![](https://emergencyservicestimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ESS-Button-resized.png")
Earlier this month, North Fire announced the production of its new fire vehicle, having only launched the business in January 2024. Ahead of showing the Rapid Response Vehicle at The Emergency Services Show in September, CEO Oliver North opens up about the evolution of the company, the confluence of fire and military throughout his career and the future of the business.
I’d never heard of Mytholmroyd before I set up a visit to interview Oliver North. It’s rather beautiful, nestled in the Calder Valley deep in the heart of West Yorkshire. North is Yorkshire born and bred and it runs through every aspect of his life and approach to business.
North Fire is a vehicle conversion specialist. It takes a chassis and converts it into a firefighting appliance. You can comfortably count on one hand, the number of companies that do this in the UK. I am reluctant to use the word factory to describe the working environment at North Fire because it is gleaming. It’s clear from looking at photographs from his time working in this industry, that the same obsession with clean, ordered working environments is a theme for Oliver North.
On the day of my visit, I looked at one Ford Ranger vehicle, destined to be one of the new Rapid Response Vehicles, where the ‘box’ on the back contained a small pump, space for a lot of water and lift-up sides and rear which double as protection for the operator come rain or shine.
Every inch of space is accounted for as the conversion process seeks to bring the weight in under 3.5t. The edges of the rear of the vehicle are rounded and moulded to ease away awkward sharpness and the livery is the bright red and yellow anyone would associate with an emergency fire vehicle. There are lots of these in varied states of completeness and plenty of activity going on around me as the conversion process continued.
North commends the technical expertise of his team, each of whom specialise in aspects of the conversion. He speaks with great fondness of them and respect for their trade and commitment to producing a high quality product.
There’s a complicated back story with North that wends its way, like the River Calder lapping outside, through the years since he left the army in 2004, from setting up the first incarnation of North Fire in 2008 to earlier this year when he resurrected it here in Mytholmroyd.
Some of the staff today come from other parts of the story in between, from fellow Yorkshire fire equipment supplier Angloco and the UK base for Austrian fire giant, Rosenbauer. The foreman of North Fire, Rory, grew up with North and I meet others who have known him seemingly forever.
For most of us, the worldwide pandemic meant a massive change in our lives as we retreated into our homes for periods of lockdown. The same applied to manufacturers, but those who could assist the efforts of the NHS continued to operate and this is what happened to North.
Having aligned with ambulance manufacturer O+H Vehicle Technology before 2020, Venari, North’s company at the time, was in prime position to use its expertise to make mobile Covid testing units. The team fabricated the trailers using raw materials and fitted them out with clinical equipment and NHS livery. Venari sent hundreds of testing units out to be used around the country. It was one way to stay afloat and to aid the country’s efforts to deal with the effects of the pandemic.
No longer required for use in the UK, North bought back many of the mobile testing centres, reworking them with a different livery. They will now find their way to Ukraine to assist the war efforts. North is proud to be able to continue and evolve his commitment to Ukraine.
It’s not the first time he’s spent time and money to provide equipment overseas. He’s refurbished and converted old British Army armoured vehicles to operate in a war-torn environment, most recently driving some of them to into the heart of Ukraine, often as far East as Dnipro. He’s spent time in Ukraine meeting military leaders, trained the frontline users on the newly fitted and more sophisticated electrical systems, and watched on as the vehicles are ‘blessed’ by Priests before being deployed.
It’s interesting to see this evolution of North’s career, as back in the early 2000s he had been part of a group of military personnel who operated on the ‘green goddesses’. These were old military fire engines that had been kept for resilience purposes and during the national fire strike in 2002/3, were brought out of storage and used across the country. They are an artefact now, as the government changed its approach to resilience and no longer calls on the military to provide fire cover.
The photograph of North with a fire hose aged 21 is a prescient moment in his life and the beginning of his decades’ long relationship with fire; he says a fire engine is ‘a work of art.’
North Fire is looking to increase its impact with product launches throughout the next 18 months. Following the recent launch of the 3.5t Rapid Response Vehicle, a 5.5 tonne appliance is due for release later this year, with larger 18t B-types and heavy rescue trucks expected in the first half of 2025. Unable to share details, North says to expect a ‘significant export vehicle launch’ at the end of 2024, reminding me with a smile, that it is all ‘manufactured in Yorkshire with passion.’
Evolving the business must also take account of the move to electric with the government’s commitment to ceasing production of petrol and diesel vehicles in 2035 (extended last year from the original target of 2030). North is clearly looking at the impact of this on his business and while there’s nothing specific in his responses to me on this topic, he intimates that he’s already on the case, seeking to innovate and move North Fire forward to a green future.
It’s not just the products that are occupying North’s thoughts about the future. His son Oscar is sixteen and he’s starting his apprenticeship with the firm in September. Along with his best friend, Oscar will learn the business from the bottom up and, says North, will not be getting any favourable treatment. North is too young to retire but with a firm eye to Oscar taking over the business one day, North Fire looks like it will be around for a long while yet.
Read about the launch of the North Fire Rapid Response Vehicle launched in June 2024.
To read similar articles, check out our Products channel.
The industry will once again be gathering at the NEC, Birmingham for The Emergency Services Show, co located with The Emergency Tech Show on 18-19 September, check out the full exhibitor list here. You can find North Fire in Hall 5, stand B230.
