Seawork reports record re-booking for 2026
Image courtesy of Seawork.
The 26th edition of Seawork took place over three days, from 10-12 June 2025, attracting 454 exhibitors and 7,832 visitors.
Held annually at Mayflower Park in Southampton on the UK’s south coast, Seawork is a European commercial marine and workboat exhibition combining indoor and quayside displays, with vessels and equipment afloat on pontoons, alongside a dedicated conference programme.
Organisers now report that this year saw the “highest-ever number of stand re-bookings” for the 2026 edition, which returns from 9 to 11 June 2026.
Seawork 2025
Exhibitors and attendees at the 2025 show represented over 60 countries, with many senior professionals in attendance, including the CEO of Volvo Penta and senior representatives from John Deere.
“Seawork seems to improve as every year goes by. Great show, atmosphere and plenty of great networking went on,” says Dale Bradley, Marine Sea Services.
The event featured live demonstrations, including the all-electric RSD 2513 tug from Damen and RAD Propulsion’s electric RIB, Odyssey 560 Zero. Organisers reported increased visit (dwell) times, with nearly half of visitors making multiple visits across the three-day event.
Seawork’s conference sessions focused on innovation, decarbonisation and cost reduction. Presentations were held by organisations such as the UK Ministry of Defence, the International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA), the Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) and the Workboat Association.
The UK Harbour Masters’ Association held its annual general meeting on site and reported record attendance. The association says it plans to return to Seawork in 2026 for the AGM.
The Seawork Awards also recorded their highest attendance to date. Sara Kapdi from Carnival received the Young Person’s Development Award and an £850 bursary. The awards recognised innovation, development and individual achievement in the sector.
Future Seawork, supported by Maritime Research and Innovation UK (MarRI-UK), gave current UK university students the opportunity to showcase projects in commercial marine. Winning students received mentoring, funding and collaboration offers.
Seawork Careers Day, produced with Maritime UK Solent, drew over 350 students from 24 schools and colleges. The day included talks, workshops, networking sessions and live competitions to highlight maritime career paths.
“First time attending Seawork, was pleasantly surprised with the size of the show and the amount of exhibitors. This is a new market in which we are looking to explore opportunities, Seawork’s proved to be a very good show to attend – already in the diary for next year,” says Ryan Manning, DF Capital.
Seawork is produced by Mercator Media, which says that planning for 2026 is already underway.
