As you drive into Carrières du Hainaut, you’ll be immediately struck by the vast expanse of the site, covering no less than 300 hectares. Founded in 1888 in Soignies, Carrières du Hainaut operates Europe’s largest ornamental stone quarry and holds the world’s largest reserve of Belgian blue stone (petit granit). The company employs 320 staff, who extract more than 100,000 m³ of stone per year. ‘Hainaut blue stone is used in iconic monuments — including the renovation of the Notre Dame de Paris, Penn Station and the Madison Square Garden area in New York,’ says CEO Chris Vermorken.
No two blocks of stone are alike, and the Microsoft Dynamics AX system needed replacing. CEO Chris Vermorken opted for IFS Cloud, the standard used by its holding company, SigmaRoc. The roll-out now covers production, stock management, purchasing, sales, finance and logistics; the HR module is due to follow at a later stage. The entire project — from decision-making to going live — was completed in just one year, with an in-house IT team of only three people, whilst maintaining full-scale industrial operations. Thanks to the implementation of IFS Cloud, we are taking a giant leap forward, fully embracing digitalisation.
The most important aspect, however, was the implementation of a private 5G network by Citymesh. After all, the site, which extends to a depth of 125 metres, lacked strong coverage. The project, representing an investment of 1,200,000 euros, was officially inaugurated in May 2026.
This solution gives an unprecedented stock granularity in the sector: as each item is unique, the available data now enables the company to serve both major international clients ordering by the container and artisan stonemasons turning up at the quarry without an appointment. Accelerated and consolidated reporting to the SigmaRoc Group, improving management visibility and the quality of financial and operational reporting. And, of course, real-time operational communication between field teams and management, with a direct impact on safety response times at an open-cast industrial site of such staggering dimensions.
Incidentally, there is also an autonomous wheel loader operating on site in the framework of a cutting-edge pilot project in AI-driven production, whilst the site already generates 40 per cent of its energy from renewable sources. ‘The aim is to eventually reach 100 per cent’, says Chris Vermorken.
