3,000 chargers, one night: switching CMS platforms without leaving drivers stranded

An electricity provider operates a public network of about 3,000 charging stations. Its platform (Charging Management System or CMS),  no longer allowed it to evolve its mobile app at the pace of its ambitions. AXSO migrated the chargers, accounts and data in a single night, while drivers kept charging with their network member card.

Project type: Migration of a charging network to the AXSO platform

Sector: Electricity distribution and electric mobility

Scale: About 3,000 Level 2 and DC fast chargers, province-wide

Platform replaced: A charger manufacturer's integrated solution (mobile app and management portal)

Cutover window: About 6 hours, overnight, including about 3 hours of data migration

Impact on drivers: Charging maintained with member cards; mobile app paused during the migration

Context

The client is an electricity provider that operates a public charging network of about 3,000 stations across the province. The network combines Level 2 chargers and DC fast chargers, many of them serving major highway corridors.

Its charger supplier also provided the software: the mobile app used by members and the network management portal. A convenient setup at first, but one that was tightly tied to the supplier's own equipment.

The real problem

The mobile app no longer met the client's needs. The client wanted to launch commercial offers, in-app displays for its own marketing, or a built-in trip planner. The existing platform didn't allow it.

The client also had little say in how the portal and app evolved, and the closed environment limited support for chargers using the open OCPP protocol.

So the challenge wasn't just switching tools. It was about taking back control of how its own platform evolves.

The pressure

Switching platforms on a live network carries an obvious risk: service disruption. DC fast chargers are especially sensitive, since drivers rely on them to travel along major highways.

The second challenge was the data: exporting it from the old platform, transferring it and interpreting it correctly, despite whatever might have changed since the last export. How long this step would take was the main unknown.

The solution

AXSO and the client worked as one team, with a single goal: making the migration as predictable as possible.

Prepare: obtain the data, build the migration scripts and validate the OCPP and OCPI integrations, including for chargers using the former supplier's proprietary protocol.

Test: several full rehearsals, chargers tested one by one on each protocol, and pilot accounts migrated into a test version of the app to check wallets, accounts, session starts and charging cards.

Protect drivers: card-based charging maintained, a maintenance page in the app, advance communications to limit highway trips, and a cutover scheduled outside peak hours.

Plan for the worst: a rollback plan, with restoration from the backup kept by the former supplier.

Each phase also included contingency buffers.

The rollout

The cutover began in the evening, around 10 p.m., and wrapped up around 4 a.m. Within that roughly 6-hour window, the data migration itself took about 3 hours.

OCPP-compatible chargers were redirected to AXSO's servers, then restarted. The former supplier's fast chargers were first connected server-to-server, then connected directly once they moved to OCPP.

One unexpected issue came up, outside the critical path: the network's new website, entrusted to an outside vendor, wasn't delivered on time. AXSO took over the deployment and put the site live before the window opened. The data migration took a little longer than planned, but the buffers absorbed the gap.

The rollback plan was never needed. Round-the-clock monitoring then made it possible to fix anomalies as they came up during the first few days.

The results

Continuity: card-based charging maintained throughout the cutover

Limited disruption: only the mobile app was paused, with a maintenance page and advance notice

Speed: cutover completed in one night, including about 3 hours of data migration

Predictability: schedule met thanks to the buffers built into each phase

Safety: a rollback plan ready to go, and never used

Autonomy: an app and portal the client can evolve according to its own programs

What the client tells us: a strong sense of pride in operating in an environment that better fits its needs and business aspirations, and communication rated excellent from start to finish.

“Migrating a network this size is first and foremost about protecting drivers. We had tested every step over and over and prepared a rollback plan. During the migration, the stations stayed accessible with member cards. The next morning, the client finally had a platform that matched its business aspirations.”

Kevin Martel, Director of Operations, AXSO

AXSO · axso.io

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