The famous Gradall excavator traces its roots back to the beginning of the 1940s. During this time, WWII had caused a scarcity of laborers as most of the young men went away to war. This decline in the work force brought a huge need for the delicate work of grading and finishing highway projects.
A Cleveland, Ohio construction business known as Ferwerda-Werba-Ferwerda faced this specific problem first hand. Two brothers, Koop and Ray Ferwerda had relocated to the USA from the Netherlands. They were partners in the company that had become amongst the major highway contractors within the state of Ohio. The Ferwerdas' started to build a machine that would save their livelihoods and their company by inventing a model that will do what had before been manual slope work. This creation was to offset the gap left in the worksite when so many men had joined the military.
The brothers first created an apparatus that had 2 beams set on a rotating platform, which was connected on top of a second-hand truck. They used a telescopic cylinder to be able to move the beams in and out. This allowed the fixed blade at the end of the beams to push or pull dirt.
After a short time, the Ferwerda brothers improved on their first design. They made a triangular boom to produce more power. Next, they added a tilt cylinder that enabled the boom to turn forty-five degrees in either direction. This new unit could be outfitted with either a blade or a bucket and the attachment movement was made possible by placing a cylinder at the rear of the boom. This design powered a long push rod and allowed much work to be completed.
Numerous digging buckets became available on the market not long later. These buckets in sizes varying from 15 inch, 24 inch, 36 inch and 60 inch buckets. There was additionally a 47 inch heavy-duty pavement removal bucket which was offered as well.