Digital Product Passports: A Call for Digitization in U.S. Manufacturing

In March 2024, the European Union introduced digital product passports (DPPs) for most goods sold within its borders, a milestone step in enhancing global supply chain transparency. By 2026, these digital records — detailing a product’s origins, materials, environmental impact and disposal instructions — will be legally enforced, transforming how industries track and share product information.

In the EU, priority industries like batteries and vehicles are already beginning preparations to integrate DPPs into their production processes. Despite their potential to revolutionize traceability, build customer trust, supercharge manufacturing efficiency, and increase our competitive edge, the U.S. has yet to embrace this groundbreaking approach. 

While domestic manufacturing has made significant strides in improving supply chain optimization, data analytics and product development, many strategies focus on fragmented, one-off high-priority pilots, rather than long-term systematic approaches. The benefits are, therefore, often short-lived. 

DPPs offer the chance to set a new standard for supply chain visibility in domestic manufacturing. They come at a perfect time, with the industry poised for a milestone year. While enforcement of DPPs won’t begin until 2026 in Europe, manufacturers can take early action to embrace the principles that support them, and future-proof their operations.

To remain competitive in the global market and strengthen domestic manufacturing, U.S. manufacturers must prioritize the foundational principles of transparency and quality on which DPP is built. European manufacturers are already reaping the benefits of digitally integrating production and supply chain data, increasing operational efficiency and enhancing customer trust. For U.S. businesses, the question is not if, but when, they will embrace this transformative shift to stay competitive.

The rapid adoption of holistic digital tools throughout the American supply chain stands to yield a number of benefits to the industry. As the EU moves ahead with DPPs, manufacturers that have embraced this transformation aren’t just complying with new regulations; they’re reshaping their industries with unprecedented transparency and operational insight. At Ingersoll Rand, we’re seeing customers in highly regulated industries such as industrial switchgear embracing the principles behind DPPs to provide their customers with 100% traceability.

At its root, digital manufacturing technology replaces the industry’s reliance on outdated manual assembly line-tracking processes, such as paper-based records, with innovative digital tools. Currently, engineers spend hundreds of hours each year managing defects and troubleshooting problems, leaving little time to focus on improving operations or maximizing production quality.

By tracking each stage of the production process for each item, manufacturers enhance traceability on the factory floor, reduce counterfeiting risks and streamline logistics for better supply chain performance.

Improving Product Quality

Quality concerns have long plagued U.S. manufacturing. In a modern connected supply chain, quality issues have no place in our manufacturing future.

Factory tech similar to DPPs enables manufacturers to adopt “right first time” and “no faults forward” practices. With traceable data, manufacturers can track the process for every nut, bolt, and part assembled. Embedded quality-control processes can therefore identify product issues at the source, address product issues quickly and precisely, and reduce operational disruptions before the final product reaches the hands of the consumer.

Manufacturers that adopt a digital backbone early can set themselves apart from domestic competitors that are still relying on manual systems. Early adoption shifts the focus from cost-cutting to value creation, opening doors to premium partnerships with OEMs. Businesses that embrace the principles of DPPs ahead of regulatory requirements will not only future-proof their operations, but position themselves as leaders in a transparency-driven economy, where trust and traceability define market success.

Overcoming Barriers to Modernization

Adopting a digital backbone now helps manufacturers future-proof their systems before regulations are enacted. Manufacturers new to a digital, connected factory will likely have to offboard proprietary systems, integrate software platforms, and repair poor device connectivity. 

This also means that manufacturers will need to assess available data in their current systems, which won’t be easy for paper-based operations. Factories will have to determine what product data can already be retrieved from current reports, then identify and gather what’s missing. They must also assess their tech readiness for digitization, ensuring that IT systems are interoperable, their data is stored centrally, and the tech aligns across the supply chain.

Despite these upfront complexities, the long-term benefits of a digitized supply chain are well worth the time, yielding unprecedented cost savings and efficiencies unimaginable to factories that rely on paper-based operations. Factories can solve a myriad of manufacturing challenges, from supply chain transparency to error-proofing and efficiency, in a single system of controls. Integrated tools such as smart internet of things devices, visual worker guidance, automated data collection, and traceability records simplify tedious, paper-based processes.

Real-world examples demonstrate the benefits of early digitization. Louisville-based Winston Industries, developer of KFC’s original pressure fryer, is using digital worker guidance to enhance manufacturing productivity, employee training and retention for its multi-generational workers. Michigan-based Pollington Machine & Tool, Inc., a parts manufacturer for Tier 1 automotive companies, has connected over 18 workstations, digitized 100 processes, and integrated 56 tools to its factory floor technology, allowing its operators to pass critical safety requirements in just two weeks. Indiana-based RV manufacturer MORryde has increased production output by 50% with digital assembly lines. Those who wait for mandates or laws to be enacted will already be late to the game. 

Digital factory technologies such as DPPs are more than compliance tools; they’re investments in growth, efficiency and sustainability. By reducing waste, improving production yields, and fostering stronger OEM partnerships, they drive both economic and environmental benefits.

We shouldn’t wait for slow-to-act government mandates to modernize our supply chain. To stay competitive, U.S. manufacturers must start embracing digitization not just as a strategy for compliance, but as an essential tool for sustainable growth and leadership in the global supply chain.

Ryan Kuhlenbeck is chief executive officer of Pico MES, and Jamie Bull is country manager UKI for Ingersoll Rand’s Power and Fastening Division.