Case Study
Sway Boosts Carshare Utilization & Charging Reliability with FractalEV
About Sway Mobility
Sway provides affordable EV carshare services to communities and organizations that otherwise lack viable transportation. Founded in 2017, the company strives to make electric mobility accessible, operating small-scale decentralized programs across the US.
A revolutionary concept: Clean transportation for underserved communities
Sway is not your typical carshare service. It doesn’t profit from the app economy or service affluent urbanites. Instead, the company provides affordable electric vehicle access to underserved communities and non-profit organizations. Sway is mission-driven to help people and the planet, and the clarity of that mission served it well through its early growing pains. When Sway launched in 2017, using EVs was seen as a radical choice — one that came with meaningful business constraints. People often asked, ‘Why not just use hybrids?’ Still, the Sway team retained the conviction that EVs were the answer.
CEO Michael Peters says Sway’s model is unique: “What sets us apart is our ability to operate in a decentralized way. We’ve got programs in urban and rural areas, some with as few as one car. Our approach required us to build custom systems to make things cost-effective.” For Sway, charging reliability proved crucial to scale: Reliable chargers keep vehicles running and ensure positive experiences for drivers, many of which are new to EVs.
Charger cost and maintenance issues become a barrier to scale
Initially, Sway faced several infrastructure challenges. “At launch, we found we had to make compromises around where we could park cars based on access to power, which wasn’t ideal,” Peters noted, adding that installing dedicated chargers for every vehicle carried significant costs. Beyond financial barriers, Sway struggled with unreliable EV chargers from multiple vendors. Previous charging solutions led to poor uptime and wasted resources. “Our core business is carshare, not operating chargers. Yet we found ourselves spending too much time managing chargers, which took away from improving our core operations.” Peters said, reflecting on their pain points. From onsite firmware fixes to faulty SIM cards, issues compounded.
Unlocking flexibility and savings through OCPP solutions
Through the vendor selection process, Sway came to understand the importance of the Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP). Compared to vertically integrated solutions, vendors that adhere to OCPP standards allow flexibility and savings. Sway went through three other charger vendors before partnering with FractalEV. While earlier solutions addressed cost concerns, they left gaps in reliability and ease of management. Added friction arose when working with Asian vendors in stratified time zones. A firmware fix could take weeks to coordinate. This tide began to turn when Sway found its OCPP software provider, FlipTurn: “The value FlipTurn provided easily outweighed the cost,” Peters shared. “The custom integration with our telematics gave us real-time insights into our chargers and vehicle state-of-charge.”
FractalEV stands out with advanced diagnostics and system safeguards
FlipTurn introduced the Sway team to FractalEV, extolling the benefits of their tight integration and the added data from the Fractal cloud platform. For Peters, that value was clear right away: “FractalEV gives us clear, detailed diagnostic insights, along with the tools to solve issues remotely. It’s a game-changer.”
FractalEV’s resilience, proactive troubleshooting capabilities, and customer-first support were vital factors in Sway’s decision to switch. Peters highlighted FractalEV’s unique mesh network: “The mesh network made sure as long as one charger was working, we could rely on it, and no one else was offering that.” This consideration ensured charger uptime, even in distributed sites where other systems failed. The ability to perform remote troubleshooting and predictive maintenance also appealed to Sway, as it minimized the need for costly and time-consuming site visits. Peters emphasized, “Fractal thought through these issues way more than anyone else, which is why we made the switch.”
An EV charging solution that ‘just works’
Since implementing FractalEV chargers, Sway has seen tangible improvements in charger reliability, which has enhanced car utilization. Peters’ team has also refocused on creating an exceptional driver experience: “If we can make EVs painless, where everything just works, that goes a long way in furthering our business and mission. Charging should ideally be in the background for all of us,” he asserted.
Thanks to the flexibility of the OCPP, the Sway team continues to operate a mix of chargers, all made smart thanks to FlipTurn’s backend. Looking ahead, they plan to stick to FractalEV chargers for all future deployments.
Never underestimate the ROI of reliable charging
Sway’s partnership with FractalEV has not only improved the reliability of their charging infrastructure but also helped them scale more efficiently. Peters had this piece of advice for other carsharing and fleet-based businesses: “For fleet operators, charging reliability is critical. Choosing hardware that has high resiliency and redundancy isn’t a nice-to-have; it’s essential for traction and retention.” Choosing a partner like FractalEV ensures high uptime, robust support, and long-term cost savings through reliable and resilient charging.
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