Metstrade 2025 carries a reputation for sheer scale, but running through it is something that carries real weight for product development across the industry. The DAME Design Awards 2025 arrived this year with the largest entry field seen in a long time, 146 products submitted and 67 nominations reaching the shortlist, the highest number since 2016. Every nominated product will be displayed together in the Elicium building in Hall 13, positioned at the centre of the show floor where no serious visitor can miss them.
The jury assembled for this year's awards reflects genuinely broad experience. Eleven members drawn from both the leisure and superyacht sectors spent two weeks working through entries online before meeting in Amsterdam for two full days of hands-on assessment and discussion. Among them was student designer Scarlett Harris, returning for a second year to offer a perspective that sits usefully alongside seasoned professionals. New jury member Alexandra Foineau Oakley, whose background spans distribution, manufacturing and product management, was among those bringing fresh expertise to the table.
The record entry numbers carry a message of their own. Despite a difficult period for the broader market, product development clearly never stopped. Many companies appear to have been working steadily in the background and are now confident enough to show what they have produced.
The DAME Design Awards 2025 judge products against criteria that go well beyond visual appeal. Aesthetics and ergonomics are assessed alongside ease of manufacture, lifecycle impact and price, so a strong entry must demonstrate that it is practical to produce, straightforward to use and responsible over its full working life. That framework sits a long way from any conventional beauty contest.
The awards categories were reshaped in 2023 and refined again this year to align with Metstrade's updated product groupings. That alignment is visible across the nominations, where deck hardware sits beside digital design tools, trolling motors appear alongside electric outboards and active gyros, and new cockpit foam competes for attention with marine diesel training programmes. All entry fees in 2025 are directed to the Ocean Conservation Trust, meaning every submission contributes directly to practical ocean protection and restoration. For an industry built around healthy coastal and offshore waters, that connection makes obvious sense.
The Navigation and Communication category gives a clear picture of where bridge electronics are heading. Wide-format multifunction displays including Garmin's GPSMAP 1523xsv UltraWide, B&G's Zeus SR and Raymarine's Pathfinder ECDIS all reflect a push toward faster processors, cleaner interfaces and tighter integration across onboard systems. Compared with earlier multifunction displays, these units offer smoother operation, more sophisticated sailing features and closer links to radar and autopilot.
Complementing those core navigation platforms is a range of situational awareness tools. Thermal and multispectral cameras such as FLIR's M460 LRF Elite and SEA.AI's Watchkeeper platform extend crew awareness in low-light and night conditions, while plug-and-play autopilot solutions like Searebbel's MobilePilot and Pixel sur Mer's Exocet Essential offshore racing package bring the same thinking to smaller, performance-focused boats.
Below the waterline, products like Digital Yacht's Bilge IQ and Garmin's OnBoard system connect routine status monitoring to genuine safety outcomes. Sensor hubs such as Sensar Marine's Expansion Hub extend that capability further, pointing toward a future where an owner can understand exactly what their boat is doing regardless of where they happen to be.
Onboard comfort has seen meaningful attention across the nominations. Dometic's new CSX refrigeration and 48-volt GVTX HVAC system both address the growing presence of electric and hybrid vessels, where energy efficiency is a constant consideration. Heated decking from Smartdeck HEAT adds another dimension to that conversation, with particular relevance for cold-climate cruising and high-latitude superyacht work.
Smaller details matter too. Scanstrut's Ultra Qi2 magnetic wireless charger might not command the same headlines as a multifunction display, but the ability to secure a phone to a mount and trust it will charge reliably in a seaway is a genuinely useful improvement for everyday boating.
The Propulsion and Dynamics category covers a wide range. Volvo Penta's IPS Professional Platform and ZF's latest pod drive represent the substantial end of the market, while Garmin's Force Current trolling motor and a new-generation ePropulsion electric outboard suggest that electric propulsion for trailer boats and tenders is gaining real momentum at the accessible end of the scale.
Deck equipment nominations show how careful thinking can improve even familiar, everyday tasks on board. Seldén's Clew Block for furling mainsails comes in four sizes to accommodate different safe working loads, offering cleaner geometry and more consistent trimming for boats fitted with in-mast or in-boom furling. Their Nail Terminal for anti-torsion cables addresses the assembly and maintenance of modern downwind furling systems in the same spirit.
Products like Ropeye's Stick on K take a different approach, offering owners and yards a way to attach covers and equipment without drilling into the boat's structure. Tools such as Easys JAKE and ONE Palma's Softstep demonstrate that simple equipment can still be cleverly conceived. A telescopic hook with interchangeable heads, or a step that doubles as a compact working platform, will not generate much excitement in press releases, but they make routine time on board noticeably more civilised.
The Manufacturing, Support Products and Materials category casts a wide net, taking in products relevant to Kiwi trailer boats through to custom superyachts and large marina facilities. Awlgrip's Gloss Finish Primer illustrates how incremental improvement can still deliver real-world value. A two-in-one product that consolidates the fairing and finishing steps saves measurable labour in any professional yard. Cork-based interior panels such as CorkMood and recycled plastic sheathing like Supersede Marine Board reflect a growing interest in materials that combine acoustic and thermal performance with better sustainability credentials.
At the systems level, design software such as Orca3D Advanced Stability fits naturally into the same development pipeline. Better tools during design typically translate into safer, more refined vessels for the people who eventually own them. Fastmount's VL-PF3 clip, offering a glue-free mounting method for acoustic panels with a controlled air gap, will attract interest from anyone who has grappled with acoustic fit-out in a professional context.
The shift toward integrated, data-rich power networks is particularly clear in the Electronic and Electrical Systems category. Products like Simarine's SAC15R smart AC distribution unit and Energy Solutions' SmartSwitch DC4 aim to reduce complexity at the switchboard while giving skippers NMEA 2000-level visibility of their power systems. On modern boats where lithium battery banks, inverters and chargers communicate constantly with each other, this kind of intelligent switchgear becomes the central nervous system of the vessel.
Lighting nominations point in a similar direction. High-output, fully sealed LED fittings such as LightGraphix's LD1093Z and illuminated deck concepts like Dexlit's Enlighted Yacht Deck fit naturally alongside contemporary control systems. The overall picture is one of clean surfaces, precisely tuned lighting and minimal visible wiring in high-end yacht interiors. Portable power units like VOLTAB extend the same energy management thinking beyond the vessel, giving crews and service teams a reliable, portable source of stable power wherever their work takes them.
For boat owners following events from New Zealand, the DAME Design Awards 2025 may feel like something happening at a comfortable distance, but nominated products have a way of appearing in new models and retrofit catalogues over the years that follow. Some of the equipment in Hall 13 will eventually turn up on locally built boats, while other products will inform the thinking of New Zealand designers and engineers working on their own projects.
The record entry field this year signals that the marine equipment sector has recovered its appetite for innovation. Builders and suppliers are looking past recent supply chain pressures and focusing their energy on gear that is smarter, more efficient and more sustainable. For those of us whose best days are spent on the water, that renewed momentum is genuinely encouraging.
