Most operators begin by using the basic software that comes with their chargers to track electric vehicle charging. This might be enough for small, closely managed depots, but it isn’t enough to run large electric fleets efficiently and confidently.
Electric fleet operations usually fail not because chargers break, but because vehicles aren’t ready, and no one notices in time. If a driver starts his morning shift and finds his assigned bus only half-charged, the ops team has to rush to fix it by reassigning buses or changing the schedule. With a smart charge operations management system, these last-minute problems can be avoided.
Why is the charger software not enough?
When I talk to fleet operators about Tenix, I often hear the same question: “Do I really need this?” It’s usually followed by, “We already have software that comes with our chargers.”
Charger software shows if electricity is flowing. But that’s where it ends. It doesn’t know if the vehicle is actually charging or if it’s charging enough to meet the next route. Here, in this article, I want to lay out the difference between the Smart Charging Operations Management Software offered by Tenix and the basic Charge Management Software that comes with your charger.
1. Charge tools monitor hardware. Tenix manages operations.
Your charger software focuses on charger uptime and maintenance. It tells you when a unit is down. Tenix adds actionable insights, such as vehicle readiness. By tracking the State of Charge (SoC) of the buses, Tenix ensures the right vehicles are charged to the required levels for their planned routes by departure time, directly addressing fleet operational needs.
Tenix does more than show that charging is happening; it manages how and when it happens. The system takes into account routes, schedules, and charge targets. It automatically moves charging to cheaper hours, balances grid load, and makes sure vehicles are ready and in place, giving you the certainty that basic tools can’t provide.
2. Built-in tools react after something goes wrong. Tenix adjusts before it happens.
If grid load starts creeping up, Tenix slows non-critical sessions to avoid tripping the grid. If a bus won’t reach its required SoC before departure, you will receive an alert and can adjust. Then the entire charging plan will be automatically rearranged . You get alerts only when action is needed, not endless notifications that become noise and can start to be ignored.
This predictive approach means you don’t discover a problem at 5 a.m. when the first driver arrives, and it is already too late to get that bus ready to go out.
3. Power capacity is a fixed resource. Tenix makes the most of it.
Tenix uses load balancing and peak shaving to do more with what you have. By moving charging out of peak hours and spreading demand, operators can reduce their energy costs. Our clients have reported a significant reduction in peak-hour energy costs by as much as 40%, proving the economic advantage of implementing Tenix’s smart charging strategies.
One customer coordinating overnight charging for 120 buses used to trigger grid penalties several times a month. After implementing Tenix, peak demand remained entirely below contracted capacity. If you do not have fixed tariffs in place and have a dynamic pricing model, you can save even more with our live monitoring of energy prices and automated smart charging.
For a rigorous, bus-specific view of integrating route energy and depot charging, see this 2024 study in Nature.
4. Staff and time are your most valuable assets
Depot teams shouldn’t spend their shifts checking SoC or logging into five different charger portals. Tenix provides them with a single screen displaying key elements: fleet readiness, charger usage, and grid status. If something needs attention, they know exactly where to look.
We talk to operators who feel they need to have someone at the depot at night to check the charging status. With Tenix, you can put these resources to better use and sleep well knowing that operations will remain on schedule.
5. Tenix scales with your operation
Vendor-tied software locks you in, but Tenix is uniquely open. It connects with any charger, vehicle, or depot system. You can mix brands, add new depots, or expand your fleet without extra complexity. Tenix’s flexibility, a core differentiator, supports multi-depot and multi-vendor operations, giving you the freedom to tailor solutions for each depot’s needs instead of being constrained by a single vendor.
That flexibility is how operators grow without rebuilding their digital stack each time.
6. Battery health is more than a percentage
Seeing that a vehicle is 80% charged doesn’t tell you the real health of the battery. Tenix tracks how batteries wear down and their true capacity across your fleet. With this important data, operators can plan routes based on real performance, extend battery life, and schedule replacements more effectively. These features aren’t available in standard charger software.
For example, delaying a battery replacement by even two years can save hundreds of thousands of euros across a fleet, while preserving residual value through better lifecycle data.
Operators use this data to rotate vehicles or adjust duty cycles to extend battery life and protect asset value.
7. Turn spare capacity into value
Idle chargers are a wasted investment, and companies like First Bus in the UK are tackling this head-on by opening up their charging infrastructure to third parties. Tenix lets you securely share selected chargers, whitelist access, and track usage. That means you can safely open your depot to partners or subcontractors and generate new revenue from unused capacity. In Oslo, the public transport authority, Ruter, now includes depot sharing in its tenders. In the Netherlands, operators are using it to optimize capacity and support regional electrification. As more industries electrify and require access to the same grid, depot sharing will become part of a sustainable local ecosystem, turning underused assets into value.
For more on how shared depot charging models can balance operational priorities and create new revenue streams, see this 2024 study in Transportation Research Part D.
The bottom line? Tenix gives you full control
Tenix manages charging, grid load, and vehicle readiness as one system. It predicts, balances, and adjusts before problems occur. It connects across depots, chargers, and vehicles to give you one clear overview. If you’re ready to go beyond basic tracking and keep your fleet running smoothly, it’s time to act. Choose Tenix to make your operations simpler, reduce costs, and keep your fleet on schedule with confidence.
