Product passport as an enabler for circular flows of furniture

Important results from the project

The goal was to prepare the Swedish furniture industry for the upcoming EU regulations on digital product passports (DPP), and to develop and test the concept to stimulate innovation and circularity. At the end of the project, the project participants agreed that DPP can bring benefits for their respective organizations and that they gained a better understanding of the systems perspective linked to increased information sharing for furniture. At the same time, questions remain and there is some uncertainty about what the next steps should be to prepare for the requirements of the DPP.

Expected long term effects

Work in the project focused on three central parts. The business ecosystem was mapped for circular flows of furniture. The project compiled necessary data and a draft of a product passport for furniture. Prototypes showed how DPP can look from a user perspective, their content and how they can be used to achieve more circular furniture flows. In the third part of the project, it was investigated how the business ecosystem for the furniture industry can be affected by the introduction of DPP and larger data sets. Opportunities are seen to develop circular business offers within the industry.

Approach and implementation

The project had 3 work packages: 1. Needs analysis, 2. Information sharing standard and prototype, 3. Business models, business ecosystem and system effects. A current state analysis of the ecosystem and its information needs was made for the furniture value chain. Prototypes and tests were used as methods to learn more about needs and driving forces. The digital prototypes were examples of how the DPP might look and contain information and be used. A "system perspective approach" showed how the development of new offers/services can be made possible based on larger amounts of data.