Nonlinear system identification is a vast research field, today attracting a great deal of attention in the structural dynamics community. Ten years ago, an MSSP paper reviewing the progress achieved until then [1] concluded that the identification of simple continuous structures with localised nonlinearities was within reach. The past decade witnessed a shift in emphasis, accommodating the growing industrial need for a first generation of tools capable of addressing complex nonlinearities in larger-scale structures. The objective of the present paper is to survey the key developments which arose in the field since 2006, and to illustrate state-of-the-art techniques using a real-world satellite structure. Finally, a broader perspective to nonlinear system identification is provided by discussing the central role played by experimental models in the design cycle of engineering structures. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.