Carpintería de Alejandro was established in A Pontenova in 1951 by Alejandro Martínez Rancaño to undertake all sorts of carpentry and joinery. It is currently registered as Craft Workshop No 4681 in the Galician General Craft Registry. The firm also holds an Artisan’s Certificate awarded… by the Galician Government, with No 3254.

In keeping with tradition, they do mostly structural carpentry, both interior and exterior – a business that has grown with the rise of rural tourism in this part of Lugo province.

For interiors they manufacture doors, windows, shutters, floorboards, roof frameworks, false ceilings, stairs, handrails and any other domestic furnishings. For exteriors they make gates, front doors, picture windows, balconies, verandas, sheds, pergolas, wicket gates or perimeter fences. Lately, with rising demand for the restoration of hórreo and cabazo granaries and sheds, so common in Lugo province, they have also been active in this field. They make traditional carpentry joints and bindings: mortise assemblies, rabbet joints, dovetailing, mouldings mitred on one or two sides, tongue-and-groove arrangements moulded at the joint, etc.

The north of Lugo province, where the firm is located, has many good timber mills, and so most of their wood is sourced locally: chestnut, oak, Galician pine and walnut. This is dried naturally, assuring the stability and soundness of their work.

Their manufacturing process involves traditional techniques, though machinery has been introduced to enhance precision and speed. Handcrafted woodwork is discernible by its finish and distinctive quality, and by its good fit to what is wanted in each project. At the same time, a band saw helps to cut boards to the required size, a planer to smooth them off, a thicknesser to produce pieces of identical size, along with a table saw, and a spindle moulder/tenoner helps to make assorted door panels, mouldings and joints, a chisel mortiser to cut out slots and a calibrating sander to give a fine finish.