The UK’s largest annual gathering of engineering and manufacturing professionals, Advanced Engineering, held at the beginning of November has been revealed as one of the most successful ever.
Across the two days, 8,943 attendees witnessed the latest engineering innovations that the UK has to offer making it an extremely busy and energetic event. More than 400 companies exhibited at the show along with a further 202 at the co-located Lab Innovations.
Visitors included representatives from Airbus, Rolls-Royce, IBM, Boeing, McLaren, BAE Systems, Catapult HVM, Department for International Trade, Jaguar Land Rover and many more.
Advanced Engineering’s success is evident in its Net Promoter Score (NPS) soaring from 8.16 to an impressive 48.24 year on year.
Advanced Engineering visitors were treated to a fresh look this year thanks to the recent rebrand. This was coupled with a new cross-industry floor layout, which allowed for a more diverse range of exhibitors from various industries including newly added sectors such as marine, motorsport, construction, medical, rail and sport.
For companies targeting the aerospace and defence sectors, ADS returned with its Meet the Buyer programme, during which 90 brands participated in 105 supplier engagements, which was a 132% increase on last year.
Attendees also had access to over 150 industry-leading speakers across its forums. Because of Advanced Engineering’s partnership with The CPD Group, all of the talks counted towards visitors’ CPD. This year, Advanced Engineering introduced a main stage, which was sponsored by Lloyds Bank and supported by Make UK, where speakers such as Richard Noble OBE, former holder of the world land speed record and serial innovator at ThrustWSH and Stephen Phipson CBE, Chief Executive of Make UK took to the stage.
Across the exhibition’s four other forums, automotive, aerospace, composites and advanced materials and technologies, visitors could hear from industry experts on topics ranging from supply chain management, digitalisation, and the skills gap.
Enabling Innovation returned for another year, where ten start-ups competed to win £2,000 towards the establishment of their business. OxDrive, a provider of rugged, high-torque electric drivelines was the winner, with Christopher Horton, managing director, accepting the award.
80% of exhibitor space is already sold for 2024, which will take place on October 30 and 31 at the NEC, Birmingham. If you’re interested in exhibiting contact the organisers, Easyfairs, via the exhibitor enquiry form on the website.
Advanced Engineering
