Southco Sealed Lever Latch

The Southco latch was specified as a lever latch to be used on the outside storage doors of recreational vehicles. Bresslergroup's demographic research defined that over 60% of RV users were of retirement age or older. As a result this project was redefined as a Universal Design project - design for as broad a range of user abilities as possible.

Imagine
The profile of the latch was designed flush to prevent snagging of clothing and the raised circular lump can be easily felt as a push location even in the dark. Once pushed the latch springs open providing a handle for the user.

Implement
Bresslergroup handled the aesthetic design as well as engineering refinements to the latching mechanism which enabled smooth and reliable performance.

Impact
This latch design has been an extraordinary success for both Bresslergroup and Southco. The design won an Industrial Design Excellence Award, a Hanover Fair IF Award and a Japanese "G" Mark Award. The unit has exceeded its initial 2500 units per year sales expectation by selling nearly 100,000 units per year since its introduction. After ten years on the market, the latch is still a top five seller across Southco's complete product line, andhas been used in other transportation products, electronics enclosures, and many more unforeseen applications.