In a world that is increasingly demanding innovative energy solutions, Clean Energy (CE) is working hard to bring clean energy options to the fueling marketplace. Among the company’s offerings are liquid natural gas (LNG) and renewable natural gas (RNG), a cutting-edge method that transforms methane from dairy farm manure or landfills into biogas indistinguishable from conventional natural gas, of which CEF is the only major provider in North America. CE customers benefit from greater gas supply, farms benefit from an additional source of income and risk mitigation, and the environment benefits from the 300% reduction in emissions compared to diesel. Through their hard work to bring RNG and other clean energy sources to more than 600 fueling stations across the U.S. and Canada – and to clients like Amazon, UPS, and large public transport networks – CE has become a leader in sustainability.
But running such a widespread and unique network can bring significant challenges, especially in Canada where all sites are unattended. Without staff on-site to troubleshoot, CE needed a way to monitor their stations and support customers remotely without compromising reliability. “We were looking for an EMV-compliant POS [point of sale] that could also give us real-time visibility,” explained Hayden Robbins, Technical Support Supervisor at Clean Energy. “Our sites don’t have convenience stores, so our needs are different.”
That solution was DX Fleet®, paired with FSC3000® fuel site controllers and Petro Vend® 300E fuel island terminals. DX Fleet gives CE’s support team the ability to log in remotely, review transactions, check live site status, and quickly dispatch technicians. With an intuitive user interface that allows any technician to quickly monitor sites with ease, DX Fleet not only brought value to CE through its remote monitoring and payment capabilities, but its ease of access. “Being able to see that real-time, with it being color-coded… The dashboard graphics really make a difference for those of us who are visual learners,” Robbins said.
Intuitive graphics also enabled fast training for their team. Robbins’ five-person Canadian support team quickly mastered the portal without the need for certifications or lengthy training. YouTube tutorials for the program provided by DFS were helpful, she noted, along with DFS’ customer success open office hours, where customers can drop in to troubleshoot issues, ask questions, and receive help from trusted DFS customer success representatives and each other. “Knowledge is power,” Robbins noted. “Those office hours have been invaluable.”
Even complex troubleshooting is handled remotely, with transaction logs and termination codes helping the team identify and quickly resolve problems. “We were able to find a pretty significant issue that was going on and resolve it using [termination codes] that [DFS] provides through DX Fleet and its transaction information”, emphasized Robbins. Reliability, essential for a remote operation like CE, has also improved. Stations only go offline during planned maintenance, minimizing disruption for customers.
Now with innovative solutions to keep customers energized and reliable systems in place, Clean Energy is expanding, adding new stations across North America and introducing RNG to more fleets. The team is even beginning to see the fruits of their work out in their own communities. “Driving home from the gym today, I saw a street sweeper that uses CNG, that we fuel… That’s something I’ve always been proud of, working for Clean Energy.” And with DX Fleet, their support team has the tools they need to scale with confidence. “The possibilities are endless,” says Robbins. The partnership helps CE stay focused on what matters most: reliably powering its customers with cleaner, more sustainable energy.
