Red circle backdrop

THE ACE STORY

Bringing you over 20 years of training excellence.

At the center of our long history in the training industry is a focus on people. When it comes to our students, our team, and our customers, we have built a legacy on creating world-class opportunities for amazing people.

Our History

ACE was founded in 2001 to provide heavy machinery and construction training to customers in Gippsland, Victoria. Over the years it has expanded its offering to include nationally recognised training and licensing accredited by VicRoads and ASQA, which it now offers across its four campuses in Sale, Traralgon, Bendigo, and Ballarat.

Today ACE services thousands of customers across & throughout regional Victoria in the oil & gas, mining, agriculture, power, water, paper, manufacturing, transport, and construction industries, for which ACE is recognised by corporations and government agencies as the go-to training provider in the region.

Our Values

ACE is an uncompromisingly values-based company with razor-sharp focus on delivering industry-leading expertise, relevance to the real world, and advancement opportunities for all.

EXPERTISE

We deliver best-in-class education, preparing our students to excel in their careers.

RELEVANCE

Our students need today's skills now. Beyond the textbook, we give them the practical knowledge needed to achieve their goals.

ADVANCEMENT

Constant improvement is in our DNA. We push for daily progress in our students and ourselves.

Who We Are

We are your teachers, your partners, your mentors, and your students. We believe nothing sets the stage for success quite like education, and we’re here to help you get it done right, just as we have for the past twenty years.

Management Team

Meet our team of business minds who happen to care a great deal about education.
Director of Compliance
Nara donaldson
Chief Training Officer
Martin Baine
Senior Corporate Account Manager
Paul Wilson

Testimonials

Tyrone Muir
Tyrone Muir
Read More

I enjoy working at ACE Training because I feel I am respected and valued member of the team. I get great satisfaction from being in a role in which I can make a difference in people’s lives.

JASMINE SAUL
JASMINE SAUL
Read More

I’ve worked for ACE since 2018, and I appreciate working with a diverse and inclusive group of co-workers and having the opportunity to help others.

Tamara Bell
Tamara Bell
Read More

I find it really fulfilling to see our Cert III students progress through the course and then find new jobs.

READY TO GET STARTED?

Click below to enrol online!

Sample of an excavator vehicle

Nara Donaldson

Director of Compliance

Nara joined ACE in 2016 and looks after all of ACE’s compliance responsibilities. She is well respected across all of ACE’s campuses and an admired contributor to the team. When not immersed in spreadsheets and compliance reports, Nara is often outdoors in beautiful Gippsland with her little family, including 75kg Great Dane Bruce, who thinks he is a lap dog.

Rob Gaunt

CEO

Born in South Africa and raised in Australia, Rob grew up in a family of entrepreneurs. Having launched his career selling copiers on commission-only, he eventually progressed to running Marine Rescue Technology (MRT) in the UK as its CEO and joined ACE as CEO in 2021. When away from ACE, Rob can usually be found either with his wife and son or shredding some waves.

Martin Baine

Chief Training Officer

Originally from the UK, Martin worked in the Civil Construction Earthmoving and Mining sectors worldwide before becoming a Vocational Education and Training specialist. With a career spanning 35+ years, he has been highly successful across roles including; Plant Operator Mechanic/ Military Engineer, Trainer/ Assessor, Team/ Curriculum Leader, Training Quality Assurance consultant, Operations, Education and RTO Management.

He is a thoughtful and diligent leader who nurtures team members, encouraging them to be the best they can be, meaning students get the very best training possible.

Martin joined ACE’s senior leadership team in 2022, and when not at work he can be found on his rural smallholding west of Ballarat, or spending quality time with his wife, 3 (grown up) children and his 4 grandchildren.

Paul Wilson

Senior Corporate Account Manager

With a finance career of over 20 years, Paul made the successful shift to the RTO Sector 7 years ago. Working in the Corporate space from small to medium businesses through to major Government Projects, he has great connections with his clients, providing a personal service to ensure the best possible training outcomes. Paul has extensive experience in creating bespoke training products for large corporate clients and enjoys nothing more than seeing successful outcomes for learners. 

Paul joined the ACE team in August 2022 and outside of work, he enjoys music, movies and spending time with family.