Pirelli Tire North America President and CEO Paolo Ferrari reinforced his company’s will to invest in Rome and Floyd County as well as its headquarters plant in Rome during a celebration of the company’s 10th anniversary in Rome Monday night.

Pirelli officials revealed an ongoing partnership with the Greater Rome History Museum while unveiling a special Pirelli addition to the industry display in the museum in downtown Rome.

The very first tire that rolled off the line at the giant Pirelli plant in Rome will be part of the exhibit.

“The exhibit will feature a storyboard celebrating the work that Rome has done with Pirelli manufacturing here in Rome and the great products that they make,” said Leigh Barba, executive director of the Rome Area History Museum.

She said Pirelli was the best intersection of style and substance in the manufacturing world.

Barba was ecstatic about the ongoing relationship between RAHM and Pirelli.

“I’m really excited that they want to do this because I think forming these community partnerships helps all the way around,” Barba said. “They’re a global company, a great brand and it’s a real honor to be a part of that.”

Pirelli has made a substantial financial commitment to the museum, the terms of which were not disclosed Monday night.

Ferrari, who said the company’s operations across the NAFTA region are expanding, stressed that Rome is still the heart of Pirelli’s operations in North America. He said the group has invested nearly $160 million in the Rome plant during the last decade. “The return has been extremely positive because of the type of tires that this factory produces,” Ferrari said.

Pirelli made a conscious decision to focus on premium, which means concentrating on tires with a high technology component. “What we have here in Rome is an organization with the structure and the production facility that can manage that complexity better than anywhere else in the Pirelli world,” Ferrari said.

Alex Rosenzweig, chief legal officer for Pirelli, told community leaders that the plant in Rome is evidence of the company’s translation to futuristic technology. “With Rome as our headquarters and our nerve center, we have the most technologically advanced tire factory in the world,” Rosenzweig said. “The pulse of everything we are doing is in Rome.”

Pirelli is having a weeklong celebration of its 10th anniversary in Rome, including an employee luncheon at the plant today. U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson will tour the plant today at 2 p.m.