1. Introduction
Sustainability has become a key area of business activity, driven by regulatory requirements, increasing customer demands and societal pressures (Reference ReuterReuter, 2023). A prominent example is the European Green Deal, which aims to make the European Union carbon neutral by 2050 (Reference Jansen, Gerstenberger, Bitter-Krahe, Berg, Sebestyén and SchneiderKirchhoff et al., 2024). This initiative calls on companies to reduce their CO2 emissions, implement resource-efficient processes and establish sustainable value chains (Reference KreutzerKreutzer, 2023). At the same time, consumers are increasingly demanding environmentally and socially responsible products (Reference MoradiMoradi, 2017), which further motivates companies to consider sustainability as an integral part of their business strategy (Reference Altmann and ZierleinAltmann & Zierlein, 2024). These developments show that sustainability has become not only an ethical imperative, but also an economic one.
The Digital Product Passport (DPP) is an innovative concept that digitally captures and makes accessible comprehensive information about a product's composition, origin and life cycle (Reference Psarommatis and MayPsarommatis & May, 2024). This concept aims to promote transparency of sustainable data, e.g. the carbon footprint of a product, along the entire value chain and support the implementation of circular economy strategies (Reference Jansen, Gerstenberger, Bitter-Krahe, Berg, Sebestyén and SchneiderJansen et al., 2022). By providing detailed data on materials, technical specifications and sustainability aspects, the DPP enables more efficient use of resources and facilitates processes such as recycling, reuse and repair (Reference Voulgaridis, Lagkas, Angelopoulos, Boulogeorgos, Argyriou and SarigiannidisVoulgaridis et al., 2024). The European Union has made the DPP a central element in its initiatives to promote a circular economy and achieve climate neutrality by 2050 (Reference Jansen, Gerstenberger, Bitter-Krahe, Berg, Sebestyén and SchneiderJansen et al., 2022). Companies are therefore increasingly required to implement DPPs to both meet regulatory requirements and meet consumers' growing expectations for sustainable and accountable products (Reference Psarommatis and MayPsarommatis & May, 2024). The DPP not only provides transparency of sustainable data along the value chain but can add significant value to product development. By providing detailed information on materials, origin, and manufacturing processes, the DPP can enable informed decision-making in the design process. This promotes the development of more sustainable and efficient products. In addition, the DPP makes it easier to identify potential improvements and implement innovations, which can lead to faster time-to-market and reduced development costs (Reference Voulgaridis, Lagkas, Angelopoulos, Boulogeorgos, Argyriou and SarigiannidisVoulgaridis et al., 2024).
To create and use the DPP effectively, companies face the challenge of identifying the relevant data for the DPP. Current legislation does not yet provide clear guidance on what specific data must be included in the DPP. This uncertainty requires companies to take initiative-taking steps to analyze and prioritize the relevant information for their products. Due to the insufficient legal texts and lack of information regarding the relevant information, this task is a challenge for both large and small companies. The additional value of the DPP depends largely on the strategic decision to include further data beyond the regulatory requirements. Such additional data can add significant value depending on how the DPP is used, for example in product development, customer service or to optimize recycling processes. This underlines the need for careful planning and design of the DPP to use it not only as a regulatory tool but as a strategic advantage. The paper provides an approach, in the form of a list of information, to help companies identify the data for their product, thereby meeting regulatory requirements while supporting the company's strategic objectives. Additionally, this approach identifies other information such as the availability or origin of the data point, or to whom the data point is made available. This effectively supports the downstream information gathering. The aim of the research is to answer the question of how companies can efficiently identify the relevant data for the specific product. Three different methods were used to collect the content (Figure 1). Firstly, a systematic literature review (SLR) according to Kitchenham and Charters was conducted. A search term was defined to analyze the existing scientific literature in relation to the research question (Reference Kirchhoff, Niefünd and PressentinKitchenham & Charters, 2007). A grey literature review was then conducted according to Adams et al. This involves classifying the literature into various levels. This allows non-scientific documents such as legal texts or company reports to be included in the analysis (Reference Adams, Smart and HuffAdams et al., 2017). In the third step, an interview study was conducted with twenty companies to discuss, among other things, which data are important for a DPP from the industry's point of view. The interviews were transcribed, the results were clustered using pre-defined codes and key findings were identified according to Saunders et al. (Reference Saunders, Lewis and ThornhillSaunders et al., 2019).
