The 2023 Space-Comm expo will be even bigger and more internationally focused than this year’s event, Rob Sherwood, managing director of organiser Hub Exhibitions, said.

Speaking to FINN, he said: “We’ve grown the show 65 per cent in terms of exhibitor space from last year, which is pretty phenomenal.

“Because of Covid, we had no international exhibitors really last year. This year, we’ve got 35 per cent of the show floor made up of international exhibitors – that’s great to see.

“Next year, I expect bigger, better, more content. Our goal is to fill the whole of the exhibition centre and I think we’re on track to do that.”

Space industry growth

The UK space industry contributed £16.5 billion turnover, £5.3 billion exports, 47,000 direct jobs and 2,300 apprentices to the UK in 2021 alone, according to the UK space sector outlook from ADS Group.

Organised by Hub Exhibitions in partnership with Farnborough International, Space-Comm Expo is the UK’s biggest space-focused event, with a presence of over 150 exhibitors, thousands of attendees and 80 keynote speakers and experts across the programme.

Commenting on the changes the industry has seen over the past 12 months, and the impact that would have on future Space-Comm expos, Sherwood added: “That international dynamic has come to the fore. Last year was very much a UK centric event.

“It’s about the parts and components that go into space equipment and rockets and satellites. It’s about launch capacity. It’s about the data that we harvest from space. So it’s really just expanding all those areas.”
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