In recent years, the fashion supply chain has undergone a profound transformation, driven by technological innovation. Companies and footwear manufacturers are no longer focused solely on production; they are now expected to guarantee traceability, safety and efficient resource management. Brustia Alfameccanica -a leader in the design and manufacture of footwear machinery since 1958, including heel nailing and fixing machines, backpart and toe moulding machines- stands out as a benchmark in quality inspection. Building upon its strong foundation in traditional machinery, the company has developed innovative solutions for quality control and traceability, crucial elements for manufacturers in the footwear, leather goods, and broader apparel sectors.
Key among Brustia’s latest innovations are Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) inspection systems for automatic product identification and X-ray devices for quality control – a field where the company is both a pioneer and the European leader.
“We have enhanced our X-ray technology by integrating artificial intelligence,” explains CEO Maria Vittoria Brustia. ‘While the systems already featured software-driven automatic inspection, we’ve now added AI-based capabilities. This represents a significant leap in quality, as operators no longer need to review every image manually. Instead, they can focus solely on those flagged by the machine as potentially anomalous. We delegate repetitive and tedious tasks to AI, freeing up human intelligence to handle more complex and strategic aspects.”
Alongside X-ray inspections, the company has introduced AI-powered visual inspection systems capable of detecting fabric defects and identifying areas for removal, thereby streamlining the selection process and minimizing waste. These solutions align perfectly with the market’s growing emphasis on sustainability. “Recycling is a major topic of discussion right now,” Brustia adds. “Our system helps identify which items can be reused and which require a more thorough recycling process. Furthermore,” she continues, “the integration of AI and RFID enables comprehensive product tracking – monitoring production, order progress, inventory and automating shipping – right from the initial dispatch through subsequent distribution and quality control stages. This approach is also highly effective for managing logistics returns, another growing area. Consider products returned for non-compliance, like shoes or garments tried on and sent back. Here, AI and RFID traceability provide precise control: we know exactly which item was shipped and can detect any anomalies in how it was handled after leaving us.” The innovation doesn’t stop there. Brustia Alfameccanica’s BAT (Brustia Advanced Technology) division has extended RFID solutions to automated warehouses, which are becoming increasingly common in Italy and Europe. This allows for real-time production monitoring and enhances warehouse and logistics management through advanced traceability systems. In the footwear sector, for example, this technology enables automatic shoe identification without manual machine programming, thus reducing errors and optimizing workflows. Quality control also benefits significantly, as these systems can detect foreign objects or internal product defects, ensuring compliance with the industry’s stringent standards. RFID reading tunnels automatically verify product conformity, slashing shipping errors by 99.9% and ensuring maximum precision at every stage, from production through logistics. This strategic evolution has also driven a significant expansion of the company’s presence at trade fairs. “Recently, we’ve participated not only in Simac Tanning Tech, Italy’s premier showcase for leather, footwear, and leather goods technology, but also in events dedicated to apparel, logistics, and quality control. This supports our strategy to broaden our market reach across multiple fronts,” concludes Maria Vittoria Brustia.
Maria Vittoria Brustia
