When people first hear about Digital Product Passports (DPPs), the concept often sounds relatively straightforward.
Create a digital profile for a product.
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Connect it to a QR code.
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Make information available to consumers and regulators.
Simple.
For many teams, this is where the work really starts.
The information needed for a Digital Product Passport may already exist, but that doesn’t mean it’s sitting neatly in one place.
It can be spread across suppliers, departments and systems, with different people responsible for different parts of it.
- Material composition may come from multiple suppliers.
- Certification information is often managed separately.
- Product specifications may sit inside a PLM system.
- Commercial information could be stored in a PIM platform.
- Care label data, compliance requirements and packaging specifications often exist somewhere else again.
Each system contains valuable information, but they’re rarely designed to work together.
When product information is fragmented
DPP conversations often focus on regulation, identifiers and technology. But there’s another practical question teams need to answer:
Where will the information required for the passport actually come from?
You may already hold much of it. The challenge is knowing where it sits, whether it can be trusted, who is responsible for it and how it will be kept up to date.
That’s why delivering a DPP involves much more than generating a QR code.
It’s not just a technology project
If you’ve been given responsibility for DPP, you’ll quickly find that you can’t solve it alone.
The information and decisions involved can touch sourcing, product development, sustainability, quality, packaging, digital commerce, compliance and supplier management.
That means DPP preparation isn’t simply about choosing software. It’s also about understanding who owns what information, where it comes from and how teams and suppliers will work together.
Know where you stand
DPP requirements are becoming clearer, but the practical challenge for many teams is understanding how ready they are to meet them.
Start by looking at what information you already have, where it sits, who is responsible for it and where there may still be gaps.
That gives you a clearer picture of what needs to happen next, rather than waiting until every requirement is in place before taking action.
Where ShareLabel® fits
ShareLabel® connects the physical product to its Digital Product Passport, giving people access to the relevant digital information through a physical identifier such as a QR code.
But the passport is only one part of getting DPP ready. Our digital team can work with you to understand what you already have in place, where information needs to come from and how it can be brought together for your DPP.
You don’t have to work it all out alone.
