At ConExpo 2020 Case followed its unveiling of a fully-electric backhoe with the introduction of the DL550B, a machine that represents an entirely new machine category—the compact dozer loader—and one that has been several years in the making under the code name Project Minotaur.
The DL550B isn’t just a compact track loader equipped with a dozer blade. From the undercarriage to a chassis-integrated C-frame, to full machine control support, it was designed to be a true two-in-one machine, capable of both heavy dozing and loading tasks.
Check out our full coverage in the video below along with footage of the DL550B in action. Or if you prefer text, read on below.
The DL550B traces its origins back to ConExpo 2017. At that show, Case introduced a prototype it was affectionately calling Project Minotaur, a reference to the monster from Greek mythology that was part man, part bull. Or in the case of Case’s monster, part compact track loader, part bulldozer.
The model name for that original Minotaur prototype was the DL450 a nod to Case’s former 450 dozer. It was created by taking the base frame of a vertical-lift TV380 CTL that was then married with a radial-lift loader arm design similar to that of the former Case 465 skid steer.
That prototype concept created a huge amount of buzz at ConExpo 2017. The production machine unveiled at ConExpo 2020, however, is a very different beast.
