Tesla speeds Supercharger installations up with new foundation that skips concrete

Tesla will be speeding up its charging station buildout and Supercharger pile repairs or installation with a new stall foundation solution.

The Prefabricated Supercharger Units (PSU) concept that it used until now involved shipping prefab piles with all the electrical wiring ready on a common concrete slab.

The PSU solution allowed it to build Supercharger stations in days instead of weeks, and up to 70% cheaper than the competition, which earned it many a federal or state contract for public charging infrastructure subsidies.

Now, however, it needs to build Supercharger stations a lot faster, because, as Tesla's Max de Zegher puts it, EV charging infrastructure needs to be 30x larger. This is why Tesla has now created a new Supercharger stall installation or replacement method that doesn't involve pouring concrete for the foundation, or shipping prefab units from its Buffalo, NY factory.

The new Supercharger pile foundation is simply a polypropylene housing that a single person can place in a dugout, then weigh down with the resulting gravel. The concept "reduces CO₂ footprint, is faster, and reduces cost," tips de Zegher.

This new Supercharger installation method may also allow for quicker replacements of a damaged pile. Elon Musk's political activism has brought on an increasing rate of arsons or vandalism against its vehicles, charging stations, or showrooms.

Tesla vowed to replace the torched Supercharger stations in less than 48 hours after they've been set on fire or damaged in other ways, and has so far succeeded in doing so.

The new Supercharger foundation polypropylene housing that is filled with gravel found on site may thus come in handy not only for new installations, but for pile repairs or replacements, too, depending on the extent of the damage to Tesla's charging stations.

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