Celebrating 40 Years of Niftylift
Celebrating Niftylift’s 40th anniversary and sharing the story of our journey from a garden shed in Bedfordshire to a world leader in access platform innovation.
Monday 21 July 2025
A Legacy Built on Innovation, People, and Purpose
In May 2025, we marked a truly special milestone: 40 years of Niftylift. To celebrate this achievement, we welcomed suppliers and customers to our Shenley Wood headquarters in Milton Keynes for a two-day celebration that reflected not just how far we’ve come, but the values, people and partnerships that got us here.
At the heart of the event was a gala dinner, where we premiered a commemorative video capturing Niftylift’s story over the past four decades. Now, we’re proud to share that video publicly for the first time.
From Garden Shed to Global Success
Niftylift was founded in 1985 by Roger Bowden, who began by designing a lightweight trailer-mounted boom lift in his garden shed in Bedfordshire. That 12-metre machine, still in production today, quickly gained interest, and what started as a hire business evolved into a global manufacturer of mobile elevating work platforms (MEWPs).
Today, Niftylift has over 550 employees, manufacturing sites across the UK, offices in the US and Europe, and export partners in more than 70 countries. We’ve earned a reputation for designing compact, low-weight, high-performance machines that deliver exceptional reach, reliability and return on investment.
Innovation That Matters
Throughout our journey, innovation has remained a driving force. From the introduction of our first self-propelled HeightRider model in 1988 to pioneering safety systems like SiOPS® and ClipOn, we’ve led the way in developing intuitive solutions that protect operators and improve productivity.
We were the first to introduce a true parallel hybrid system to the MEWP market, and our latest Hydrogen-Electric range is another world-first, delivering zero-emission performance using hydrogen fuel cell technology, making it ideal for low-carbon construction sites.
People First, Always
We’re proud to say that Niftylift is built on strong relationships. Whether it’s our long-standing suppliers, global dealers, loyal customers, or the dedicated teams across every department, the people behind Niftylift are what make it all possible.
That includes our award-winning apprenticeship and graduate programmes, our investment in automation and training, and our continued outreach with schools and STEM initiatives to inspire the next generation of engineers.
Looking Ahead
As we celebrate 40 years of innovation, we’re also looking to the future. We’ll continue to invest in sustainable growth, develop market-leading products, and refine our processes with one clear aim: to make working at height safer, smarter and more sustainable.
Thank you to everyone who’s been part of our journey so far. We hope you enjoy the video.
???? Watch the 40th Anniversary Video on YouTube
