Lesson plan

Engesa

Engenheiros Especializados S.A., doing business as Engesa, was a Brazilian automotive and defense company headquartered in the state of São Paulo. Founded in 1958 by engineer José Luiz Whitaker Ribeiro, it produced jeeps, trucks, off-road vehicles, tractors, and armored vehicles for both civilian and military markets. Its military vehicles were sold to the Brazilian Armed Forces and to over eighteen countries, particularly in the Middle East, and were still employed in conflicts into the 21st century. At its peak in the 1970s and 1980s, Engesa was recognized as one of the "big three" in Brazil's defense industry, alongside Avibras and Embraer, but it could not withstand the sector's crisis in the late 1980s and went bankrupt in 1993. Starting as a supplier of parts for the oil industry, Engesa moved into modifying trucks, established ties with the military, and in 1972 received technology from the Brazilian Army for two armored vehicles to begin production. These vehicles, designated the EE-9 Cascavel and EE-11 Urutu, were 6x6 wheeled vehicles featuring the company's patented "boomerang" suspension system. As relatively simple and low-cost armored vehicles, they became export successes in the developing world, along with the EE-25 truck.…

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Article summary

Engenheiros Especializados S.A., doing business as Engesa, was a Brazilian automotive and defense company headquartered in the state of São Paulo. Founded in 1958 by engineer José Luiz Whitaker Ribeiro, it produced jeeps, trucks, off-road vehicles, tractors, and armored vehicles for both civilian and military markets. Its military vehicles were sold to the Brazilian Armed Forces and to over eighteen countries, particularly in the Middle East, and were still employed in conflicts into the 21st century. At its peak in the 1970s and 1980s, Engesa was recognized as one of the "big three" in Brazil's defense industry, alongside Avibras and Embraer, but it could not withstand the sector's crisis in the late 1980s and went bankrupt in 1993. Starting as a supplier of parts for the oil industry, Engesa moved into modifying trucks, established ties with the military, and in 1972 received technology from the Brazilian Army for two armored vehicles to begin production. These vehicles, designated the EE-9 Cascavel and EE-11 Urutu, were 6x6 wheeled vehicles featuring the company's patented "boomerang" suspension system. As relatively simple and low-cost armored vehicles, they became export successes in the developing world, along with the EE-25 truck.…

Key claims

  1. date of establishment: 1972 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
  2. date of foundation: 1958 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

  1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
  2. The record states that the date of establishment is "1972". What evidence would count against this claim?
  3. The record states that the date of foundation is "1958". What evidence would count against this claim?
  4. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
  5. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

  1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1378826978

Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.