Gradall began producing its famous excavator in the 1940's, during a time in which WWII had caused a scarcity of workers. This decline in the labor force brought a huge demand for the delicate work of finishing and grading 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 moved to the USA from the Netherlands. They were partners in the company that had become amongst the major highway contractors in the state of Ohio. The Ferwerdas' set out to make an equipment that would save their livelihoods and their company by making a model that will carry out what had before been manual slope work. This creation was to offset the gap left in the workplace when so many men had joined the military.
The brothers first created an apparatus which had 2 beams set on a rotating platform, which was fixed on top of a used truck. They utilized a telescopic cylinder to move the beams out and in. This enabled the attached 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. Next, they added a tilt cylinder that enabled the boom to turn 45 degrees in either direction. This new unit could be equipped with either a blade or a bucket 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 finished.
Not a long time later, numerous 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.