Gradall began making its famous excavator in the 1940's, during a time wherein World War II had caused a scarcity of laborers. 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 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 firm which had become one of the leading highway contractors within Ohio. The Ferwerdas' set out to make a machine that would save their business and their livelihoods by inventing a model that will do what had before been physical slope work. This invention was to offset the gap left in the worksite when so many men had joined the military.
The brothers first invented an apparatus that had 2 beams set on a rotating platform, which was attached on top of a second-hand truck. They utilized a telescopic cylinder in order to move the beams out and in. 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 create more power. Then, they added a tilt cylinder which allowed the boom to turn 45 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 much work to be finished.
Not a long time later, numerous 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 that was also available.