Taking place from 14-17 September, DSEI is the world’s largest land, sea, air and space biennial defence and security exhibition, and showcases over 1,000 defence and security suppliers.
Speaking after the event, the Minister said: “Northern Ireland companies have shown great resilience over the last 18 months, particularly when they were not able to visit overseas markets and exhibitions which we know are important to building relationships with potential investors and trade partners. This is why it’s great to be here today at DSEI which is one of the first physical exhibitions being held in the sector since the pandemic.
“Northern Ireland’s defence, security and aerospace sectors are important to our economy, employing over 7,000 people and contributing £1.5billion annually to our economy. Attending today has given me the opportunity to support the exhibiting companies to reach influential decision makers and meet a number of key stakeholders within the industry to build important trade relationships.”
Eight Northern Ireland companies are exhibiting as part of an Invest Northern Ireland stand at the show. They are Angoka, AR LIVE Systems, CCP Gransden, Cmass, ICE MOS Technology, Kinsetsu, Spirit Aerosystems and Skytec. These companies cut across a range of specialisms including defence, electronics, aero structures, sensor technology and space.
Kevin Holland, Invest NI’s CEO, also attended the show. He said: “Northern Ireland’s aerospace and defence sector has a proud history and global reputation. Our companies have proven time and again that they have the expertise, innovative thinking and research capability that is necessary to meet the future demands within the sector.
“Events like DSEI support attending companies to focus on winning new business in new markets and sectors and are an important part of any business’s export strategy. I look forward to seeing the future successes from this event.”
A further six Northern Ireland companies are exhibiting on their own stands demonstrating their commitment to pursue opportunities within the global defence sector. These include H&W, Thales, Survitec, Raptor Photonics, 7 Technologies and Arralis.