For Travelling Technician Ben Burford, jumping on a plane to travel overseas and across the World is nothing out of the ordinary. He has filled up numerous passports in his 20 years at Steriline as he ventures off to places all over the world.

In November, Ben’s travel plans looked a bit different as he made a quick trip closer to home, down the expressway to Morphettville Racecourse. With his extensive expertise in installing starting gates, he was able lead a team at Steriline to oversee the installation of ‘Racing SA’s new 20-stall Platinum Steriline Starting Gate. This project also served as a valuable learning experience for the welders and handymen at Steriline who manufacture the starting gates and equipment. It gave them a deeper understanding of the installation process, as well as insights into the structural design and safety features involved.

To see a video of the installation process of a Steriline starting gate, please click on the link below:
Steriline Starting Gates | Horse Racing Starting Stalls | Steriline Racing

After installing starting gates, Ben always provides thorough on-site training tailored for handlers and operators of the starting gates. The training is essential to ensuring a safe environment for everyone involved, this includes operators, handlers, jockeys and horses. By addressing best practices for gate operation and emphasizing safety protocols, the training helps to minimize risks and incidents. Topics covered in Ben’s training session includes recognizing and mitigating potential hazards and responding to emergency situations. Ben also teaches some simple procedures to assist in maintaining the equipment for many race days to come.

During Ben’s training session at Morphettville he was also able to highlight the safety features incorporated into Steriline’s Platinum Starting Gates, including additional padding, quieter start and most importantly the spring lock and wide-opening back gates which are specifically designed to provide a more inviting entry for horses, enabling a smoother and faster loading process. Given the unpredictable nature of horses, any solution that helps foster a calmer environment contributes to a safer experience for all involved.

Ben Dolan, Head of Business Development at ‘Steriline Racing’ States in ‘Racing SA’s article – New Barrier Gates for Morphettville • Racing SA; “From our perspective the safer back gate opening is the single most transformational benefit to the starting gates over the last 20 years, and we’ve found incidents have significantly reduced at the starting gates.”