Nominations Announced for DAME Design Awards 2023

METSTRADE is pleased to announce that 53 products from 19 countries across four continents have been nominated to enter the final rounds of judgement for the 32nd edition of the DAME Design Awards. 

An international jury of eight leading design and user experts assembled in the DAME Award’s specially created assessment room at RAI Amsterdam to spend two intensive hands-on days examining 100 submissions. The 53 entries selected for nomination will feature on the DAME exhibition as standout examples of holistic design effort within the marine equipment sector.

The winners for each of this year’s eight completely new DAME categories will be selected from this group of 53 nominations. One of those winners will go on to be named as the recipient of the overall DAME Award. The jury also confirmed it will name a discretionary Environmental Design Award winner for the second year in succession.

Winners will be announced at the METSTRADE 2023 Breakfast Briefing in the RAI Amsterdam Convention Centre on 15 November, following a keynote speech by Sanlorenzo’s legendary CEO, Massimo Perotti. All DAME nominated products will feature on a special display at METSTRADE located at the heart of the show in hall 13 (Elicium). Alongside, the METSTRADE Theatre will host a session on Wednesday 15 and Thursday 16 November on this year’s DAME Awards category winners and outright winner.

New for this year, all nominees and winners will be featured on the DAME Awards website – damedesignawards.com – alongside a role of honour for past winners and details of the jury.

High number of impressive entries

Andre Hoek, chair of the DAME jury, says: “We knew right from the start of the judging process that many of this year’s entries had notable design qualities and that was subsequently reflected in the high ratio of nominations. A good number of these are in close contention to win their categories. “I am grateful as always for the significant efforts and expertise of our jury members who have great experience of different areas in the marine industry. We were pleased to welcome a talented young designer, Rory Coase, onto the team this year. Rory replaced David Marsh, who made a valued contribution to the redefinition of this year’s categories before he completed his term of service.“

The complexity of many products continues to grow, and the rise of electrification and digital control is providing obvious impetus for many new developments. However, the DAME Awards continues to remind the global marine equipment sector that applying all facets of good design practice will benefit any product, large or small, simple or intricate.

METSTRADE director Niels Klarenbeek adds: “The DAME Awards has continually evolved to reflect the onward progress of the leisure marine equipment sector. For 2023 we completely reconfigured the categories to better reflect the changing world around us. These updates were well received when we announced them earlier in the year and I’m pleased to see the new categories have worked well in practice too.

"We know from feedback that to be nominated in the DAME Awards can be a game changer for many entrants, while winning products are undeniably placed at the pinnacle of the marine equipment industry. We look forward to celebrating those who have achieved those accolades this year at the METSTRADE Breakfast Briefing on 15 November."

To view this year’s nominated products please see here: NOMINEES 2023. 

New DAME categories

The DAME categories are all completely new for this year, with revised focus on a product’s purpose and application to assist judging. The category headings are followed by a brief explanation illustrating where a boat user or marine industry professional might encounter the products being entered:

1. Personal equipment - If I was going on a charter, had a boat share arrangement, went boating with a friend or have my own boat, what would my personal kit be?

2. Comfort and entertainment afloat - If I don’t want to go boating in a bare hull, what kinds of equipment am I likely to need to ensure the comfort and enjoyment of all afloat?

3. Navigation and communication - If I was on the helm of a boat or bridge of a superyacht, what electronics and other equipment would I use to control and safely navigate it?

4. Electronic and electrical systems - If I need electrical power anywhere in the boat or to make networkable devices speak to each other, what systems and equipment would I use?

5. Propulsion and dynamics - If I want to move, steer, stabilise and trim the boat, what machinery and systems will I use?

6. Deck equipment - If I am sailing, mooring, anchoring and using the outdoor spaces on my boat, what hardware and equipment will I use?

7. Security and safety aboard - What is the equipment aboard that serves specifically to keep my boat secure, safe and capable of dealing with emergencies afloat?

8. Shoreside equipment and materials - What are all the items of off-vessel equipment, hardware, materials and software that help to construct and then support my boat from cradle to grave?

The Jury will also name a product from among the field of DAME nominations as the Environmental Design Award winner if it finds an exemplar product that is well designed and has clear and obvious merit.

DAME Jury 2023

This year’s DAME Jury is made up of eight leading industry experts:

• Andre Hoek (chair), naval architect and yacht designer, founder of Hoek Design and Hoek Brokerage, The Netherlands
• Elaine Bunting, independent marine journalist, qualified yacht instructor and former editor Yachting World, UK (judged remotely)
• Davide Cipriani, boat and industrial designer, president of yacht design at Centrostiledesign, Italy
• Rory Coase, yacht designer, Coase Design, Norway
• Ben Ellison, freelance marine technical journalist, Panbo marine electronics hub, USA (attended remotely)
• Patrick Hemp, technical manager and trained designer, ICOMIA, South Africa
• Arjen Jansen, senior lecturer, school for Industrial Design Engineering at TUDelft, The Netherlands
• Olivier Racoupeau, naval architect and boat designer, founder and owner of Berret Racoupeau Yachts, France

The DAME Jury is supported by a non-voting secretary, Kim Hollamby of Hollamby Partnership, UK

About the DAME Design Award

The DAME Design Award celebrates everything that is important about marine equipment design, from aesthetics to functionality, integration to packaging and price efficiency to lifecycle management. It offers opportunities for all METSTRADE Show exhibitors from around the world to submit their latest products and have them judged by experts spanning all areas of design. Because of this wider focus, the DAME encourages the whole marine industry to continuously improve its design efforts, to the last detail. It plays a developing role in environmental responsibility, and recognises that the marine industry must match the high customer expectations set by products in other sectors like automotive and consumer electronics.