The well-known Gradall excavator traces its roots back to the beginning of the 1940s. During this time, World War II had caused a scarcity of workers since 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 referred to as Ferwerda-Werba-Ferwerda experienced this specific problem first hand. Two brothers, Koop and Ray Ferwerda had moved to the USA from the Netherlands. They were partners in the firm that had become among the leading highway contractors in the state of Ohio. The Ferwerdas' set out to make a machinery that would save both their livelihoods and their business by making a model that will do what had previously been physical slope work. This creation was to offset the gap left in the worksite when a lot of men had joined the army.
The brothers initially created an apparatus that had 2 beams set on a rotating platform, which was attached on top of a second-hand truck. They used a telescopic cylinder to move the beams in and out. This enabled 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 created a triangular boom to create more strength. Next, they added a tilt cylinder that enabled the boom to turn forty-five degrees in either direction. This new unit can be equipped 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 done.
Not a long time after, many digging buckets became available on the market. These buckets came in 15 inch, 24 inch, 36 inch and 60 inch sizes. There was also a 47 inch heavy-duty pavement removal bucket that was available too.