And with the promotions we’ve been doing around the trade, we hope to increase on last year's visitor total of 1633.

We’ve made a couple of changes for this year, the most important of which is to bring the entire exhibition downstairs to the Solent and the Windsor Halls. This has made it slightly cramped here and there, but that should make is nice and cosy.

The next change is to bring the FREE Wednesday night party back into the BIC. For this we will be using the Bayview Lounge upstairs. The party starts at 17.30 prompt and will include the BBEx/MTA awards presentations.

And this isn’t the only celebration at this year’s BBEx because 2008 is the Boating Business 25th Anniversary. So you’ll find a coupon on page XX of this issue for a FREE drink on the Boating Business stand – 97 in the Windsor Hall.

We’ll be having a party at Seawork in June, but please come and have a drink with us to help get our Silver Anniversary celebrations off to a good start.

We’ve got some excellent seminars and workshops for you this year – see page XX for the full list.

We’re taking a look at those things that have come to light in the past year – such as how to protect client monies from builder or dealer crashes, as in the Peters Plc crunch which is still rumbling along. And we understand the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) will undertake inspections of boatbuilders this year, so we’ve put together a briefing on what you can expect when they come knocking on the door.

And we are assured they will come knocking at some stage...

As you walk into the BIC you’ll see this year’s Innovations Showcase to the left of the Registration area. We have some excellent products on show, along with, of course, all the other excellent products on show around the exhibition - including the Waterbuoy, Seatriever Int which featured heavily in the Dragons' Den television programme. Inventor/developer James Halliburton is due to also be at the show.

And you'll find the catalogue for this year's show starting on page 30 of this issue.

The exhibition will be officially opened at 10.00 on the Wednesday, February 13.

Visitor promotions
We started the visitor promotional work on the show with the exhibitor questionnaire after the last BBEx. At our wash-up meeting in March we went through the main points brought out by the questionnaire and we've made a few improvements to the show.

You'll see a huge difference in the Innovations Showcase. It's in the same place as last year - to the left of the Registration area - but this year it's been designed and constructed by our stand builders, Stanco.

It now looks very professional and shows the 40 entries off to perfection.

The FREE exhibitor party also needed some TLC, which was easy. I

It’s back in the BIC, upstairs in the Bayview Suite. It starts at 17.30 prompt on the Wednesday and it will be a shorter event than last year – just long enough to provide a nice drink or two before the award presentations, applaud the winners and have a couple of drinks afterwards, then off to dinner somewhere.

The conference programme also came under scrutiny - you'll find the list on page XX - and we think there are some very good seminars that should be of value to BBEx visitors and exhibitors alike.

And, talking of visitors, we've done quite a bit to put the word out to potential visitors about BBEx and explain its importance to them and to the industry.

We've done this by running regular editorials in Boating Business and on the BB website - at www.boatingbusiness.com - just in case you don't know it by now...

In addition, we've asked our exhibitors to help out by inviting their customers to the show. So far, we've send out an extra 6,500 tickets to companies wanting to invite lots of people along.

We've done regular advertising in Boating Business and we've also taken some banners on the IBI website - online is growing all the time and that's why we place so much importance on regular coverage on the BB weekly NewsUpdates and on the IBI daily newsletters.

All this is backed by the new look BBEx website with the latest information at www.bbex.co.uk

We've also run inserts of BBEx Show News in BB and mailed them out as well. We've printed and distributed over 22,000 of these since the last BBEx.

Pre-season deals
On top of our efforts to get as many visitors along, there will be lots of exhibitor offers to bump-start the season - so visitors will get the chance to hammer out the best pre-season deals with the early Easter start to the season just around the corner.

We've pulled out all the stops. All we can do now is open the doors and see who comes through them.

Like those awful and seemingly never-ending minutes before the first guests arrive at a party.

Our sponsors
We'd like to thanks our sponsors for their support - it goes a long way to helping put the show together and make it an event for exhibitors and visitors.

We've got Marine South West (Marine Skills Centre) sponsoring the Innovations Showcase; Mastervolt doing the visitor badge lanyards; Marathon Leisure covering the visitor badges; Corrosion Block on the carrier bags, GTi Outdoor with free pens and Draper Tools sponsoring the Exhibitor Party

And we have our award sponsors to thanks as well. English Braids sponsors our new Environmental Award; boats.com sponsors our Website Award - another new one this year. Dyer Burdett sponsors the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

Two of our own awards are the BBEx Innovations Showcase Award and, finally, we have the Boating Business Lifetime Achievement Award.

The Young Businessperson of the Year is presented in memory of Scott Deverell

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The Marine Skills Innovation Showcase entries and stand numbers

Cooney Marine, Stand 65
'Series 8' Simpson Davit
New 'Series 8' Simpson Davit utilising new gear box drive system giving superior control while maintaining Simpson strength and reliability.
*Product World launch @ BBEx 2008*

Marathon Leisure Ltd, Stand 20
Multiflex Control Cables
Multiflex Control Cables perform under extreme conditions blinder allows cable to function even after damage/loss of outer sheathing.

