After five years of development and thousands of test hours in extreme conditions, the first Dramis D55T trucks from Quebec’s Simard Suspensions are on their way to the Chilean salt mines. The unique off-road truck is also legal on the road, unloaded.

A total of seven trucks will join the Excon Construcciòn fleet, one of the biggest ore transportation companies in South America. With a payload of 55 metric tonnes (60 imperial tons), twice the capacity of the company’s existing trucks, Excon will be able to greatly increase productivity.

The Dramis also operates faster, says Simard. With an active hydraulic suspension and gear ratios that enable travel at up to 90 km/h, it has the capacity to do more cycles than articulated or rigid trucks.

The low cost per ton of the Dramis D55T means profitability. Built on a class 8 vocational truck chassis, its purchase price is said to be less than its competition, and its maintenance does not require a specialized technician. Its fuel consumption is between 15 and 20 liters/hour depending on the configuration.

Another advantage compared to its competition is that the Dramis can legally run, unloaded, on public roads. Thus it can move from site to site without requiring a trailer or special permits.

Totally assembled in Québec, the Dramis is available in many configurations and adaptable on all vocational commercial trucks in North America such as Mack/Volvo, Kenworth/Peterbilt, Freightliner/Western Star, and soon the new International HX.

See the Dramis in video action here.

Simard Suspensions, incidentally, is no newcomer. It’s been around since 1935.