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Belmont Historical Society

Petitions by the Belmont Historical Society, led by Peg Parkin, saved the kilns, and in 2020, the McGowan Government approved funding to restore aspects of the site in recognition of its heritage value to the state.

Sculpture of Sir Lance Brisbane

On a warm December night in 2020, a six-metre-tall brick sculpture of Sir Lance Brisbane mysteriously appeared on the site. The guerilla artist remains unknown.

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The site began the Bristile building empire, which still supplies Perth homes to this day.

Belmont Historical Society

Petitions by the Belmont Historical Society, led by Peg Parkin, saved the kilns, and in 2020, the McGowan Government approved funding to restore aspects of the site in recognition of its heritage value to the state.

Sculpture of Sir Lance Brisbane

On a warm December night in 2020, a six-metre-tall brick sculpture of Sir Lance Brisbane mysteriously appeared on the site. The guerilla artist remains unknown.

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The site began the Bristile building empire, which still supplies Perth homes to this day.
PROJECT TIMELINE
1930s

BAKED INTO PERTH HISTORY

A pottery works was established on Grandstand Road in 1910, initially producing jars and bottles. By 1930, the site had two kilns for building supplies. After two new kilns were added in 1934, the business became H L Brisbane & Wunderlich Ltd in 1938.

PROJECT TIMELINE
1950-70s

EXPANDING PRODUCTION

In the 50s, the construction of two new Kilns and stacks expanded the site as pipe and tile factories. The ‘Earthenware Sewerage Pipe Factory' was opened by Premier Sir Charles Court in December 1963. A ‘Bickley” kiln was added to make smaller diameter pipes for housing estate developers. In 1978, the second plant was converted to roof tile production.

PROJECT TIMELINE
1980s

CLOSURE

Bristile's clay pipe division closed in 1982 due to the popularity of PVC pipes. Although the site has been unused since, petitions by the Belmont Historical Society led to state government funding in 2020 to restore the kilns and recognise the site's heritage value.

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Belmont Historical Society

Petitions by the Belmont Historical Society, led by Peg Parkin, saved the kilns, and in 2020, the McGowan Government approved funding to restore aspects of the site in recognition of its heritage value to the state.

Sculpture of Sir Lance Brisbane

On a warm December night in 2020, a six-metre-tall brick sculpture of Sir Lance Brisbane mysteriously appeared on the site. The guerilla artist remains unknown.

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A DELICATE BALANCE

When Colgan was awarded the contract for this major conservation project, the eight downdraught 'beehive' kilns and five large chimneys were in a terrible state of disrepair. Much of the mortar had fretted away leaving the structures unstable and unsafe.
The vast majority of brickwork needed repointing, including inside the chimneys, using traditional lime mortars. Multiple metal bands around the kilns were removed, refurbished where possible, or replaced if necessary and reinstate for the structural integrity of the kilns in the event of an earthquake.
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We then installed large screw piles to each of the 5 chimneys. They were offset from each corner and connected to new mass concrete footings that were sequentially installed under each corner of the chimneys.

The delicate work required excavating under each corner one by one, shoring the excavation, dewatering in clay conditions, and daily monitoring for movement of the chimney—movement up to 180mm was sometimes measured.

Long-time Colgan boilermaker, Wes Atkinson, who only retired in 2024 at the age of 85, remembers serving his apprenticeship at the site, including many conversations on site with Chairman H Brisbane.
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The Ascot Kilns was Wes's last project for Colgan Industries, a close working relationship that had lasted over 40 years.
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A large structural metal cap was placed on the top of each chimney, with eight 40mm threaded rods installed to the mass concrete footings below, post-tensioned for earthquake resilience.

The old shed over the beehive kilns was removed and a new steel framed shed with metal roofing erected. The site also had extensive site remediation carried out including the removal of both bonded and friable asbestos.

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AWARDS & RECOGNITON

2024

WA Heritage - Commendation Award: Conservation or Adaptive Reuse of a State Registered Place

Project Contributors
Architects

Hocking Heritage Architects

Structural Engineer

JV Atelier

Products

Helifix – Crack Stitching
St Astier NHL Lime
SRG structural threaded rods