ENDSEE, Germany: A new era has begun for drivers of electric cars. The first bk World opened last Friday in Endsee, Bavaria. By creating charging havens, this subsidiary of bk Group AG is revolutionizing long-distance travel by electric car.
For drivers of electric cars, charging time is mostly wasted time. It’s 20 to 30 minutes they have to spend consuming fast food in a remote car park, killing time on their mobile phone, enjoying the charms of service station bathrooms, writing emails on a precariously balanced laptop – and longing for the time to pass.
This is something that Gerold Wolfarth and Marc Arnold, the founders of bk World, want to change. The idea for bk World was born during a charging stop in the middle of the night, they recounted at the grand opening of the first bk World. “There had to be a better way – and we wanted it to be unique,” Wolfarth said.
Now, right at the Tesla Supercharger Park with its 20 rapid charge spots in Endsee, the first location has been opened: a lounge for drivers of electric cars that turns waiting time into quality time.
“The whole idea for bk World was conceived from the user perspective,” Arnold explained. “In other words, as the driver of an electric car, what is it that I really need during a charging break?”
bk World of course offers bathroom facilities, while a comfortable lounge area invites drivers to linger. But the concept is far more extensive. For instance, it makes extremely efficient use of the small footprint. Various products are dispensed in a fully automated way. The food that drivers can purchase on site is healthy, fresh, and low in sugar. When selecting the product portfolio, the planners deliberately avoided working with large corporations and chose instead to focus on keeping things regional and sustainable. Together with entrepreneur and investor Marcell Jansen, work is even going on to develop an innovative and healthy food portfolio especially for bk World.
Small office areas for business meetings, a children’s play area to entertain the little ones, and green surroundings turn a necessary stay into a welcome break.
A unique spatial concept
bk World is made up of what are known as Qubes – modular, transportable room elements that can be combined in a number of ways to meet a wide variety of space requirements on site. When a charging facility grows, its bk World can grow with it. Qubes can be assembled, disassembled, and relocated in a very short time. The smallest version, with a lounge area and bathroom Qube, takes up around 50 square metres – but there is no upper size limit to bk World. This reduces material waste and makes demolitions a thing of the past.
As the locations expand, the portfolio of regional specialities will continue to grow. In Endsee, visitors to the charging park will find delicacies including Franconian wines, award-winning chocolates, and exceptional cooking oils. Each bk World location will offer a maximum of 80 selected products from the surrounding region, making every bk World unique. It is also possible to purchase regional products in the bk World online shop.
bk World is climate positive over its lifetime. That means it offsets more CO2 emissions than it causes. In addition, the bk World Qubes feature a sustainable insulating material that is not only ecological, but also has properties that make a positive impact on the bk World’s carbon footprint: the Qubes are designed to withstand all weather conditions. From sweltering heat in southern Europe to extreme cold in the north – all visitors to bk World will experience the same climate. Eelectrical consumers in each bk World draw their power from the on-site PV system on the roofs of the Qubes. – CNW