When Sef and Jacqueline drove to the Chamber of Commerce 23 years ago to register FireWare, the radio was on. Summer Jam by The Underdog Project was playing. At that time, the song was number 1 in the Top 40. It stayed at number 1 for 9 weeks. And how great is it that, 23 years later, the very same song is still number 1 in the Sky Radio Top 101! Music really is connected to memories!
Today FireWare celebrates its 23rd anniversary! And we’re celebrating! A lot has happened during that time. Beautiful things, great things, sad things. Highs, lows, and everything in between. But above all, we have been working on our mission: to ensure that emergency responders all over the world can become and remain competent in their profession. And throughout it all, we have never forgotten our roots in the theatre
Hard work
It takes hard work to build a company sustainably from scratch. In this case, from a student room in Amsterdam Zuidoost. Now, 23 years later, we see that some people think everything came naturally. That it just fell into our lap. Nothing could be further from the truth. It really takes hard work to build a company
That is exactly why Sef and Jacqueline spent a year sailing with their family. They left in August 2024 and returned in August 2025. During that time, FireWare continued to operate. The daily management was in the hands of Virgil, Melissa and Liliane. From a distance, Sef and Jacqueline remained involved
After returning, a new balance is found. Because Sef and Jacq are back again. With the experience of a year-long sailing trip behind them. And the interaction with FireWare is different as a result
A new Managing Director!
Neither Sef nor Jacqueline felt the need to return to their previous role. In fact, the team had done such a great job that it would have been a very strange decision to do so!
That is why the daily management of FireWare is being transferred to Liliane Smits. Liliane has been working at FireWare for almost 9 years and, during the absence of Sef and Jacq, has shown that she is extremely capable of leading the team, motivating people and making decisions. But above all, she never, ever loses sight of FireWare’s mission, vision and core values. That is why we are truly happy to introduce the new Managing Director of FireWare: Liliane Smits!
Sef and Jacq still involved
Sef and Jacqueline will remain the shareholders of FireWare and stay involved behind the scenes. However, they are stepping back from the daily management. You may still come across them from time to time at a project or a trade show. They both enjoy the emergency services world far too much to say goodbye to it
Double celebration!
28 July 2026 is therefore a double celebration! 23 years of FireWare and a new Managing Director who will take FireWare even further into the future. We are certainly looking forward to everything that is still to come!
FireWare