Enerpac System Raises 280t Historic Windmill by 800mm
A 280-tonne historic grain windmill in the Netherlands has been raised by 800 mm using a synchronised Enerpac hydraulic lifting system as part of flood protection works along the River Waal. Dutch specialist contractor Bresser carried out the operation on…
A 280-tonne historic grain windmill in the Netherlands has been raised by 800 mm using a synchronised Enerpac hydraulic lifting system as part of flood protection works along the River Waal.
Dutch specialist contractor Bresser carried out the operation on the 250-year-old Waardenburg windmill, a 14-metre-high hexagonal tower mill located near Waardenburg Castle in West Betuwe.
The lift formed part of a dyke reinforcement project commissioned by Waterschap Rivierenland and executed by the Mekante Diek construction consortium. Raising the nearby dyke improved flood protection but risked restricting the wind flow required to operate the mill’s sails.
Before lifting began, Bresser excavated approximately 1.6 metres beneath the structure to expose its existing concrete platform and supporting piers. Eighteen new foundation piles were then installed and connected by a reinforced concrete ring beam designed to distribute the mill’s weight.
For the lift itself, Bresser deployed 12 double-acting Enerpac cylinders, each with a 50-tonne capacity. The cylinders were positioned on the new ring beam and controlled through an Enerpac EVO synchronised lifting system.
The system also allowed the team to preserve the mill’s existing slight tilt throughout the operation. Precise control of individual cylinder strokes kept the structure at its original angle, limiting stress on the historic masonry and internal machinery.
The 800 mm lift progressed at approximately 100 mm per hour.
Once the required elevation was reached, 18 steel pile sections were installed between the lower concrete beam and the mill’s concrete platform. The hydraulic cylinders were then removed and the space beneath the structure backfilled.
“Lifting a 250-year-old national monument as part of major civil flood protection works requires absolute control and reliability,” said Taco Bresser, Managing Director of Bresser.
The Waardenburg windmill now stands 800 mm higher, allowing it to continue operating as a working grain mill following completion of the dyke works.
