How to Create a Digital Product Passport in 2022

The European Union adopted a Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP) in 2020 to pave the way for a cleaner and more competitive future. With its 35 action steps, the CEAP is one of the main building blocks of the European Green Deal. The plan tackles the life cycle of a product by targeting the involved process of how products are designed. Ultimately, it aims to ensure waste prevention, sustainable consumption, and promotes the circular economy. Some actions have already been implemented with many more underway. In December 2020, the EU adopted a proposal for new regulations on sustainable batteries, in October 2021 it adopted a rule on organic pollutants in waste, and waste shipments in November 2021. The next areas of focus include sustainable textiles, packaging requirements and industrial emissions. Check out the European Commission website for more background information.

Although these regulations have been put into motion, there's no standard or designated procedure for how manufacturers and suppliers should actually go about creating these passports. That's where 3E Exchange comes into the picture. We've gotten ahead of the ball and built the framework. You can create a Product Passport on 3E Exchange today. Even better, you can share it and find other passports on the 3E Exchange, all for free!

So your next thought might be…that all sounds promising but how do I actually create a Product Passport? The answer is right here on 3E Exchange.

How to Create a Digital Product Passport on 3E Exchange

We've built the technological framework to create a Digital Product Passport today. The ecosystem where these Passports can be found and shared is called the 3E Exchange. The 3E Exchange is a place for Manufacturers and Suppliers to come together to manage the data needed to create Sustainable, Circular, and Regenerative products and engage with their customers on the topic. The platform improves information disclosure, reduces the reporting time burden, and increases supplier incentives to start and maintain data disclosures. It equips manufacturers and suppliers with the ability to create and manage Digital Product & Material Passports. Anyone searching on the Exchange can find and share Digital Product Passports created by any of their supply chain partners.

The first step is to import the data you want to be included in your Digital Product Passport. If you're missing information in your bill of materials, you can send a survey to your supplier via 3E Exchange (all for free!) Once you've gathered all the data you want to include in your Digital Product Passport, start the 'Publish Passport' workflow and you're on your way!

Your 3E Exchange Product Passport can include a wide variety of information fields including, a bill of materials; compliance statuses for regulations including EU REACH, RoHS, Cal Prop 65, LBC Red List; sustainability information such as embodied carbon or water use. You can attach any relevant documentation whether it is a certificate or SDS/MSDS.