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The Solution To Combine Fires
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Fireward supply, install and maintain automatic fire suppression systems fitted to predominantly combine harvesters in the agricultural sector.
In a nutshell, our systems are designed to rapidly detect and put out machinery fires before they cause serious damage to the machine, operator and it’s surroundings all while lowering insurance premiums and minimising downtime for farmers who have completely lost their combines.
Prior to this seasons harvest, Lincolnshire-based farm, Chatterton & Cooke, chose to equip their brand-new John Deere X9 combine harvester with a Fireward dual agent automatic fire suppression system, strengthening their commitment to safety, uptime, and operational resilience.
Farm Manager Mick Baker sees fire protection as an essential step, not an optional extra.
“I think they should come out with them, to be honest. Most machines need them.”
The Reality of Combine Fires
Mick’s reasoning isn’t just precaution, it’s practical.
“In this day and age, you need to cover yourself. Downtime as well is precious now. We don't get much of a window for harvest. If your combine goes up on fire, it's losing money.”
Mick knows the risks personally when asked if he'd ever been involved in a fire:
“A tractor, years ago. I was probably about 19. By the time I got out of the cab, that was it. Too late.”
With fires capable of spreading in seconds and high-value equipment at stake, having a suppression system in place has never been more critical.
“These suppressors are the way to go,” Mick added, based on his past experience.
NFU Mutual: 2023 Fire Claim Statistics (Latest figures)
According to the latest numbers released by NFU Mutual, UK farm fires rose by 21% in 2023, with combine harvester fires doubling to 258 incidents. That alone accounted for £7.4 million in insurance claims last year.
These figures from NFU Mutual highlight the growing financial burden of agricultural machinery fires:
- Agricultural vehicle and machinery fire claims totalled £37.7 million in 2023
- Combines accounted for £7.4 million (down from £11.1m in 2022)
- Tractor fire claims rose to £20.4 million (up from £14.7m in 2022)
- Other machinery, such as balers and telehandlers, made up a further £9.9 million in claims
These figures aren’t theoretical, they reflect real losses, downtime, and operational disruption for farms across the UK.
Fireward are trusted by the NFU, who offer a 15% discount on combine harvester insurance premiums with an SPCR 199 accredited fire suppression system installed, which Fireward’s meets.
Fireward’s Fire Suppression System
The dual agent fire suppression system fitted to the John Deere X9 offers the best of both worlds:
Dry Powder – Rapidly knocks down flames in seconds
Wet Chemical – Cools hot components and flammable liquid to prevent re-ignition
Fireward’s fully-automatic system activates without any input from the operator, ideal when seconds matter. With in-cab alerts, and built-in battery isolators, it provides multi-layer protection for both the machine and the operator.
Fire Protection Beyond Combines
As Caroline Wilson, Fireward’s National Sales Manager for Agriculture, pointed out:
“It's not just the combines that we can protect. We can also cover tractors, telehandlers, balers… There’s actually quite a lot of the farm components that we can protect with our suppression systems.”
And given that tractors accounted for over £20 million in fire claims last year, the need to protect the full range of agricultural machinery is more urgent than ever.
Protect your machinery, your harvest, and your team with Fireward.
Our agricultural fire suppression systems are trusted across the UK to reduce downtime, protect assets, and prevent major losses.
