Who will be impacted by Digital Product Passport: electronics industry?
According to the World Health Organization, e-waste is the fastest-growing solid waste stream in the world. Transparency of lifecycle and carbon footprint data is quickly becoming critical for companies supplying electronics in the EU who want to remain compliant and combat waste.
Amid increasing calls for the EU to promote longer product lifecycles, the European Commission presented a new circular economy action plan in March 2020. For electronics, this involves a primary focus on sustainability, reusability, and repairability.
To achieve this, the proposal outlined key goals such as drastically increased supply chain traceability, right-to-repair initiatives, and better reusability of electronic goods.
Digital product passports for electronics are a key part of facilitating these objectives. By improving traceability and materials data collection DPPs allow for enhanced resource efficiency and sustainability of electronics supply chains.
From critical raw material suppliers right through to end-users, DDP will impact all stakeholders in the electronics industry. Here’s how:
- Repairability of electronics is a primary EU focus and DPPs will be an integral part of maintaining transparent information around repairs.
- Manufacturers must provide transparent, detailed information about manufacturing processes and materials.
- Electronics retailers will need to make sure all customers can access product information like repairability, sustainability, and disposal.
- Electronics brands that are ahead of the curve can better market products via stronger sustainability claims that can be proven through DDPs.
- The resale market will be streamlined with information about a device held in DPPs and passed down to new owners.
Digital Product Passport: electronics timeline
The European Union's (EU) regulations for Digital Product Passport (DPP) are expected to come into action by 2026/7, starting with batteries in 2026. Digital product passports for electronics are due to be introduced shortly after.
How to prepare for Digital Product Passports for electronics?
To get ready for the effects of Digital Product Passports for electronics, businesses should pay special attention to these hurdles:
- Designating a DDP lead to implement a compliance strategy
- Gathering accurate data to calculate environmental impact
- Auditing current suppliers for ethicality of critical raw material mining
- Auditing current data and identifying inaccuracies and gaps
- Finding a technology solution to implement DPPs efficiently
Check out our requirements guide for further advice across sectors.
What to look out for in a DPP solution for electronics?
Electronics supplier lists are notoriously large and you need to give every member access to important data. For that reason, the most important thing to look out for is an intuitive DPP platform that allows you to log all data from suppliers and consumers securely.
AuthentifyIt is an all-in-one user-friendly DPP platform that allows you to log all key data. This can then be accessed by standardized data carriers ensuring transparent, secure access for everybody, whenever they need it.
AuthentifyIt can support you throughout the entire process of DPP planning, from consumer application to product information management. We provide consultation, auditing, implementation support, and more. Get in touch for a discovery call.
