“We lay on the production of multipiece natural cork stoppers, because we believe they are a quality product to stop the wine"

Funded in the 60’s by Manuel Barros – the present owner’s father, whom gave the enterprise’s name, Free Cork, Cortiças, Lda., has nowadays Quintino Barros on the Administration and guidance of the enterprise, situated in Santa Maria de Lamas, Portugal.

The name’s change from Manuel Barros, Lda., to Free Cork, Cortiças, Lda. Was due to the entrance of new partners to the firm, keeping, even that, the familiar structure, with the family members as heads of the firm. Free Cork, Cortiças, Lda., ever labour in the same plants, having through the years many changes, allowing it to satisfy all its customers and market needs. It begun with approximately five employees and in its best times, they were 30. Nowadays, it has 13 employees, which mainly produce multipiece natural cork stoppers. It has begin producing natural cork stoppers and having capacity for that, it was decided, in 2002, to lay on the multipiece cork stoppers “because we believe that is a quality product able to seal all kind of wine”. The production capacity of this kind of stopper is about 40 thousands/day, the natural cork stoppes is about 70 thousands/day. About exportation, at now, Spain, at the same level as Portugal, consumes the firm production. When we produced natural cork stoppers, we have exported to USA, France, Italy and Australia.

Future

Free cork, Cortiças, Lda., invests, from a while, on the production of its own machinery, since the machines for the production of multipiece are planned inside because either they are difficult to found in the machinery market, or the own production decreases the technology cost. There are some manual processes to automatize, keeping the investment and testing new machines believing that their will work soon.

In 2005, in a way to satisfy an investment in the production qualification, the firm decided being certificated by the ICCSMP – International Code of Cork Stopper Manufacturing Practices.

Aims

The firm is laying in the investment of the quality improvement and in the increasing of the productive capacity, with the crescent internationalisation perspective.