Gradall began producing its famous excavator in the 1940's, during a time in which World War II had created a scarcity of workers. This decline in the work force brought a huge need for the delicate work of finishing and grading highway projects.
A Cleveland, Ohio construction company known as Ferwerda-Werba-Ferwerda faced this particular problem first hand. Two brothers, Koop and Ray Ferwerda had moved to the United States from the Netherlands. They were partners in the company that had become among the leading highway contractors within Ohio. The Ferwerdas' set out to make an equipment which will save their company and their livelihoods by making a model which would do what had before been physical slope work. This creation was to offset the gap left in the workplace when so many men had joined the army.
The brothers initially created an apparatus which had 2 beams set on a rotating platform, that was attached on top of a second-hand truck. They utilized a telescopic cylinder to move the beams in and out. This allowed the fixed blade at the end of the beams to pull or push dirt.
The Ferwerda brothers improved on their first design by creating a triangular boom to produce more power. Next, they added a tilt cylinder which enabled the boom to turn forty-five 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 done.
Not a long time later, many digging buckets became available on the market. These buckets came in 15 inch, 24 inch, 36 inch and 60 inch sizes. There was additionally a 47 inch heavy-duty pavement removal bucket that was also offered.