EmpowerDPP: Data management meets digital product passport – support for companies

Starting in January 2026, three Fraunhofer Clusters of Excellence will launch a joint project to support companies in implementing the EU requirements for digital product passports (DPPs), which will become mandatory in 2027. The project will focus on both technical and organizational areas of action for DPP data management. On this basis, additional data points will be added to the core requirements of the DPP in order to develop new service offerings, particularly in production engineering. The Fraunhofer Clusters of Excellence Cognitive Internet Technologies CCIT, Programmable Materials CPM, and Circular Plastics Economy CCPE are involved in the project.

The introduction of the digital product passport (DPP) presents new challenges and opportunities for industry. First, companies are faced with the task of consistently recording and providing over 100 data points along the value chain in order to comply with regulations. This requires the development of technical expertise and organizational structures within the company, but also an intensification of cross-company collaboration. On the one hand, the DPP enables process improvements, expanded services, and new sustainable business models. On the other hand, companies often lack the financial and human resources for implementation.

The new Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) is gradually introducing the DPP for various product groups. Companies are required to ensure performance, safety, scalability, and user-friendliness. This requires robust data management, which lays the foundation for the creation of digital product passports.

Objectives and benefits of the EmpowerDPP project

The EmpowerDPP project marks the first time that three Fraunhofer Clusters of Excellence have joined forces to pursue two key objectives: the development of technical and organizational concepts for implementing the DPP, and the development of service offerings in production engineering. Structured data management with clearly defined technical processes for data provision, orchestration, and validation enables a more transparent value chain. This leads to more efficient processes, reduced error rates, and lower resource consumption.

Based on the DPP, new data-driven services are emerging that offer added value for the entire value chain, from suppliers to recyclers. In particular, the DPP builds a bridge to keep materials and products in circulation, enabling further life cycles.

“With the EmpowerDPP project, we are developing a clear roadmap for DPP implementation that opens up transparency about data flows and responsibilities and provides new revenue potential for companies. I am delighted that we are able to combine the expertise of three Fraunhofer Clusters of Excellence here,” says project manager Sebastian Emons, Fraunhofer CCIT/Fraunhofer ISST.

Project partner roles:

• Fraunhofer CCIT / Represented by Fraunhofer ISST (project leader): Fraunhofer ISST is responsible for analyzing data flows and the resulting implications for data management and potential business models.
• Fraunhofer CCPE / Represented by Fraunhofer IML: Fraunhofer IML highlights the requirements of the DPP for companies, with a particular focus on logistics chains, in order to prepare circular business models.
• Fraunhofer CPM / Represented by Fraunhofer IWU: In addition to the requirements of the DPPS from a production technology perspective, Fraunhofer IWU also addresses the potential and service opportunities in production technology in order to develop efficient solutions for production systems and innovative platforms for secondary raw materials.

Fraunhofer Cluster of Excellence

The Fraunhofer Clusters of Excellence promote the cooperative development and processing of system-relevant topics through an inter-institute research structure. In organizational terms, these research clusters correspond to a “virtual institute” spread over multiple locations. The aim of the research clusters is not just to temporarily implement single projects but rather to follow a roadmap for the long-term development of a complex technological trend.

Source

Fraunhofer Cluster of Excellence Circular Plastics Economy CCPE, press release, 2026-01-27.

Supplier

Fraunhofer Cluster of Excellence Circular Plastics Economy CCPE
Fraunhofer-Institut für Materialfluss und Logistik (IML)
Fraunhofer-Institut für Software- und Systemtechnik ISST
Fraunhofer-Institut für Werkzeugmaschinen und Umformtechnik IWU

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