Supercars team BJR taps Extranet Systems for racing edge

Supercars motorsport team Brad Jones Racing (BJR) has engaged IT infrastructure consultancy Extranet Systems to optimise its technology and allow the team to concentrate on its core business of building and racing cars.

With all departments at BJR relying heavily on IT, the team has traditionally managed these systems in-house with occasional external support. The new partnership with Extranet Systems will see the IT firm taking on the responsibility for most of BJR’s technology infrastructure.

The move will allow BJR to dedicate more time and resources to racing and related activities, while Extranet manages crucial areas including security, backup and disaster recovery, said Extranet Systems business operations manager Anthony Farrugia.

The partnership also aims to support BJR’s growth. Since its inception as a one-car team in 2000, BJR has expanded to a four-car operation, now employing about 50 people. “IT demands continue to grow as the team grows,” said BJR engineer manager Paul Scalzo.

The team’s reliance on technology is evident in its day-to-day operations. Eight full-time engineers utilise laptops for data analysis, vehicle management software and simulation packages. A dedicated system runs the SolidWorks computer-aided design platform, while four computer numerical control (CNC) workstations equipped with Mastercam software support manufacturing processes.

Other critical systems include a laser cutter for component production, a signwriting setup for design and printing, as well as purchasing and stores management software. Even the mechanics rely on individual computers for tasks such as vehicle maintenance tracking.

While engineering plays a central role in the workshop and at the track, Scalzo said IT extends beyond engineering and production. The racing and marketing departments also rely heavily on IT systems, and Extranet will help optimise their use of those systems.

Data protection has been identified as an early focus. While BJR has been an Acronis customer for the best part of a decade after discovering the company at an Australian Grand Prix, a project is underway to optimise the use of the backup and disaster recovery software.

An initial test of the Acronis system proved successful when an engineering laptop failed. “The process was very easy,” Scalzo said, noting the importance having robust backup and recovery capabilities.

Advantages of the Acronis product include point-in-time recovery for post-intrusion security and immutable backups to protect against ransomware and malicious deletion, explained Extranet Systems director Amro Elmasry.

Moving forward, Extranet plans to progressively expand its support to encompass hosting, monitoring, business applications, and more, ultimately enabling BJR to fully focus on racing.

As BJR’s reliance on IT has grown, so has its awareness of its own limitations, prompting the decision to seek a specialised partner such as Extranet, observed Scalzo.

With Extranet’s experience across diverse sectors, including healthcare, the partnership aims to explore new possibilities, such as migrating certain functions to the cloud to improve data accessibility and collaboration between the track and the workshop.

However, variable internet speeds at different racetracks remain a challenge. Sydney Motorsport Park is located at Eastern Creek in the city’s eastern suburbs and offers around 800Mbps, but even though Tasmania’s Symmons Plains Raceway is just 30km south of Launceston, speeds are limited to around 80Mbps. This is just another illustration of the difference between fibre and cellular connections.

Another hurdle is the reliance on the often-congested cellular network for BJR’s telemetry system due to the huge crowds at premier Supercars rounds, such as those in Melbourne, which are held in conjunction with the Melbourne F1 Grand Prix, as well as in Bathurst and Gold Coast.

Extranet recognises that BJR’s on-premise systems were implemented when internet speeds were limited. With these limitations removed, Elmasry sees opportunities for cloud-based disaster recovery, offering enhanced protection and accessibility.

From an engineering perspective, one of the bottlenecks is the speed at which the exponentially growing volume of data can be stored, retrieved and analysed, so Scalzo believes this is an area for improvement.

The ability to quickly restore data access after a major incident is another concern. According to Elmasry, the Acronis software allows virtual machines to be restarted directly from their backups, so systems can be up and running within 15 minutes.

While BJR’s current onsite systems have failover capabilities, cloud disaster recovery would provide an additional layer of protection, ensuring data accessibility even if the team’s base is compromised.

Extranet will also provide the team with training and fire drills, Scalzo said. “Having Extranet as a partner is going to help push us to the front,” he said, explaining that most other teams operate purely locally and do not put as much thought into backup as BJR does. “Extranet is helping to get us where we need to be,” he added.