About Us
S.A.F.E. - Association for the Promotion of Research and Consumer Protection in the Field of Electromobility
S.A.F.E. is an association for the promotion of research and consumer protection in the field of electromobility. It was founded in May 2019 by companies from the electromobility sector with the aim of developing a low-cost software solution that meets the legal requirements of the German Measurement and Calibration Act (MessEG) and makes it possible to permanently store and retrieve the data generated for the billing of charging processes in a tamper-proof manner, so that the accuracy of the billing can be subsequently verified by the stakeholders concerned. The aim is to create a uniform standard, maintain it in the long term and thus ensure consumer protection in the long term.
For this purpose, the so-called transparency software was developed for S.A.F.E.. Since 01.11.2019, S.A.F.E. is the owner of the exclusive usage rights to this software. The transparency software was tested by VDE and certified for the first time with test report dated 16.04.2019 - 5024855-1470-0001/254265 TL4/shf. Later releases were also certified.
The source code and the documentation of all components of the transparency software were disclosed by the association on 01.01.2020. The terms of use stipulate that the transparency software and the releases are exclusively made available to members of S.A.F.E. in the current release form in order to use them for obtaining an inspection certificate. Transfer by members to third parties is excluded.
Today, S.A.F.E. has over 100 members from different areas of electromobility, in particular manufacturers of charging systems and components subject to certification according to the MessEG and MessEV, CPOs and EMPs.
S.A.F.E. is committed to ensuring that regulations are also adopted in other European countries, at European level and in non-European countries, which protect consumers from erroneous, in particular manipulated, invoicing of charging processes and enable the invoices to be checked.
Further details can be found in the Articles of Association or in the declaration of membership and are regulated in the licence agreement.
Executive Board
Dipl.-Wirt.-Ing. Hauke Hinrichs
First Chairman
SMATRICS GmbH & Co KG
Managing Director / CEO
Dr. Andreas Zumschlinge
Second Chairman
Parkstrom GmbH
Managing Director / Legal
Dr. Stefan Schlutius
Treasurer
ABL GmbH
Managing Director
Dipl.-Ing. Philipp Senoner
Associate
Alpitronic GmbH
Managing Director
Dipl.-Ing. Christoph Lübke
Associate
MENNEKES Elektrotechnik
Product Management eMobility
M.Sc. Florian Tepper
Associate
CUBOS
Project Manager Development Charging Infrastructure
Dipl.-Wirt.-Ing. Andreas Prüfling
Associate
Isabellenhütte Heusler GmbH & Co. KG
Member of the Executive Board
Dipl.-Ing. Kor Meelker
Associate
Chargepoint
Director, Global Standards
Office
Working groups
Die Technik AG
The transparency software is under constant development, be it due to regulatory requirements or member requests. These questions and possible solutions are discussed in the plenum of all interested members in the S.A.F.E. technical working group. Here, all relevant technical topics are discussed and solutions are developed.
The meetings of the technical working group take place once or twice a year. Details of individual issues are then worked out in the sub-working groups (UAGs). These are open to all interested members. The sub-groups meet regularly in web meetings organised by S.A.F.E..
UAG Roaming and Market Communications
The UAG Roaming discusses and develops solutions to specific issues in the application of calibration law in EV roaming networks. Working papers are prepared that represent the common understanding of the members in order to enable the most harmonised implementation possible in the field. The working papers are published on the homepage.
UAG OCMF
The Open Charge Metering Format (OCMF) is an independent and generally usable data format for recording and describing meter readings from charging stations that are relevant under calibration law. The UAG OCMF is continuously developing the OCMF to meet the regulatory requirements of calibration law. The results are made available to all members via GitHub and flow into the further development of the transparency software.
UAG Payment Terminal
The UAG Payment Terminal deals with the technical processing of the payment options of the ad hoc charging processes and the compliance of charging with calibration law in the context of the implementation of the transparency software. The results of the work are taken into account in the further development of the transparency software and form the basis of the association's strategic positioning in this specialist issue.
Organogram
Executive Board (authorised to represent)
1st Chairman
2nd Chairman
Treasurer
Executive Board (associates)
Associate
Associate
Associate
Associate
Associate
Administrative office
Administration
Working groups
Activities
In addition to the association's activities in the working groups, S.A.F.E. participates in discussions on legislative projects and new calibration law and technical requirements for charging infrastructure.
If necessary and with the consent of the general meeting, S.A.F.E. also takes on the clarification of relevant legal questions concerning the transparency software, such as the question of whether the use of the software solution by the members of the association could violate the property rights of third parties.
A general meeting is held at least once a year to inform members about past activities and to outline plans for the coming months.
International
The German regulation on consumer protection in measurement and calibration law is so far unique in its form worldwide. The need for protection against data manipulation and the interest in verifiability of charging current accounts is given everywhere where electricity is sold to e-vehicle drivers. S.A.F.E. is therefore strongly committed to ensuring that consumer protection against data falsification is also taken into account outside Germany. S.A.F.E.'s goal is the creation of a uniform European regulation that provides for a minimum level of protection and the recognition of the regulation of other member states that meet these requirements. In addition, the association also works to raise awareness of the need for protection in countries outside Europe where electromobility has taken hold.
In the meantime, Austria has issued its own protection regulations based on the German requirements, which will be mandatory from 01.01.2026. A solution to the issue is being discussed in other countries.
Statutes
You can download the statutes of S.A.F.E. e.V. here.