One of Australia’s oldest horse racing venues, the iconic Ascot Racecourse in Perth WA, has recently had a major refurbishment to the interiors of the grandstand members’ facilities to move them into the 21st century and cater for a more contemporary patronage. The refurbishment needed to be sensitive to the old building but give visitors a sense of glamour through the use of aesthetic materials which would create a wow factor.

The designers, Webster+Allan specified SUPAWOOD products as their range offered perfect lining solutions to achieve the unique design concept. The versatile finish options allowed them to match to other elements being used. Supawood was able to advise alternative finishes to fit within the client’s budget.

For the open lounge area of the main Members’ Floor, Supaslat MAXI BEAM has been used to form interesting crisscrossing chunky features on the ceiling. These shapes have been partially mirrored on the walls and in some places they form open screens to create a flowing connection through to more intimate lounge areas. The light weight of Maxi Beam made these effects easy to achieve.

To minimise cost, an economical Light Tasmanian Oak laminate has been chosen. The concept timber finish complements the furnishings without compromising the effect of heavy timber beams. Integrated lighting and other services have been placed between the beams.

In the Directors’ lounge and other smaller areas, individual SUPACOUSTIC slotted acoustic panels have been used on the ceilings to address noise reverberation. These have been given an economical Light Tasmanian concept veneer finish to complement the beams in the main lounge. They appear to float overhead, the effect achieved by SUPAWOOD butt joining the panels with 100mm inset black returns.

This is what the designers said:

Our design practice specified Supawood Maxi Beam baffles on the Perth Racing Ascot project. The Supawood team were extremely efficient when handling our design queries and turning around samples. The end result was fantastic and we wouldn’t hesitate to specify this product again.

Image: Supaslat MAXI BEAM has been used to form interesting crisscrossing chunky features on the ceiling