The well-known Gradall excavator traces its roots back to the start of the 1940s. During this time, World War II had created a shortage of workers as nearly all of the young men went away to war. This decline in the work force brought a huge demand for the delicate work of finishing and grading highway projects.
Ferwerda-Werba-Ferwerda was a Cleveland, Ohio based construction business which experienced this specific dilemma first hand. Ray and Koop Ferwerda were brothers who had relocated from the Netherlands. They were partners in the company which had become one of the major highway contractors in the state of Ohio. The Ferwerdas' set out to make an equipment that will save both their livelihoods and their business by making a unit that will do what had before been manual slope work. This invention was to offset the gap left in the worksite when so many men had joined the army.
The initial apparatus these brothers created had 2 beams set on a rotating platform and was fixed 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 first design. They created a triangular boom to produce more power. After that, they added a tilt cylinder which allowed the boom to turn forty-five degrees in either direction. This new model can be equipped 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 a lot of 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 which was offered as well.