Case Minotaur Groundbreaker Roadshow Comes to Salt Lake

Tue January 10, 2023
CEG

The Case Minotaur Groundbreaker Roadshow, making its way across the United States, made a stop at Century Equipment located in Salt Lake City on Nov. 10, 2022.

To introduce the Minotaur at Century Equipment, customers were invited to get in the cab and see the capabilities and versatility that the Minotaur offers. Customers were able to use the Leica guided system for moving rock and rough grading. Century also provided an area where customers could operate the Minotaur in the mud. Customers noted that "this cut, it doesn't just push material — it truly acts like a dozer."

What makes the Minotaur unique is its first in its class performance, as it operates like a full-size dozer, but in a compact design. And the name, Minotaur — part man/part beast — applies in the name of this piece of equipment: part dozer, part loader, part beast.

This is a whole new product category, not just in the world of Case, but across the board with all manufacturers. It is one of the most versatile compact machines ever built, according to Case, out-pushing and out-loading machines of its size, while providing the precision and productivity the industry craves. It is incredibly versatile and offers the best of both worlds.

Another unique addition on the Minotaur is the ripper system that comes with the machine. The Minotaur also comes Leica ready for its guidance system.

Mitch Blake, territory sales manager of Case, has "never been more excited about a product in his 25 years with Case. The Minotaur is perfect for someone wanting the versatility of two different machines but doesn't want to be hauling both. So, for instance, you can put this and a bucket on a trailer and off you go. This is still a big machine and requires at least a 1- ton truck with a deck over trailer."

The Minotaur comes in at 18,000 lbs. (9 tons).

"It would be perfect for the contractor that did landscaping or dug basements; it's perfect for grading, heavy pushing or fine grading," said Blake.

Minotaur is unique because it looks like a compact track loader or a skid steer with tracks.

"It was built first and foremost to be a dozer, the ripper provides easier dozing and earth-moving," said Blake. "This takes the components of a true dozer that has a C frame and it couples up underneath the pan and hydraulically locks it in to place where it should be. The dozer blade is the same dozer blade used on the 650 M."

This Minotaur has 29 patents and has been in development for six years. According to Blake, "This frame was never intended to have wheels; it was always going to have a track. It lends itself to the Case 2050 size dozer and it has Case dozer DNA throughout the entire machine. Someone will get in it and say, yes, this is a Case."

If you look inside the cab, the set-up is traditional paddle controls, different from a normal CTL. The Minotaur runs the same as other dozers. Users can change ISO pattern to dozer mode, where it remaps the entire hydraulic, electrical and engine specs to be just like a dozer. It is incredibly versatile — as it can be used for road and bridge cleanup or dozing in very small intricate areas, it would also be great for slope work, a farm cleaning out ponds or trimming up roads, according to Case.

Blake is proud of the work that Case has done on creating the Minotaur.

"Roughly 10,000 hours of testing in the field have gone into its development which is mostly unheard of today," he said. "This created a new class; it is unique and new to everyone."

Doug Buddell, Salt Lake City branch manager of Century Equipment, knows the perfect customer and the niche this will provide.

"It's perfect for the contractor that does grading and especially fine grading," Buddell said. He expects that the laser guide is "ideal for this type of work as it can get within 1/16 of an inch, which makes it perfect to level out gravel for final grade. Also, by simply dropping the blade and the lasers, it can be used as a track loader, so they have multiple applications with one machine. The versatility is what really sets the Minotaur apart from other classes of equipment."

Century Equipment has nine locations including Salt Lake City, Utah; Springville, Utah; Logan, Utah; Cedar City, Utah; Durango, Colo.; Grand Junction, Colo.; Rock Springs, Wyo.; Albuquerque, N.M.; and Dyersburg, Tenn.

For more information, visit https://www.centuryequipment.com.

For the full Groundbreaker Roadshow tour schedule, visit CaseCE.com/Roadshow.

This story also appears on Construction Equipment Guide.