The well-known Gradall excavator traces its roots back to the beginning of the 1940s. During this time, the second World War had caused a scarcity of workers as nearly all of the young men went away to fight the war. This decrease in the labor force brought a huge need for the delicate work of grading and finishing highway projects.
A Cleveland, Ohio construction company known as Ferwerda-Werba-Ferwerda experienced this specific problem first hand. Two brothers, Ray and Koop Ferwerda had moved to the United States from the Netherlands. They were partners in the business which had become among the major highway contractors in the state of Ohio. The Ferwerdas' started to build a machine which will save both their livelihoods and their company by making a unit that would do what had before been manual slope work. This invention was to offset the gap left in the workplace when so many men had joined the army.
The initial device these brothers invented had 2 beams set on a rotating platform and was attached directly onto the top of a truck. They used a telescopic cylinder to move the beams in and out. This allowed the connected blade at the end of the beams to push or pull dirt.
After a short time, the Ferwerda brothers improved on their initial design. They made a triangular boom to produce more strength. Then, they added a tilt cylinder which enabled the boom to rotate forty-five degrees in either direction. This new unit can be equipped with either a bucket or a blade and the attachment movement was made possible by placing a cylinder at the back of the boom. This design powered a long push rod and allowed a lot of work to be completed.
Not a long time after, many digging buckets were introduced 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 also available.