Bunbury Trotting Complex Upgrade - Thompson McRobert Edgeloe (TME) - now Calibre

Project Summary

The $1.36 million redevelopment of the Bunbury Trotting Complex in Western Australia was completed by Thompson McRobert Edgeloe (TME). TME (later acquired by Calibre Group) is a small multidisciplinary consultancy based in the south-west of Western Australia. They specialise in Land Development and Urban Infrastructure and more recently have entered into the design of harness racing tracks.

With the completion of this facility, Bunbury now has a harness racing track to rival any in Australia, a track that is technically the fastest track in Australia and ranks with the best in the world.

This project was undertaken with ‘unbridled’ passion by TME Director of Engineering Wayne Edgeloe, and the result is one of which the company and the Bunbury Trotting Club are extremely proud.

The Challenge

The facility upgrade involved a total rebuild of the existing 800-metre track and creation of a new World Class 960 Metre track. In conjunction with the upgrade, the opportunity was taken to completely rationalise the stable complex and bring together the previously scattered facilities around the track.

New stables, washdown bays, urinals, swab rooms, parade area, public viewing areas, and judges/TV broadcast/stewards facilities were built. The focus of the final development was not only to provide new facilities but also to ensure the spectacle for the public was maximised and to ensure the long-term survival of the harness racing industry in the Region.

The previous sub-standard lighting was also increased five-fold to ensure that TV standard broadcasts could be achieved. The power supply to the site and previous substandard internal electrical systems were also upgraded and reinforced.

With this new world-class track, the Bunbury Club are now hopeful of gaining the rights to hold the second set of the heats of the 2004 Inter-Dominions, the peak harness racing event in Australia and New Zealand. This would bring an international focus on the local community and would be a boon for harness racing in the South West.

Prior to commencing the design of the new track, TME Director Wayne Edgeloe undertook extensive research that included inspections of key tracks in Victoria. The final design solution developed is one on which fair and even racing is possible with the added benefit of fast times.

The camber/ radius/ spiral curve/ transition combinations have also combined to produce a track which is optimised to reduce the stress experienced by horses racing on the track.

The Solution

The project was fully modelled using 12d Model, enabling the complex combinations of geometry in the project to be readily optimised. The digital model output from 12d was also then given to the contractor to enable the construction to the 5mm tolerance on the finished surface.

The digital model from 12d was also exported to 3D Studio Viz to construct digital images and to produce a fully rendered digital movie of the trotting complex. Transfer between the models was readily achieved and enabled a high quality presentation to be produced in a very short time.

The Result

Since completion of this project, TME has been asked to investigate a new harness racing facility for York and an upgrade of the current facilities at Byford Trotting Complex. TME has also prepared concept plans for the Western Australian Trotting Association for the possible expansion of the Gloucester Park Facility in Perth from an 800-metre track to 960 metres.

TME has also recently been engaged by Harness Racing Victoria to design and oversee the construction of a new world class 1000 metre track at Terang in regional Victoria. The project was designed and modelled in 12d and construction began in October 2002 with completion expected by March 2003.

The feedback on the track from users is best reflected in the comments from leading Bunbury trainer Andrew DeCampo when he stated to the press, “It's brilliant, mate, absolutely brilliant!”