Ship To Shore makes big splash at Wurtele

Captain (Navy) Kevin Whiteside, Base Commander of CFB Esquimalt, reads through a copy of the Lookout Newspaper with Jazmin Holdway, Lookout Manager at the Ship to Shore Industrial Trade Show at Wurtele Arena on Aug. 1. Photos: Peter Mallett/Lookout Newspaper

Peter Mallett
Staff Writer

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The Ship-to-Shore Industrial Tradeshow made its successful debut at Wurtele Arena last week.

With the sticks and pucks put away and the hockey arena’s ice surface melted down for the off-season, dozens of representatives from business and community organizations set up booths on the arena floor on Aug 1.

Their mission was to educate, entertain and promote their operations while providing free swag, product samples and prizes to the hundreds of military personnel and civilian employees from CFB Esquimalt.

The Ship-to-Shore Industrial Tradeshow replaced the former Industrial Supplier Tradeshow, traditionally held each year in September. Hosted by The Lookout Newspaper, the moment marked the return of the industrial tradeshow staged at the Base since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It was an opportunity for vendors to connect face-to-face with the Defence Team and the extended community beyond the front gates of CFB Esquimalt, says Jazmin Holdway, Lookout Manager.

“The return of our tradeshow for industrial suppliers and industry partners was an overwhelming success,” Holdway said. “This event is an opportunity to bring in local, national and international businesses and services to the Base that support military members and the Defence community, whether that be at home, at work, or at sea.”

John McLaren of Western Equipment Ltd., displays a longlink mooring chain at the Ship to Shore Industrial Trade Show, at Wurtele Arena on Aug. 1. Credit: Peter Mallett/Lookout Newspaper

Visitors and vendors got a chance to enjoy static displays and demonstrations and take home free product samples. There was also a free barbeque lunch hosted by the Esquimalt Military Family Resource Centre and free hot coffee donated by Mcdonald’s Colwood. Door prizes were donated by vendors, with the lucky winners excited to receive their prize packages.

Title sponsors for this year’s event were Hanwha Ocean Co. and Royal Roads University. Royal Roads University is a publicly funded university in Colwood with an applied and professional degree-granting focus and enjoys a close working relationship with CFB Esquimalt, given its history as a military college until 1995. Hanwha Ocean Co. is a shipbuilder based in South Korea which recently struck an agreement to collaborate and design the construction of Canadian warships and logistical support projects with Babcock Canada.

The Ship-to-Shore Industrial Tradeshow is the second event to be hosted by the Lookout in 2023 following the successful return of the MARPAC Health and Wellness Expo, which will return in Spring 2024. All funds raised for the tradeshows and expos go back into supporting the morale and welfare of the Defence Team through the efforts and programs of Canadians Forces Morale and Welfare Services (CFMWS).

Acting Sub-Lieutenant Chris Mejia of HMCS Regina looks at a model of a submarine with Vincent Kim, General Manager, Naval and Ship Overseas Marketing Team of Hanwha Ocean.