SMI WWG Annual Seminar 2025

Tuesday 3rd September 2025

Time: 10:30am–4:30pm (followed by evening drinks and dinner)
Venue: 19th Floor, Informa HQ, 240 Blackfriars Road, London, SE1 8BF

SMI is delighted to announce the Annual Workboat Working Group (WWG) Seminar, bringing together stakeholders from across the UK’s workboat and coastal vessel community for a full day of expert insight, policy discussion, and real-world collaboration.

Chaired by Noel Tomlinson and building on the momentum of our online programme and WWG workstreams, this in-person seminar will explore the opportunities and challenges ahead for the UK supply chain in the design, build, upgrade and operation of small commercial vessels.

The agenda will feature contributions from government, industry, operators, and innovators - with three themed sessions focused on regulation, technology in action, and collaborative dialogue to shape future direction.

Programme Outline

• Session 1: Regulatory Momentum – Setting the Direction:
  A strategic session featuring senior voices from government and regulators exploring policy direction, frameworks, and support to accelerate the decarbonisation of small vessels and strengthen UK supply chain capability.
• Session 2: Real-World Solutions – Technology Pathways in Action
  Hear from vessel operators and technology developers who will showcase the energy-efficient technologies currently being deployed on, or developed for, UK workboats. This session will highlight real-world applications, lessons learned, and innovation in action.
• Session 3: Disrupt or Be Disrupted: What Will Sink or Save the UK Workboat Industry? An interactive panel discussion featuring a panel of technical, design and operational experts who will explore the true forces of disruption reshaping the UK workboat sector - not only in technology, but also in business models, regulation, customer expectations, and global competition. This session looks beyond today’s challenges to where the industry must head next. It takes a cross-cutting view, spanning technology, talent, finance, and strategy, and is designed to provoke urgency, challenge assumptions, and spark new thinking.

Cost:

• SMI Members: £65 (Includes lunch, refreshments, and seminar materials.)
• Non-Members: £100 (Includes lunch, refreshments, and seminar materials.)

Evening Networking from 17.00

Join us after the seminar for informal drinks and dinner at the Founders Arms on the Thames, offering a relaxed space to continue the discussion and connect with fellow delegates. (Evening dinner and drinks will be charged extra on a cost shared basis).

Register to attend by completing the form below.

For more information, please contact: Helen Stephen via helen.stephen(at)maritimeindustries.org