Subcon

Subcon gives you two days to meet suppliers that machine, fabricate, mould, finish and assemble parts, and to discuss your drawings, specifications and open projects. The sourcing exhibition for subcontract manufacturing is held in Hall 4 at NEC Birmingham and organised by MA Exhibitions. The organiser describes Subcon as a focused sourcing event rather than a broad manufacturing showcase. The 2027 edition marks 50 years of the show.

Subcon 2027 dates and opening times

You can visit free of charge on either day, as long as you register in advance.

Day	Exhibition hours
Wednesday 9 June 2027	09:30 to 17:00, free welcome drinks reception for visitors and exhibitors from 16:30
Thursday 10 June 2027	09:30 to 16:30

The organiser says 2027 registration will open in the coming months, and a register-interest form on the show site tells you when it does. After registering online, you collect your badge at the door. Under-18s may attend if supervised by an adult, although under-16s, babies included, cannot enter the conference theatres.

Who visits

As an exhibitor, most people you meet can influence buying. Subcon is aimed at procurement teams from OEMs and tiered suppliers, along with engineers, designers, supply chain managers and senior management looking for production partners. The organiser reports more than 5,000 visitors in 2026, of whom 77% had purchasing power or influence and 41% managed annual budgets above £1 million. By role, it gives 55% management and leadership, 39% procurement and supply chain and 6% engineering and technical.

Core buying sectors named by the show include aerospace, automotive, defence and security, medical, energy and renewables, rail, electronics, marine, materials, oil and gas, and food and drink. If you are weighing up other manufacturing and engineering events, you can compare it with Southern Manufacturing & Electronics at Farnborough, which opens on 2 February 2027.

Suppliers you can source from

You can source across the whole supply chain in one hall. The show quotes more than 200 exhibitors and over 1,000 products, and its exhibitor categories include:

• CNC machining, precision engineering and machine tools
• Fabrication, sheet metalwork, forming, presswork and stampings
• Castings, forgings, metal injection moulding and sintered parts
• Plastic and rubber moulding
• PCB assembly, PCBs, wiring systems and electronic manufacturing
• Finishing and surface treatments, welding and adhesives
• Additive manufacturing, prototyping and reverse engineering
• Laser, waterjet and profiling
• Inspection, measurement, metrology and testing
• Complete manufacturing and assembly services

Free talks and features

The site promises more than 50 speakers, and all conference sessions and workshops are free with no separate booking, so you can drop in using the published programme.

A new Metrology & Materials Lab will demonstrate measurement, inspection and materials technology with its own live sessions. If you are a senior buyer, you get a VIP Buyers Lounge for meetings, and Talk & Walk Trails guide you around the floor with supplier suggestions. For the anniversary edition the organiser lists a 50 years of Subcon feature area looking back at past shows, a 50th anniversary party with live entertainment, and PUBCON, a networking bar with pub games and a Subcon quiz. Subcon’s awards recognise suppliers, products and partnerships in UK manufacturing.

What you get as an exhibitor

Every exhibitor receives a free show guide listing and an online profile that can hold your videos, products and documents, and the organiser reports 176,000 web users between June 2025 and June 2026. Pre-show promotion runs through the journals Manufacturing Management, The Engineer and Machinery, plus a database the organiser puts at 180,000 engineering and manufacturing professionals and more than 30 partner magazines and associations. You are also invited to a free exhibitor breakfast. Sponsorship covers conference content, signage, show features, lounges and drinks. Subcon won the Exhibition News 2026 Exhibition Expansion Award.

To book a stand, download the sales brochure through a short form or send the exhibitor enquiry form. For a first show, our guides on choosing your first UK trade show and building an exhibition budget may help.

Getting there and other NEC shows

You can use paid parking at the NEC, and the show refers you to the venue’s own website for travel directions and access information. Hall 4 has coffee areas and a cafe serving meals, and only guide and assistance dogs are allowed. Other trade shows in Birmingham for engineering buyers include Advanced Engineering and UK Metals Expo, both opening at the NEC on 4 November 2026.

Source: subconshow.co.uk, subconshow.co.uk/faqs, subconshow.co.uk/meet, subconshow.co.uk/why-exhibit