Harken UK Ltd, Stand 54
Harken Spraytop
Harken's waterproof, windproof and breathable spraytop is light weight and features innovative stretch fabric pannels to maximize mobility.

Harken UK Ltd, Stand 54
Harken Rigtune Pro
A digital tuning gauge. This innovative product helps sailors measure and fine tune rigging tension to the nearest kilogram.

Jewelultra Ltd, Stand S29
Diamondbrite Marine Waterscreen
Leaves a non-stick coating, causing water to form into droplets, which clear from all glass surfaces, lasting up to six months.

McMurdo, Stand 78
Fastfind MaxG
An Emergency Personal Location Beacon with integral GPS for global usage including 48 hour operation from activation.

McMurdo, Stand 78
MOB Guardian
Automatically raises an MOB alert if a crew member goes missing from the vessel, and can provide worldwide emergency alerting and vessel tracking when monitored by the RNLI.

C-Quip Ltd, Stand 53
Heavy Duty Boat Wash & Boat Wash & Wax
From Ecover, 1st fully biodegradable boat cleaners with fully recyclable bottles & caps. Works very well with absolute minimum impact on aquatic life. Every boater should be using this stuff!!

Muc-Off/Berkeley & Co Ltd, Stand S71
Muc-Off Optix
Tired of cleaning their electronic devices with a shirt sleeve or a piece of tissue, the Muc-Off crew set about developing a new electronic device and screen cleaning pack. Muc-Off Optix was born! It's ideal for keeping in a brief case, bag or clipping onto a backpack for quick and safe cleaning on the move.

David Lewin Consulting, Stand 64
Revolutionary Lifejacket
Revolutionary lifejacket design with buoyancy in a third dimension to turn anyone in heavy foul weather gear over in an emergency.

Southern Cross Marine, Stand S17
Multi Panel
The eco-friendly construction material. Unique high density polyurethane panelling -strong, lightweight and fire retardant paint, laminate, veneer or fibre glass totally waterproof

Made 2 Measure Fenders, Stand S31
Branded and Personalised Boat Fenders
Branded and personalised boat fenders with logos and names put into the fenders during manufacturing. Creating unique set of fenders.

IMP, Stand 62
Titan & Vega LED Spotlight
There now truly is an LED Spotlight & 20W that can replace a halogen light.

The Leatherworker, Stand S35
Leather Cladding
Leather cladding of yachts' helms, spreader tips, mooring lines, fender brackets, tender chocks and much more, 100% hand sewn work.

Lalizas Marine UK Ltd, Stand S57
Shock Absorbing Mooring Lines
Lalizas polyester mooring lines are the first to integrate a shock absorbing rubber filament within the body of the rope which permits high elasticity in absorbing shocks from waves, they come in three sizes 12-15 and 18mm and in one length of 8 metres.

Johnson Outdoors Ltd S61
Humminbird
Big Screen Side Imaging Sonar
10.4" full colour 600V x 800H pixel display, delivers high definition images over a huge area.

Seatriever International Ltd, Stand 63
Waterbuoy
Waterbuoy is a miniature emergency lifeboat for anything up to 1kg that is accidentally dropped overboard, seconds after falling in, your valuables are returned to the surface by a flashing orange balloon that is visible from up to a mile away

Timage (GB) LLP Stand 49
The new ipod docking station - stylish and easy to install, whether integrated into an existing sound system or used independently.

Seafresh Desalinators Ltd S56
Seafreash "Airtrap" solves problematic sea inlets admitting air as well as water causing damage to equipment and pumps.

Marlow Ropes Ltd 88

Excel Fusion 75

Developed in conjunction with members of the Skandia Team GBR Olympic Squad, Excel Fusion 75 is a new high performance dinghy sheet form Marlow.

Marlow Ropes Ltd 88
D2 Competition 75
Has been developed for enthusiastic sailors and club racers wishing to take advantage of the high strength, low stretch benefits of Dyneema.

Marlow Ropes Ltd 88
D2 Racing 75
Gives significantly improved load holding in jammers and clutches and a 13% improvement in abrasion resistance - and is easier to splice.

Sollight - UK S72
Designed by a yachtsman for yachtsmen the solar charged LIGHTSHIP has a bright white light and uniquely a RED light to protect night vision onboard.

Freetrack Marine S67
WatchKeeper Marine is a state of the art command, control and monitoring system, configurable for all vessel types.

Proboat Limited 67
The Wichard Gyb'Easy
An innovative new boom brake from Wichard removing the dangers involved in gybing mainsails on sailboats.

Mastervolt S9
Masterbus
Masterbus is a digital platform for all principle Mastervolt products allowing complete system integration, or just simple but accurate battery monitoring.

C A Clase (UK) Limited 36
The Goenav 35
A fully programmable chart plotter with both Navionics Land and Sea and Platinum charts including Digital Compass and 24 hour Historical Barometric Pressure.

