Rockwell Automation said this week it is collaborating with Tekna Automazione e Controllo and Prometeon Tyre Group to automate tire inspection and quality control on the production floor. Prometeon commissioned the system, which pairs Tekna's machine vision and inspection technology with Rockwell's industrial automation, to detect and classify defects on radial tires built for trucks and buses during the final stages of inspection.
Prometeon describes itself as the only tire manufacturer focused entirely on the industrial, agricultural, and off-the-road (OTR) segments. The project targets high-volume production lines, where the goal is more uniform inspection outcomes and better visibility into production performance for Prometeon's teams. For QA managers running high-throughput lines, automated defect classification promises fewer manual checks and structured defect data that feeds directly into process control decisions, rather than relying on inspector judgment alone.
"Tire manufacturers must respond to constantly rising expectations for product quality, operational efficiency and workforce productivity," said Luca Galluzzi, Rockwell Automation's country director for Italy. He said the project shows the value of combining complementary skills across the industrial ecosystem, and is meant to help create more consistent production outcomes while giving Prometeon greater visibility into performance and opportunities for continuous improvement.
"For many years, Tekna has worked closely with tire manufacturers to develop concrete solutions for inspection and quality control needs," said Michele De Stasio, chairman and CEO of Tekna Automazione e Controllo. Combining Tekna's machine vision and data analysis experience with Rockwell's industry expertise and Prometeon's process knowledge, De Stasio said, created the conditions for more reliable, repeatable inspection along with useful production insight.
Kalypso, Rockwell's digital transformation consulting arm, is also involved, working to align the new inspection capabilities with Prometeon's wider manufacturing modernization strategy. Bruno Lodi, chief manufacturing officer at Prometeon Tyre Group, said the company is evaluating technologies that strengthen product quality and support more data-driven manufacturing as part of its continuous push toward operational excellence. "This collaboration brings together the expertise of multiple organizations and represents a further step in our broader manufacturing transformation journey," Lodi said.
The tire inspection system is one piece of a wider, ongoing relationship between Prometeon and Rockwell Automation that spans efforts to raise operational efficiency and drive long-term digital transformation across the tire maker's manufacturing operations, rather than a stand-alone deployment.
