In the UNESCO World Heritage site of Bruges’ old town, heritage building restoration company Heritage Builders selected the XG30U mini excavator for a reinforcement project on a 16th-century canal house, setting a new standard in protective construction.
“On the narrow cobblestone streets, less than 2.5 meters wide, we needed equipment that could perform deep excavation work without causing vibrations to the foundations of the historic buildings,” explained Lucas De Vries, the project’s chief engineer. “The XG30U’s low-noise hydraulic system and three-stage vibration damping system perfectly met our stringent requirements, and its 360-degree all-round monitoring system ensured safe operation in blind spots.”
This 3-ton machine, specially customized by XGMA for the Benelux market, incorporates several protective construction technologies: a micro-vibration mode for working near masonry structures, rubber tracks adapted to cobblestone surfaces, and a telescopic boom designed for narrow European spaces. During the three-month construction period, the equipment successfully completed a 4.5-meter deep basement expansion project, and real-time monitoring data of surrounding historical buildings showed that vibration levels consistently remained below protection standards.
The project has been included in the Flanders regional heritage protection case study database, and the “precision engineering capabilities” demonstrated by the XGMA equipment are creating a demonstrative effect in the field of historical city renovation in Europe. Based on this successful collaboration, Heritage Builders has added the XG30U to its standard equipment list and will participate in a historical building restoration seminar organized by SHALKA Europe.