Yacht Kit Ltd 25
Gotop Atlantic Jacket
Waterproof and breathable, ideal for Crew/Corporate wear, every panel accessible from a secret zip, for embroidery

Yacht Kit Ltd 25
Gotop Shamrock Jacket
Waterproof and breathable, ideal for Crew/Corporate wear, every panel accessible from a secret zip, for embroidery

Sonic Marine Ltd S1
Ship sonic Ecological Antifouling
SHIPSONIC is an ecological, innovative and effective system for keeping your boat hull free from fouling.

S M Group 8
ST70
ST70 Offers a brand new way of visualising instrumentation and autopilot control via a single high resolution colour display.

S M Group 8
NPT200 Super Sail Pod
A new housing allowing for external installation of a radar/chart plotter display and 4 instruments in a tamperproof, waterproof housing.

S M Group 8
GMEMT410/410G PLB
The smallest & lightest personnel locator beacon (PLB) with a 7 year battery life, 7 year warranty, high visibility strobe light and non hazmat batteries for easy transportation by air.

Ship Shape Bedding S30
Duvets
Duvets Shaped to fit boat beds (Double V-Berths, Quarter Berths, Tapped etc.) Producing in bulk our prices are less than half what you would pay for custom bedding, also allows Chandlers to sell bedding to boat owners.

Ship Shape Bedding S30
Range of Stretch Fitted Sheets Shaped to Fit Beds on Boats
Fitted Sheets Shaped to fit boat beds (Double V-Berths, Quarter Berths, Tapped etc.) These can stretch by up to 40% and thus fit 90% of all boats
A standard range at last allows Chandlers to sell bedding to boat owners.

Ship Shape Bedding S30
Dry-Mat - Anti-Moisture Mat for Under-Mattress Ventilation
A layer of special 3 dimensional polyester; that goes under the mattress maintaining an air-gap thus enabling the mattress to breathe, so eliminating the damp under the mattress.

Ronstan International 29
Ronstan Ball Bearing Orbit Block (with ratchet)
• Automatic and Manual ratchet in one
• Up to 25:1 holding power
• Easily fitted and securely retained Dyneema Link Head
• Smooth easing of sheets

Ronstan International 29
Ronstan Ball Bearing Orbit Block
• Advanced fibre and polymer technology - up to 10 times stronger than steel
• Highest strength to weight ratio
• 5 sizes from 20mm to 70mm
• Easily fitted and securely Dyneema Link Head

Seasafe Systems Ltd
Marine Leisure Clothing
Being safe never looked this good. Voyager is the worlds only marine leisure clothing range with completely concealed lifejackets

Indespension Trailers
Marine Trailer Parts
The dedicated ' Indespension Branded ' marine trailer parts stand available on stand 60

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BBEx 2008 - Workshops and Seminars - held in the Bayview Suite

Wednesday 13 February

10.30 - 11.30 Successful Trading in a Challenging Market
Presented by Tim Reynolds of Dyer Burdett & Co and Nigel John of the British Marine Federation, this session covers credit given and received, financial security & consumers money

12.00 - 12.30 Pinching the E-commerce Clothes
Presented by Jonno Barratt, Kudos Software
The growth in e-retailing has some surprising drivers: it’s not all about price. So what can web traders teach the traditional business about what our customers really want in terms of service, and how can retailers and service businesses steal their best ideas for a change? The fight back starts here.

14.00 - 14.45 Health & Safety Briefing for Boat Builders: Paint Spraying and GRP in Boatyards - learn the facts and be prepared for an HSE inspection campaign in 2008
If you are a manager, supervisor or contractor involved in paint spraying or GRP laying up, attendance at this FREE session is imperative. The briefing will be given by HSE Inspectors involved in an inspection campaign looking at health issues, fire and explosion, hand/arm vibration, noise and falls from height associated with paint spraying and GRP operations.

Thursday 14 February

10.30 - 11.15 Health & Safety Briefing for Boat Builders: Paint Spraying and GRP in Boatyards - learn the facts and be prepared for an HSE inspection campaign in 2008
If you are a manager, supervisor or contractor involved in paint spraying or GRP laying up, attendance at this FREE session is imperative. The briefing will be given by HSE Inspectors involved in an inspection campaign looking at health issues, fire and explosion, hand/arm vibration, noise and falls from height associated with paint spraying and GRP operations.

12.00 - 1.00 Successful Trading in a Challenging Market
Presented by Tim Reynolds of Dyer Burdett & Co and Nigel John of the British Marine Federation, this session covers credit given and received, financial security & consumers money

14.00 - 14.30 Environment Management within the Marine Industry
We are all under pressure to be more environmentally aware. Brian Clark of the British Marine Federation covers Green issues and the NEW Boating Business Environmental Award.

15.00 - 15.30 Train to Gain
Presented by Mandy Swadel, Brokerage Team Manager, Dorset Train to Gain
Find out how and where to get money for training your workforce