About 40 participants, such as experts on sustainability and the DPP from international industrial players and associations, retailers, as well as representatives of the EU commission, attended the event.
Starting with an introduction of Holger Kunze, head of EU representation of VDMA, Thomas Ebert, policy analyst at Green Digital Twin Association, gave insight into the regulatory process and backgrounds in developing the DPP. As a highlight, Dr. Adriana Neligan of the German Economic Institute presented findings of a recently published study on the readiness of DPP integration, where she pointed out challenges for both lawmakers and businesses.
In a circular economy, a new understanding of economic activity and an alternative approach to raw materials are required. Resources should be used for as long as possible in order to reduce both the material and energy consumption as well as the waste and emissions of an economic system to a minimum.
The study, which was co-authored by ECLASS General Manager Thorsten Kroke, can be accessed here.
In the second part of the event, Jerome Blum from the ECLASS Head Office gave a demonstration on how ECLASS can be implemented as a solution in the integration of digital product passports into business processes. Another showcase of the importance of digital readiness was given by Tejas Bhatt, Senior Director, Global Supply Chain Compliance, Technology and Innovation at Walmart, where he presented the tracking of greens and salads, using blockchain technology.After, Frances Burwell of the Atlantic Council gave insights on the challenges the DPP and other EU regulations can pose for business relations between North American and the EU.