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Lifting the Load Together RufDiamond Ltd. Taps Cambrian R&D to make its Fat Truck More Functional

Feb 13, 2024

Pictured with the Fat Truck in the Cambrian R&D lab are (Ieft to right): Steven Gravel, general manager, Centre for Smart Mining, Cambrian R&D; Patrick Galipeau-Belair, mechanical engineer, Cambrian R&D; Daryl Adams, president, RufDiamond.

SUDBURY – RufDiamond Ltd.’s Fat Truck can go just about anywhere.

But when it comes to off-loading this off-road specialty vehicle, RufDiamond has turned to Cambrian R&D to fork over a creative solution.

RufDiamond has partnered with Cambrian R&D to design and custom-build a portable modular lifting platform for the Fat Truck.

“The Fat Truck is built specifically for extreme off-road environments for such tasks as mining exploration, remote hydro work and even humanitarian and military use,” explains Daryl Adams, president of RufDiamond. “The Fat Truck is often hauling heavy loads of supplies and equipment, but you can’t get forklifts into these areas, so we’ve turned to Cambrian R&D to design and build a portable lifting system than can be mounted on the Fat Truck. We’re just amazed by what the team at Cambrian R&D can do. This will add so much to the Fat Truck’s capabilities, off-road or on a job site.”

The custom lifting platform designed by Cambrian R&D will be used on the Fat Truck model that includes an additional pod. The lifting platform will have the automated capability to remove itself from the rear of the vehicle and be lowered to the ground, allowing Fat Truck users to swap out pods, from offices to command centres, without the need for external lifting equipment.

“We can’t wait to get started on this project, because we’re building a one-of-a-kind, customized system for a very unique vehicle,” explains Dr. Mike Commito, director of Cambrian R&D. “We love it when companies partner with us to tackle real-world challenges like this, and it is happening more often. Besides, who wouldn’t want to work on a truck like this!”

Cambrian R&D is the applied research division of Cambrian College, helping industry partners in such fields as mining, heavy industry, health sciences, agriculture and food production, and environmental rehabilitation.

Learn more at https://cambriancollege.ca/rd/.

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