Meet our Sponsors

Vulcan Offshore is a fabrication, welding and machining company who specialise in producing high quality products for the offshore, marine, subsea and Manufacturing industries. They pride themselves in working to core values of Quality, Safety and Efficiency.

Wightlink is passionate about sustainability. We already operate England’s first large hybrid ferry, Victoria of Wight, and have exciting plans to decarbonise our fleet and port operations ready for Net Zero in 2050. We look forward to hearing more about how other companies and organisations in and around the Solent are tackling these challenges.

South Hampshire College Group (SHCG) is a large, merged college group, that brings together three Further Education colleges from Southampton, Eastleigh and Fareham to make one strong, responsive and ambitious organisation. The mission of South Hampshire College Group is to enable all students, apprentices and our region’s businesses to be successful in their future through high-quality technical and professional education and training.

Womble Bond Dickinson is a full-service transatlantic law firm with an exceptional team of talented lawyers and business professionals. Their people have been advising sectors and industries for decades, and offer guidance and solutions that are right for your business. They have both broad and niche expertise across all their UK and US offices, especially in relation to international trade, which is why they are so keen to sponsor the Global Trade Award.

Solent Stevedores has been proudly operating as an award-winning family-run company for more than 20 years. With market-leading port services in cargo operations, dry bulk, fresh produce, cruise stevedoring, rail and container services, Solent Stevedores operates from 7 locations across the UK, Singapore, Northern France and Channel Islands.

Associated British Ports (ABP) is the UK’s leading ports group, with 21 ports handling around a quarter of the UK’s seaborne trade. Together with customers, ABP’s ports contribute £7.5 billion to the UK economy and support 119,000 jobs.

ABP Southampton operates the Port of Southampton and is the UK’s number one vehicle handling port, capable of processing 900,000 vehicles per year.

BAE’s mission is to support and protect those that serve and protect us. With sites in Portsmouth and on the Isle of Wight, BAE Systems Maritime Services provides global support for warships, manufactures cutting edge radar capabilities and provides the very latest in underwater weapons technologies. Their products, systems and services ensure customers have a military advantage.

The Southampton Marine and Maritime Institute (SMMI) is a multi-disciplinary research institute at the University of Southampton that brings together world class experts to address ocean challenges and develop innovative and sustainable solutions for harnessing the ocean’s potential.

Tapping into expertise that spans the ocean sciences, marine engineering, marine biology, coastal dynamics, and maritime law, among others, the SMMI generates new insights for businesses, governments, and organisations, educating the next generation of leaders and addressing challenges around the natural ocean environment and human use of the sea.

Founded in 1861, and celebrating over 160 years of service, Red Funnel is the original Isle of Wight ferry company. Red Funnel operates 365 days a year with over 30,000 sailings between Southampton and the two Island terminals in East Cowes and West Cowes. Their talented team of over 500 colleagues and fleet of 7 vessels facilitate over 3 million passenger crossings per year.