The 28th International BoatBuilders’ Exhibition and Conference (IBEX) in Tampa, Florida, closed on October 4 with visitor and exhibiting figures considerably up for the three-day event. With nearly 4,300 verified visitors – a 23% increase on last year – a 10% increase in square footage to accommodate and over 700 exhibitors which is an increase of 14%, IBEX was a tremendous success. RAI Amsterdam is joint owner of IBEX, which is the marine industry’s largest technical trade event in North America and powered by METSTRADE.
In total, 55 countries were represented at IBEX, a 10% increase over last year. In addition, visitors had access to 38 boats on the IBEX Docks used to display marine equipment on the water. Four International Pavilions represented exhibitors from South Korea, Australia, France and Italy to accompany the four Specialty Pavilions: the Composite Pavilion, Marina & Yard Pavilion, Electronics Pavilion and the Compliance, Standards & Education Pavilion.
The IBEX Education Conference was well attended with a 27% increase in seminars sold. The Special Session: Designing for Speed had standing room only with 160 people attending the panel discussion. The first-ever Vacuum Bag Challenge was also a popular attraction with four teams competing. Teams were required to vacuum a balloon to 15 inches of mercury without popping it in the fastest time. The winning team consisted of Patrick Dender of Accredited Marine Technologies and Adam Blankinship of Schooner Creek Boat Works with a time of six minutes, twenty-two seconds. Supplies and technical expertise were provided by PRO-VAC.
“The energy and excitement during IBEX this year was amazing,” said Anne Dunbar, IBEX Show Director. “The positive response to all of our educational offerings, the exhibit halls were packed and people really took advantage of what IBEX does best—which is bring the newest elements of marine products and technology to our industry, in one place. The increase in visitors, exhibitors and exhibit space are all powerful indicators that the industry is as strong as ever.”“The energy and excitement during IBEX this year was amazing,” said Anne Dunbar, IBEX Show Director. “The positive response to all of our educational offerings, the exhibit halls were packed and people really took advantage of what IBEX does best - which is bring the newest elements of marine products and technology to our industry, in one place. The increase in visitors, exhibitors and exhibit space are all powerful indicators that the industry is as strong as ever.”
“It has been a pleasure for the RAI to again partner with the NMMA to produce IBEX,” comments RAI Amsterdam’s Director Maritime, Irene Dros. “Our mission is to combine the best marine resources from the North American market and global marine marketplace. The show attendance proves the success of this approach and the positive state of the market. We look forward to carrying the excellent vibe into next year’s event.”
IBEX is scheduled to return to Tampa, Florida October 1-3, 2019.
