehicles in 2022 and 1.3 million in 2021.
These trends point to a growing understanding that EVs can be more cost-effective than ICE vehicles. This was part of Dallas 1’s analysis when they decided to make the move to a mixed-energy fleet. Azzarelli states it in simple terms: “Moving towards electric vehicles was a financial decision. We looked at it as a way to reduce spending on fuel as well as on maintenance.”
Boyd shares some more details, “We run a lot of heavy equipment and our fuel spend can be $60,000 a month. Anything that we can do to control our fuel spend is critical to our bottom line and helps us save money.”
Azzarelli also approached the EV transition from personal experience. “In 2016, I purchased my first electric vehicle and, at the time, was just interested in the technology. I’m kind of a tech nerd so I just found it interesting.”
He enjoyed the vehicle, the simplicity of it, and the reduction in required maintenance. This was when he made the decision to discuss bringing EVs into Dallas 1’s fleet with Boyd. “With less maintenance required, and fueling savings, we realized that EVs could be a fit for the organization, so we worked to start bringing some of those into our fleet as a way to reduce expenses.” Boyd adds that EVs work really well for daily use, which is how most of their staff works.
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How EV adoption can drive a better bottom line for businesses
The top reason Dallas 1 converted to a mixed-energy fleet was financial. The fuel and maintenance savings were both factors Azzarelli and Boyd considered in their analysis. Already, Boyd is seeing results: “We have a fleet of about 55 vehicles on the road and anything we can do to drive fuel costs down is critical to our bottom line. With EVs, we are replacing fuel with electricity at roughly one third the price.”
As far as maintenance is concerned, EVs never need oil changes, coolant flushes, or tune-ups, and there are fewer moving parts than can be found in ICE vehicles. This means fewer breakable components and the need for fewer replacements.
EVs use a one-speed transmission and don’t use spark plugs, valves, mufflers/tailpipes, distributors, starters, clutches, drive belts, hoses, or catalytic converters. In a recent Forbes article, Jim Gorzelany shared: “According to the federal Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, the estimated scheduled maintenance costs for an electric vehicle averages 6 cents per mile, while it’s at 10 cents per mile for a conventional ICE-powered ride. Those who clock an annual 15,000 miles per year on the odometer can be expected to save an average $600 per year, or $3,000 over a five-year ownership period.”
Finding a fuel card partner with integrated ICE and EV systems will save you money administratively
Expense reporting, reimbursement, and data analysis—these are complexities associated with building a mixed-energy fleet that might lead you to believe higher administrative costs are in your future. To avoid this, work with a fuel card partner with an integrated EV and ICE system.
Azzarelli shared how Dallas 1 approached this concern: “As we were expanding the number of electric vehicles in our fleet, we started to question how we were going to reimburse our employees for at-home charging. We looked at several chargers where we could track the kilowatt usage and manage reimbursements manually ourselves. And then we had a conversation with WEX, who came to us with a great solution. With the ChargePoint Flex at-home units, we’re receiving reporting that reflects the exact amount of energy used by each driver. This data is fed from the charger directly into the WEX app and into our WEX fueling portal.”
Boyd noted the time-savings Dallas 1 was able to achieve with WEX’s solution: the tool allowed Dallas 1 to avoid building its own tracking system, and it automated monthly administrative tasks like tracking, reporting, and data analysis to lower administrative costs.
Dallas 1 has been a WEX fuel card customer since 2016 and has a portal to collect data on fuel spend. When they added EVs to their account, a tab was added to that portal for charging spend data. Boyd describes how simple it is: “Within the WEX portal, where we’ve always tracked our fuel spend, there is now an EV tab where we can also track how much electricity we’re using per vehicle and per driver. And, we can track and approve purchases and reimbursements.” It’s as simple as that.
EV adoption and potential pain points
Creating a mixed-energy fleet can create complexity. Business owners like Azzarelli have to account for two very different vehicle models, which requires their fleet managers to oversee complicated routing systems, fueling plans, and vastly different maintenance schedules. Azzarelli knew this would complicate operations at Dallas 1, and he and Boyd sought expert assistance at the outset.
One of the immediate concerns they faced was how to reimburse their staff for at-home charging. They were also looking for guidance on which parts of their fleet made the most sense to electrify.
