Networking is a crucial part of being in any industry, and fabricators truly benefit from in-person connection.

The Marine Fabricators Association (MFA), a member group of Advanced Textiles Association (ATA), hosts several events each calendar year. We focus on the later portion of the calendar in an attempt to avoid the busiest seasons for our potential attendees. 

The MFA Regional Workshops are typically hosted in the fall between September and November. The MFA flagship event is the Marine Fabricators Conference, which is held in early to mid-January. The MFA Roadshow is an interactive session at Advanced Textiles Expo, which has historically been in early November. The roadshow is typically on the final day.

I want to share the value of the various events offered by the MFA, including what is offered and how they differ from one another. Each event offers a unique in-person learning opportunity, much like individual college courses that, when put together, lead to a comprehensive education.

Immersive learning for a couple of days

The MFA schedules two or three separate workshop events every fall in different regions of the United States and Canada. Last year, the MFA hosted two regional workshops: the Southwest regional workshop at Paul’s Custom Canvas in Denver, Colo., and the Great Lakes / Northeast regional workshop at Precision Custom Canvas in St. Catharines, Ont., Canada. See page 7 for more details about the 2026 workshops!

These regional workshops focus on live, hands-on demonstrations. We take advantage of being in a shop setting where we can use tools and equipment to really demonstrate fabrication strategies with a high level of detail, and we dive deep into answering the attendees’ questions. 

It is an immersive and intimate experience where you can explore the host shop, ask questions about everything and anything, and get feedback in the most educational way possible. These events are typically one and a half to two days, aim to be less expensive for travel and lodging, and take fabricators away from their own shops for fewer days. If we compare this with a college educational setting, this would be your small graduate-level classes or lab classes.

Education for marine fabricators

The Marine Fabricators Conference is the flagship event for the MFA and is typically held in January. The location changes year to year, hitting different regions of the U.S. that have a high concentration of marine fabricators or are easy to travel to. This year’s conference was in Savannah, Ga., and next year’s conference will be in Nashville, Tenn. (see page 10 for more details!).

The Marine Fabricators Conference has historically attracted around 200–300 attendees for its three-day event. Over the past several years, there has been an optional pre-conference workshop day focusing on a specific topic. The three main days are filled with all types of educational seminars; round table discussions; panel discussions; fun competitions like the Fabricator Olympics and Tools, Tips & Tricks contest; a market day trade show; the ever-popular costume party; and finally the awards dinner. 

A wide range of topics are covered, from fabrication techniques to business strategies and everything in between. In the college education world, this would be your gen-ed pit classes.

Everything, everywhere, all in one place

Advanced Textiles Expo is the flagship event for ATA. This brings together all the member groups of the association under one roof along with the suppliers and key players in the advanced textiles industry. If you want to find a product or learn anything about the material, fabrics, equipment and more that is available to our industry, this is the show for you!

Expo is always held in a sprawling convention center and takes full advantage of the huge amount of space available. In 2025, expo took over the Indiana Convention Center in downtown Indianapolis right down the road from Lucas Oil Stadium where the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts play, and in 2026 will be back in Orlando, Fla., at the Orange County Convention Center (see page 10 for more details!). 

Expo brings hundreds of vendors under one roof. This event runs for three days, and you need them to visit all the vendors and get a chance to spark conversations about anything that piques your interest. You can compare and contrast similar products and services from multiple vendors and network with other industry professionals to expand your knowledge base. 

Among all the exhibitor booths with their friendly team members, you can find equipment like automated cutting tables, sewing machines, grommet presses and more that you otherwise would have to travel around the country to look at individually. It provides a great bang for your buck when you are researching a new piece of equipment to bring into your shop. In college education terms, this is the freshman orientation day, where you can consume an amazing amount of information and meet a ton of new people.

As part of expo’s agenda, ATA will host educational opportunities throughout the day at various locations on the show floor where you can listen to industry veterans discuss various topics. The MFA recently started hosting a session during expo: the MFA Roadshow. This may sound like the Antiques Roadshow, where we trying to sell you something we found in Grandma’s attic for thousands of dollars, but it’s actually a combination of two or three quick sessions that gives a taste of what we offer at the MFA. It is designed to demonstrate what you can learn from fellow fabricators by joining the member group. 

Since 2014, I have been to every Marine Fabricators Conference that was hosted in person, I have hosted the MFA Great Lakes regional workshop three times, attended six others and have been to expo on four separate occasions. Each event has offered me something different, yet equally valuable. I would be more than happy to answer any questions or share my experiences with anyone that would like to get in touch with me. 

I hope to see you all at an event in the future and would be happy to welcome you to our ATA and MFA family! 

Kyle Van Damme, MFC, is the owner of Marine Tops Unlimited in Omro, Wis., and sits on the Marine Fabricators Association (MFA) advisory board. Contact him at Kyle@MarineTops.com and +1 920 420 2677.