Methodical approach to identifying relevant data points for the DPP
2. State of the research and related work
2.1. Sustainability
The concept of sustainability has emerged as a central concern for a wide range of stakeholders, including business, government and civil society at large. The term 'sustainability' is used to describe a moral approach to action whereby an individual or group seeks to avoid negative impacts on the environment, society and the economy. This is achieved by ensuring that actions are compatible with a harmonious relationship with these areas, which in turn promotes a life worth living (Reference Bannon Gomis, Huillén Parra, HOFFMAN and MCNULTYBannon Gomis et al., 2011). It also involves the prudent use of resources that not only meets the needs of the present generation, but facilitates the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (Reference LéléLélé, 1991). Sustainability can be conceptualised as comprising three interrelated dimensions: environmental, economic and social sustainability. These three dimensions are referred to as the triple bottom line (profit, planet, people) or the three E's of sustainability (economy, ecology, equity). Economic sustainability is the fundamental basis of any business model. It is not possible for any business to survive in the long term if it does not make a profit. It is not sustainable for any organisation (company, state or society) to live beyond its economic means, as this will inevitably have a negative impact on future generations. Environmental sustainability can be defined as doing business in a way that conserves resources and protects the environment. Social sustainability can be defined as the responsible treatment of all people involved in a process with the aim of resolving social tensions and conflicts in a peaceful and civil manner (Reference Scholz, Pastoors, Becker, Hofmann and van DunScholz et al., 2018).
2.2. Digital product passport
In the context of European Union policy, the term 'product passport' is used to describe a digital data set linked to a specific product. This data can be accessed electronically via a data carrier, enabling the registration, processing, and exchange of product-related information among supply chain actors, authorities, and consumers (Reference Goetz, Berg, Jansen, Adison, Cembrero, Markkanen and ChowdhuryGoetz et al., 2022). A future DPP should provide comprehensive information on energy consumption, emissions, manufacturing, repair and end-of-life management. It should serve the interests of companies, consumers, repairers and the recycling industry by ensuring that the information is kept up to date throughout the product's life cycle (Reference Goetz, Berg, Jansen, Adison, Cembrero, Markkanen and ChowdhuryGötz et al., 2021). As shown in Figure 2, the DPP acts as a conduit between internal and external stakeholders. The DPP thus provides an opportunity to digitise the product lifecycle, facilitating the transition to a circular economy (Reference Walden, Steinbrecher and MarinkovicWalden et al., 2021). The information contained in the DPP can be made available in two ways: online via the Internet or offline via physical tags such as QR codes. There may be different variants of the DPP. For example, a static passport can only be read by actors along the product lifecycle, while the dynamic passport can be read and modified by actors along the lifecycle (Reference Koppelaar, Pamidi, Hajósi, Herreras, Leroy, Jung, Concheso, Daniel, Francisco, Parrado, Dell’Ambrogio, Guggiari, Leone and FontanaKoppelaar et al., 2023). The DPP is explicitly mentioned in the Green Deal as a potential solution for improving the accessibility of product information within the European Union. In addition, the document outlines the possibility of including a range of data in the DPP, including information on a product's origin, composition, repair and disassembly options, as well as end-of-life management procedures (European Parliament, 2022). There is currently no approach in the literature to help companies identify the relevant information for a DPP.
Overview of relevant internal and external stakeholders for the DPP
3. General findings
To increase transparency throughout the supply and value chain for all stakeholders, Regulation (EU) 2023/1532 mandates the implementation of a battery passport to facilitate the most comprehensive exchange of information. This is the first delegated act referred to in the Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR). Further delegated acts will be published in the coming years for several product groups, including textiles and iron and steel products. It is therefore wise to address this issue at an early stage. To facilitate the process of creating the DPP, this paper presents the 150% information list for the creation of a DPP in this section. The list serves as a reference tool to provide an overview of the relevant data points that need to be included in the DPP. It supports the process of creating a first prototype of the Digital Product Passport, for example by providing information on data availability or data origin.
