Carolus Wrede's companies produced agricultural machinery and he became interested in tractors, as he saw a big market potential in Russian Plains where fields reached as far as eye can see. Right after his studies Gustaf Wrede to United States to learn more about vehicle production. He worked for a number of automotive companies in 1911–1912. During 1912–1914 he worked as Chief Engineer for Jackson Automobile Company in Michigan, where he focused on learning tractor technology. In 1914 Wrede returned to Finland and became Chief Engineer of Åbo Jernmanufaktur, where he started to develop a tractor. The First World War, which started shortly after, slowed down the development work; the factory was completely stopped during Civil War in 1918. The new tractor was finally introduced in the following autumn. In the meantime, Finland had become an independent state and the prominent Russian market was closed. However, the market of Baltic states looked promising. Serial production of Wrede's tractor named Kullervo started in 1919. Kullervo was produced in two variants of different engine outputs. The stronger, 30-hp version was originally intended for the Russian export. The smaller, 15-hp model was designed for domestic market. While the construction was modern, Kullervo was not sales success; despite of government subsidies, American Fordson ruled the Finnish market. Production ceased in 1924, until when just 300 units were sold.