The global push toward sustainability and circular economy principles is reshaping how manufacturers design, produce and manage products throughout their lifecycle. At the forefront of this transformation is the Digital Product Passport (DPP), a comprehensive digital record that tracks a product’s journey from raw materials to end-of-life. As regulatory frameworks like the European Union’s Circular Economy Action Plan and other initiatives around the world (China, Vietnam, etc.) mandate DPP implementation across multiple industries, companies are turning to advanced technologies to meet these requirements. Virtual Twin technology has emerged as a powerful enabler, providing the digital foundation necessary to create, label, manage and maintain accurate DPPs at scale.
What is a Virtual Twin?
A Virtual Twin is a dynamic digital replica of a product, system or process that uses 3D modeling and simulation to test, optimize and innovate in a virtual environment for greater efficiency and sustainability. Unlike static digital representations, Virtual Twins are living, evolving models that incorporate real-time data, simulations and predictive analytics to mirror physical assets throughout their entire lifecycle.
Understanding Digital Product Passports (DPPs)
Digital Product Passports (DPP) represent a fundamental shift in how product information is captured, stored and shared across value chains.
A DPP is a digital identity that contains comprehensive, product-specific data, including material composition, sourcing, repair instructions, disassembly guidelines, recycling pathways, and disposal recommendations. This digital record accompanies a product throughout its lifecycle, promoting a shared language across the value chain. It enables manufacturers, consumers, and recyclers to access crucial data at any point in the product’s journey.
DPPs facilitate the sharing of all product data across the value chain, making it easier to design for circularity, engineer for disassembly, extend a product’s life through repairs, reuse, or resale, and improve end-of-life material recovery. They also support responsible sourcing, build supply chain resilience, and enhance traceability.
How Virtual Twin Technology Supports Companies in Implementing Digital Product Passports
Virtual Twin technology, powered by the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, enables the creation and management of Digital Product Passports (DPPs) by providing a comprehensive digital representation of products throughout their lifecycle. This platform unifies design, engineering, manufacturing, and beyond, helping organizations meet regulatory requirements and drive continuous innovation.
The 3DEXPERIENCE platform integrates various specialized applications for product development and lifecycle management. Design tools allow engineers to create sustainable products, while simulation tools test environmental impacts and performance. Manufacturing applications connect virtual designs with production systems, capturing data for DPP records. Lifecycle management capabilities track products through distribution, use, and end-of-life phases, updating DPP information continuously.
This integrated approach ensures seamless data flow, eliminating information silos and maintaining DPP accuracy. The platform’s collaborative features enable global teams to work together in real-time, ensuring access to the latest product information. Virtual twins, which are living models of real-world products, transform DPPs into intelligent, decision-making tools. This dynamic pairing allows companies to simulate and assess various scenarios, such as material wear and microfiber release. Continuous feedback loops powered by product lifecycle data will inform future development and support ongoing improvements, potentially extending to circular ecosystems around repair, resale, and recycling.
Six Ways Virtual Twins Enable Effective Digital Product Passports
1. Circularity by Design
Virtual Twin technology revolutionizes product design by enabling circularity from the start. By simulating a product’s entire lifecycle, designers can assess material performance during use, disassembly, recycling, and repurposing. This capability supports the creation of easily recyclable products with extended lifespans, fully aligned with circular economy principles. Designers can experiment with materials, modular designs, and disassembly methods to facilitate repair, reuse, and efficient resource recovery. Lifecycle simulations help identify design choices that enable effective reintegration of materials into manufacturing cycles.
By emphasizing end-of-life recovery and digital tracking through DPPs, businesses can also uncover new revenue opportunities, such as recycling programs and remanufacturing. Virtual Twins assist in evaluating sustainable materials to ensure they meet technical requirements without compromising quality or safety, while documenting these attributes within DPPs for transparency and compliance.
Furthermore, Virtual Twin technology enhances eco-design by enabling designers to evaluate and improve environmental performance throughout product development. Advanced 3D modeling supports the creation of sustainable, functional, and aesthetically pleasing designs, while real-time lifecycle assessments allow engineers to simulate and measure the environmental impact of design choices—optimizing for sustainability without sacrificing performance. The technology’s ability to manage complex product structures further facilitates the creation of accurate DPPs and the identification of opportunities to reduce weight, optimize materials, and improve energy efficiency across the entire lifecycle.
2. End-to-End Traceability and Transparency
Virtual Twin technology significantly enhances Digital Product Passports (DPPs) by providing comprehensive traceability across intricate global supply chains. Virtual Twins can meticulously track and document every phase of a product’s lifecycle, from the initial design and sourcing of raw materials through manufacturing, distribution, usage, and end-of-life management. This detailed tracking ensures that all pertinent information about a product’s origin, materials, and processes is easily accessible.
As products navigate through the supply chain, the DPP is continuously updated with data such as locations, handling conditions, and quality checkpoints. This creates an unbroken chain of custody that meets regulatory requirements and fosters consumer trust. By providing insights into sourcing and environmental impact, companies can distinguish themselves from competitors who may lack transparency in their supply chains.
Additionally, the transparency facilitated by Virtual Twin-powered DPPs addresses increasing consumer skepticism about sustainability claims. Many consumers are cautious of “greenwashing” and demand verifiable data to support environmental performance claims. Accessible through QR codes, RFID tags, or other digital tools, DPPs enable consumers, businesses, and regulators to easily and effectively access key product data, thereby bolstering confidence in corporate sustainability commitments.
