Poclain was a family company founded by Georges Bataille in France in the 1927, then developed by his sons Pierre and Claude Bataille, with help from Jacques and Bernard Bataille. Poclain produced hydraulic excavators, and was a leader in the French and world market thanks to a revolutionary hydraulic motor during the 1970s. The Batailles were forced to sell part of the company to Case in 1974, an American company, which then took over completely in 1987, leaving them only the Hydraulics division, which is still trading today.