3.1. Basic structure of the 150% information list
The information list contains a total of 148 data points for the DPP. The information list is structured to facilitate processing from left to right. It starts with data points, then moves to product specific information and finally to company specific information. The list can be used as a stand-alone source of information to gain an up-to-date understanding of the content of a DPP. The information list is divided into three groups: data points, product-specific information and company-specific information.
The first group (Figure 3) is subdivided into the following subgroups: Number, Sources, Mandatory/Obligatory, Data points and Additional information. The number is used for clarity and describes the sequential numbering of the data points. The term 'Sources' indicates which of the three data sources the data point comes from. The information 'Mandatory/Obligatory' indicates whether the data point is mandatory for a product or whether the information can be mandatory in the product passport. The term 'data points' refers to the specific data point, while the additional information for selected data points provides helpful information.
Structure of the data point group
The second group (Figure 4) is divided into further sub-groups: Product relevance, data availability, data origin, data format and life cycle phase from which the data originate. The subgroup 'product relevance' is completed by the company. This clarifies whether the data point is to be specified for the product. This procedure is necessary as only the Battery Regulation has been published and further delegated acts are pending in which specific information on the individual product groups will be provided. An example for the subgroup would be if there is no importer for the product, no information on the importer must be provided. The subgroup 'Data availability' is used to clarify whether the data is currently available or not. This can be answered with 'Yes' or 'No'. The 'data origin' category is used to record information about where the data is stored. This procedure is used to efficiently determine the origin of the data when creating the digital product passport. An example of this would be the information 'Data is stored in SAP'. The penultimate subgroup 'Data format' describes the format of the data, which could be a PDF file, for example. In the last subgroup, 'Life cycle phase from which the data originates', the life cycle phase from which the data originates should be specified. This can be used, for example, to determine whether the data is already in the customer's operational phase.
Structuring the Product-specific information
The third and final group (Figure 5) describes the company-specific information and consists of the following sub-groups: 'Data access rights', 'Responsibility within the company' and 'Comments'. The 'Data access rights' section describes the specific stakeholders who have access to the data in question. At present, this information must be provided by the company itself, as the other delegated acts, except for the Battery Regulation, are still pending. It is divided into four sub-groups: 'Public', 'Customer', 'Internal' and 'Legislator'. The second sub-group determines the responsibility within the company for traceability, as there may be different contact points for different data points. The last subgroup serves as a comment section for the company.
Structuring the Company-specific information
Figure 6 shows the complete information list with all its main- and subcategories. It consists of a total of seven main categories, each with further subcategories. The categories “material- and substance-related data points” and “data points on end-of-life, recycling and reuse” are used here as examples.
Overview of the 150% information list with emphasis on the data points “Material and substance-related data points” and “Life cycle end, recycling and reuse-related data points”
The initial main category, 'Material and Substance-Related Data Points', encompasses data points pertaining to labelling standards or substances of very high concern. The second main category, 'Product-related Data Points', encompasses data points pertaining to products, whereas the third main category, 'Life cycle end, recycling and reuse-related data points', records data points relevant to the end of a product's life cycle. The category designated as 'Stakeholder-relevant Data Points', contains all data points pertaining to other stakeholders in the supply chain. The penultimate main category, entitled 'Operating phase-related Data Points', contains all data points pertaining to the utilisation phase. Examples of data points included in this category are installation- and maintenance-related data points. The final main category is entitled 'Company-specific data points'. This category contains data points relating to the company itself and allows the company to create its own data points for inclusion.
4. Discussion
Due to the current lack of clearly defined legislation, companies are unsure as to what information should be included in a DPP. In particular, the question of what information is mandatory is a key challenge for companies in a wide range of industries. The 150% information list presented here offers companies a way to identify the data relevant to their product for the DPP. It provides a structured approach for detailed analysis of the data required for the DPP. Companies get a clear overview of the relevant data from the legislation but can also supplement this with voluntary data. Other required information, such as the origin of the data point, the availability of the data point or who in the company is responsible for the data point, is determined using the 150% information list. This gives companies an advantage for downstream activities when creating a DPP. The 150% information list supports companies regardless of industry, product or customer requirements and enables the seamless transfer of product information along the value chain. This reduces the administrative burden of data requests from suppliers, partners and customers. Therefore, the flexible tool can be tailored to individual customer requirements. By including both mandatory and voluntary data points, it helps companies respond flexibly to changing regulatory requirements or market trends. The 150% Information List supports companies regardless of industry, product or customer requirements and enables the seamless transfer of product information along the value chain. This reduces the administrative burden of data requests from suppliers, partners, and customers. On the other hand, not every category will be relevant to a product. This means that the 150% list should be customized from the outset to minimize the effort required to complete the information. In addition, the 150% information list is not a substitute for regulatory requirements and there is a risk that data points will be incorrectly selected and prioritized. In addition, the 150% information list must be kept up to date with regulatory requirements and adjusted, as necessary. Continuous monitoring of regulatory developments, for example through an automated system or platform solution, can ensure that the data is up to date. Without this, the 150% information list can quickly become obsolete.