3. Product Lifecycle Management and Data Intelligence
Virtual Twin technology offers a comprehensive, real-time view of products, materials, and processes, facilitating smarter and more sustainable decisions throughout the entire lifecycle. This extensive visibility is crucial for creating and maintaining accurate Digital Product Passports (DPPs) that adapt as products progress through various lifecycle stages. The platform consolidates data from design, manufacturing, quality control, field operations, and end-of-life processes into a unified view accessible to authorized stakeholders. By integrating Lifecycle Assessment (LCA) capabilities, organizations can evaluate environmental impacts at every stage, ensuring that sustainability considerations are embedded early and consistently throughout product development.
With advanced data intelligence capabilities, Virtual Twin technology assists manufacturers in identifying parts or materials suitable for reuse, remanufacturing, or second-life applications. Sophisticated analytics can assess component condition, remaining useful life, and potential applications in other products or industries. This intelligence allows companies to maximize resource utilization and minimize waste. When combined with eco-design methodologies, the platform enables designers to compare material options, assess trade-offs, and optimize products for lower impact from the outset, helping teams make informed choices aligned with circular economy principles.
Organizations can monitor how each component contributes to sustainability goals, from its carbon footprint during production to its durability in field operations. This level of visibility supports designing for circularity from the outset and continuous improvement over time. LCA further strengthens this approach by providing quantifiable criteria to guide improvements and validate sustainability claims. Predictive analytics can anticipate when products or components will need maintenance or reach the end of their life, enabling proactive planning for recovery and recycling operations. This data enriches DPPs with valuable information for downstream recyclers and remanufacturers.
4. Continuous Improvement and Optimization
Virtual Twin technology allows for continuous monitoring and enhancement of manufacturing processes, products, and sustainability performance. Unlike static documentation, Virtual Twins create feedback loops that use real-world data to inform future design and process decisions. This helps identify improvement areas and ensures products meet evolving sustainability standards throughout their lifecycle. Manufacturers can compare virtual predictions with actual performance, refining models for greater accuracy. Operational insights from digital twins and DPPs enable proactive issue detection and optimization across the supply chain. Detailed lifecycle data in DPPs supports root cause analysis for design improvements. The technology also aids in scenario planning, allowing manufacturers to simulate and evaluate potential sustainability benefits before implementation.
5. Regulatory Compliance and Market Competitiveness
Virtual Twin-enabled DPPs offer a robust framework for meeting regulatory requirements like the EU’s Circular Economy Act and Battery Regulation. They provide comprehensive data for compliance, reducing risks and enabling quick adaptation to new regulations. Implementing DPPs early can enhance efficiency, sustainability, and market competitiveness, improving operational efficiency, brand reputation, and customer relationships. DPPs also foster transparency, accountability, and supply chain collaboration, setting brands apart in competitive markets.
Industry Applications: From Textiles to Batteries
Different industries face unique challenges and opportunities in implementing Digital Product Passports, with Virtual Twin technology providing adaptable solutions across sectors.
Digital Product Passports for Textiles
The textile and fashion industry faces significant sustainability challenges, including resource-intensive production processes, complex global supply chains and massive waste generation. Digital Product Passports for textiles aim to enhance traceability, transparency and circularity by documenting fiber composition, production methods, chemical treatments and care instructions. Virtual Twin technology enables textile companies to simulate garment production processes, assess environmental impacts of different fabrics and design for disassembly and recycling. This information populates textile DPPs, helping consumers make informed purchasing decisions and enabling recyclers to efficiently process end-of-life garments.
Battery Passports and Industrial Applications
The Battery Regulation’s mandate for battery passports represents one of the most immediate DPP implementation requirements, applying to batteries in light means of transport, industrial batteries and electric vehicles by 2027. Virtual Twin technology helps battery manufacturers document complex material compositions, production processes and performance characteristics that form the foundation of battery passports. The technology enables simulation of battery performance under various conditions, prediction of degradation patterns and assessment of second-life applications, all of which enhance the value and accuracy of battery passport.
Electronics and Beyond
Electronics manufacturers face DPP requirements that will help address e-waste challenges and improve resource recovery from complex products. Virtual Twin technology enables detailed documentation of component specifications, material compositions and assembly methods that facilitate repair and recycling. As DPP regulations expand to additional product categories including construction materials, furniture and automotive components, Virtual Twin technology provides a scalable foundation for compliance across diverse industries.
Comprehensive Solutions for Digital Product Passport Implementation
The Digital Product Passport ecosystem includes various software platforms and technology providers that enable companies to create, manage and share product information. Leading solutions provide end-to-end traceability for complex industrial supply chains, combining data collection, verification and secure sharing capabilities.
Dassault Systèmes offers comprehensive DPP solutions through its 3DEXPERIENCE platform, integrating Virtual Twin capabilities with lifecycle management, sustainability assessment and regulatory compliance tools. This integrated approach enables companies to leverage existing product development investments while meeting new DPP requirements.
Building a Sustainable Future with Virtual Twin-Enabled DPPs
The convergence of regulatory mandates, consumer expectations and sustainability imperatives is driving rapid adoption of Digital Product Passports across industries. Virtual Twin technology provides the essential digital foundation for creating, managing and maintaining these comprehensive product records at scale. By enabling circularity by design, comprehensive traceability, eco-design optimization, intelligent lifecycle management, continuous improvement and regulatory compliance, Virtual Twins transform DPPs from compliance burdens into strategic advantages.
Organizations that embrace this technology early will be well-positioned to meet evolving regulatory requirements, build consumer trust through transparency and unlock new business models based on circularity and resource efficiency. As we move toward 2027 and beyond, Virtual Twin-powered Digital Product Passports will become standard practice, fundamentally reshaping how products are designed, manufactured, used and recovered in a more sustainable global economy.
Learn more about how Virtual Twin technology can support your organization’s Digital Product Passport implementation.