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 workers since most of the young men went away to war. This decrease in the work force brought a huge demand for the delicate work of grading and finishing highway projects.
A Cleveland, Ohio construction business referred to as Ferwerda-Werba-Ferwerda experienced this particular dilemma first hand. Two brothers, Ray and Koop Ferwerda had moved to the USA from the Netherlands. They were partners in the firm that had become among the leading highway contractors within Ohio. The Ferwerdas' started to build a machine that will save both their livelihoods and their company by inventing a unit which would carry out what had previously been manual slope work. This invention was to offset the gap left in the worksite when so many men had joined the army.
The first apparatus these brothers created 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 enabled the connected blade at the end of the beams to push or pull dirt.
The Ferwerda brothers improved on their first design by making a triangular boom to create more power. After that, they added a tilt cylinder which allowed the boom to rotate 45 degrees in either direction. This new unit could be outfitted with either a bucket or a blade 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 finished.
Numerous digging buckets were introduced to 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 which was offered as well.