The famous Gradall excavator traces its roots back to the beginning of the 1940s. During this time, World War II had created a scarcity of laborers since the majority of the young men went away to war. This decline in the work force brought a huge demand for the delicate work of grading and finishing highway projects.
A Cleveland, Ohio construction company known as Ferwerda-Werba-Ferwerda faced this particular problem first hand. Two brothers, Ray and Koop Ferwerda had relocated to the United States from the Netherlands. They were partners in the firm which had become one of the major highway contractors in the state of Ohio. The Ferwerdas' started to make an equipment which will save their business and their livelihoods by inventing a unit that would perform what had previously been physical slope work. This creation was to offset the gap left in the workplace when lots of men had joined the military.
The initial apparatus these brothers invented had 2 beams set on a rotating platform and was connected directly onto the top of a truck. They utilized a telescopic cylinder in order to move the beams out and in. This allowed the attached blade at the end of the beams to pull or push dirt.
The Ferwerda brothers improved on their initial design by making a triangular boom to produce more power. After that, they added a tilt cylinder that enabled the boom to turn forty-five degrees in either direction. This new model could be outfitted 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 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 also a 47 inch heavy-duty pavement removal bucket that was offered as well.