“There are certain use cases for an electric vehicle versus an ICE vehicle,” said Azzarelli, “but converting to EVs can definitely mean a significant savings. In partnering with WEX, we had assistance rolling out a system where we can reimburse our drivers when they charge their company vehicle at home.”
With this operational shift, Azzarelli and Boyd knew they’d need to manage change for their employees. One of the biggest concerns expressed by their staff was range anxiety.
“As we brought EVs into our fleet, a big concern with the team was how far they’d be able to travel, and would they have to worry about running out of charge?” As their employees had time in the vehicles, they grew comfortable with range and came full circle. “They now enjoy the fact that they don’t have to go to the gas station anymore. They just go home, plug in at night and their vehicle is ready to go in the morning.”
Expert advice on which vehicles to electrify and how to shift operations to account for charging
Azzarelli and Boyd were excited to adopt EVs but also wanted to take things slowly, be strategic, and not convert all their vehicles at once. So, they turned to their two vehicle vendors for guidance.
“When Dallas 1 considered adopting EVs in our fleet, we worked with Enterprise Fleet Management and WEX to come up with a solution. They helped us with a charging infrastructure solution as well as vehicle acquisition. We came to the conclusion that it would make sense for us to adopt EVs for certain portions of our fleet at first. And we’re taking that slowly, being strategic about it, and continuing to grow our fleet at a smart pace,” shared Azzarelli.
How at-home charging is set up and how it works: a play-by-play
The first thing to consider when transitioning to EVs is this: Where does it make the most sense to charge company vehicles? The consensus is that at-home charging, where applicable, is the most cost-effective method.
Dallas 1 installed ChargePoint chargers at employee homes and connected them to WEX’s portal. Boyd shares how it works, “The ChargePoint charger itself reports directly into the WEX portal, so we know exactly how much energy is used at home.”
Boyd describes step-by-step how the at-home charging works for Dallas 1: “Electric vehicles like to be plugged in every day, so when they get home from being out at work all day, our employees plug the vehicle into their at-home charging station, typically in their garage. With WEX, you can schedule when the charging happens which is helpful if you have variable rates from your electric company. Once it’s plugged in, you go about your business at home and, while you’re sleeping, the vehicle is refueling. In the morning, you unplug the truck from the charger and the charger will report energy usage to the DriverDash app. From there, you attach that charge session to your WEX account and the amount is then refunded to you using WEX’s EFS (PayControl) app.”
The benefits of partnering with a fuel card company for all your mixed energy commercial vehicle needs
When introducing a new form of fueling to your systems, finding the right fuel card partner will help you build your mixed-energy operations in the most effective and efficient way. “With WEX coming to us with a solution for both diesel and electric, it’s really made it simple to track what vehicles are the most efficient, where we’re saving money, and where we’re spending,” shares Boyd.
Dallas 1 worked with WEX to integrate EVs into their portal so that Boyd’s team is able to see all the fueling spend in one place—for both ICE vehicles and EVs. Boyd also felt supported every step of the way through electrification and appreciated how easy the adoption process was.
“When we started to go through the process with WEX of linking the chargers to our WEX account, we had lots of questions and the WEX team was great to work with. We had regular calls with them. They helped us through the whole journey and then they’ve been really open to our feedback as things have progressed, too.”
For a smooth EV transition, rely on the experts and you will experience cost savings and create a well-oiled machine.
Dallas 1 wasn’t afraid to rely on the experts to help them make the transition to a mixed-energy fleet. As a result, they have seen cost savings on fuel, maintenance, and administration. Boyd describes it this way: “We’ve been using WEX fuel cards since 2016, and using the WEX portal and WEX statements to track our overall fuel and electricity costs has been great for us. Tracking both fuel and electricity through WEX has helped us to save money administratively.”
To learn more about EV solutions and mixed fleets, visit:
- EV adoption: 4 global trends in transition to mixed-energy fleets
- EV FAQs
- How to best incorporate EVs into your fleet
- EV at-home charging
To learn more about WEX, a dynamic and nimble global organization, please visit our About WEX page.
To learn more about WEX’s EV offerings visit our EV page.
WEX EV Fleet Converter helps businesses transition their fleets to electric vehicles with ease, offering tools to understand the feasibility, costs, and benefits of adopting EV.
All fleet cards are not the same, and different types of fuel cards suit the needs of different kinds and sizes of businesses. View WEX’s fleet card comparison chart to see which fleet fuel card is right for you.