Clear guidelines for the interpretation and use of the 150% information list can help to avoid misinterpretation and incorrect prioritization. It is also necessary to respond to added information, such as changes in legislation or regulation, to keep the 150% list up to date. It is important to consider how flexible the 150% list can be adapted to different industries, product types or usage contexts, and how well the list can be applied in practice, especially for SMEs compared to large companies. For SMEs, the 150% information list is a valuable tool to identify the relevant data for the DPP of their products with as little effort as possible. Best practices and a standardized guideline would facilitate the use of the information list and thus its implementation. In particular, the frequently limited resources of these companies require standardized and simple artifacts for the design and creation of digital product passports for the various products.
The approach can add value to product development. The data obtained can be used in product development to design more sustainable and innovative products, for example by providing insights into materials and manufacturing processes. Developers can integrate data on materials, energy consumption and environmental compatibility at an early stage. In a systematic literature review, Trienens et al. demonstrate the potential added value of DPP in product development (Reference Trienens, Hovemann, Schreiner and DumitrescuTrienens, Hovemann, et al., 2024). The development department can make an important contribution to data collection and can use the list to help decide which data and information should be included in the DPP. A recycler, repairer or consumer may also benefit from the data and information. For example, recyclers may benefit from material and composition data, while repairers may need detailed information on components and spare parts. Consumers may be interested in sustainability information such as carbon footprint or repairability. An extension of the 150% list could be to make explicit the relevance of individual data points for different stakeholders and to define corresponding use cases. Iteratively, this tool can also be used to identify data or information that would add significant value in downstream value chains and is therefore relevant to the DPP. Consequently, the involvement of all relevant stakeholders is necessary when identifying the data and information of the DPP and should be taken into account when completing the 150% information list.
An initial application of the 150% information list shows that it provides significant added value in identifying data points. This provides an efficient process for identifying relevant data and the additional information mentioned.
5. Conclusion and outlook
Current regulatory requirements leave many questions unanswered; the question of what data and information belongs in the DPP. This paper presents an approach in the form of a 150% information list to support companies in creating a Digital Product Passport. By analyzing current legislation such as the EU Green Deal or the Eco-design for Sustainable Product Regulation (ESPR), many mandatory data points for the digital product passport were identified. In addition, a systematic literature review and an interview study with industry partners identified further relevant data points that can be considered as voluntary information for companies. The approach presented thus provides a tool for companies to identify mandatory data and to include profitable data in the DPP. This can improve information exchange within the supply chain and with customers or enable new business models and services. As mentioned by Trienens et al., the digital twin is a technology for increasing the sustainability of companies. If the DPP is realized through this technology, the presented 150% information list offers a good approach to identify the necessary data (Reference Trienens, Rasor, Kharatyan, Dumitrescu and AnackerTrienens, Rasor, et al., 2024).
The extent to which this approach can be used in a holistic process model to create digital product passports is currently under development and requires further research. In addition, the 150% information list will need to be continually updated to reflect future legislation and regulation. A possible further development of this approach is the development of a software-based tool that allows companies to collect the relevant data for their products in a structured and automated way. In addition, the list will be evaluated for operational readiness, i.e., how it supports different stakeholders such as manufacturers, suppliers, customers, or regulators. In summary, the 150% information list can be used to increase the circularity and thus the sustainability of organizations.
Acknowledgement
This paper is part of the innovation projects EcoTwin - Development and Transformation towards Sustainability with Digital Twins and DualStrat - Strategic management of dual transformation. The projects are funded by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, industry, climate action and energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia and managed by the Project Management Jülich (PtJ). The authors are responsible for the content of this publication.
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