Record participation in ESA’s Industry Space Days 2026

What happened

The Technology tent, dedicated to European technologies, was a new addition to the ISD and allowed companies with completed ESA Technology projects to pitch their engineering solutions. On 16–17 September, the European Space Agency (ESA) hosted a record 3100 visitors from Europe’s space industry for a two-day Industry Space Days (ISD) event at ESA’s ESTEC technical centre in the Netherlands.

As the largest ESA-focused business-to-business event, the ISD has become a key date on the European space calendar. ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher welcomed participants to the event where more than 100 presentations were delivered in the three conference halls giving insights into ESA’s near- and long-term activities and procurement needs across all ESA programmes.

The event featured panel discussions, workshops, social networking opportunities and ESA awards . The ISD is organised by ESA’s SME section in ESA's Directorate of Finance, Controlling and Operational Procurement to foster cooperation within the entire space sector.