01 · The challenge
The previous generation housing was cracking at the battery door in cold-weather drops, and returns were eroding margin and reputation in a category where trust is everything.
02 · What we did
- 01
Reproduced the failure in our thermal chamber and drop rig within the first week, then instrumented it with high-speed video.
- 02
Moved to a glass-filled PC/PBT blend with a redesigned latch geometry and a captive over-molded seal.
- 03
Turned seven housing revisions in machined and SLS prototypes, each drop-tested cold-soaked at -30 °C.
- 04
Ran a two-week field trial with patrollers at a Colorado ski area before tooling release.
03 · The outcome
The new housing passed 1.5 m cold drops on all faces and edges with zero cracks. Field returns for the housing dropped by roughly a third in the first season after launch.
“Revisions that took a month elsewhere took four days.”