METS celebrates 25th anniversary

The event, which takes place at the Amsterdam RAI on 13-15 November, has always retained high levels of loyalty from global visitors and exhibitors alike through both boom years and tough times. Starting back in 1988 with just over 100 exhibitors, the event has steadily gathered momentum to host 1,331exhibitors last year.

“Such a resilient group of loyal attendees deserves a festive 25th birthday reward and we are working on special ways to mark this great occasion”, said METS senior product manager Irene Dros.

Evolution and improvement has always been at the heart of the METS ethos. The 2002 event saw the establishment of the first specialist equipment pavilion – the Marina & Yard Pavilion. In 2003 the Composite Pavilion was added and, in 2005, the increasingly successful SuperYacht Pavilion, which now has its own dedicated hall and special social networking programme.

As well as being the launch pad for thousands of new products, METS has also always sought to encourage product excellence, most notably by introducing the Design Award METS (DAME) in 1991. This has become a prestigious prize for marine product design and innovation and is intensely competitive, attracting a high level of entries every year.