Is My ERP Sufficient for the DPP — or Do I Need to Change Everything?
This question hides a trap. Framed this way, it suggests that the answer is technical — and that the problem lies in the software. In reality, the problem is almost always in the data, not in the systems that manage it. But let’s take it step by step through the lens of Digital Product Passport implementation, ESPR compliance, and supply chain traceability.
The Short Answer: Probably Not — but Not for the Reasons You Think
A traditional ERP is designed to manage transactions: orders, invoices, inventory movements, bills of materials. It does this well, and it will continue to do so. The issue is not that the ERP is wrong — it’s that the Digital Product Passport DPP requires a category of structured sustainability data and traceability data that most ERPs do not collect, structure, or expose in the way required by regulation.
Let’s look at some concrete examples. Your ERP knows that you purchased 500 kg of cotton from supplier X. But does it know which country that fiber comes from? Does it know whether it was produced using certified water? Does it know the carbon footprint of that specific batch? Does it know where it was processed before reaching you? Almost certainly not — because no one has ever asked it to. These pieces of information either do not exist, or they exist in emails, PDFs, or paper certificates scattered across different departments. The DPP framework requires them to be structured, verifiable, and linked to the final product.
The starting point, therefore, is not to assess whether the ERP is sufficient. It is to understand which ESG and sustainability data is completely missing, which exists but is unstructured, and which is already available and simply needs to be connected to the DPP system or digital traceability platform. This is the diagnosis — and it is the most important work to be done before even talking about technology.
The Architecture You Need: Not Replacement, but Integration
The good news is that almost no one will need to replace their ERP infrastructure entirely. The model that is emerging for Digital Product Passport compliance is not substitutive, but additive: the ERP continues to do what it does, while a dedicated information layer — whether a DPP-as-a-Service platform, an additional module, or a shared supply chain solution — handles the collection, structuring, and distribution of the data required for the passport.
This layer must be able to do things that ERPs typically do not: interact with supplier systems to collect upstream data, manage interoperable formats and open standards as required by the ESPR Regulation, expose data with differentiated access levels, and ensure data persistence throughout the entire lifecycle of the product — even after the company changes its ERP system.
For SMEs and manufacturing companies, the market is already developing subscription-based solutions — so-called DPP-as-a-Service platforms — that eliminate the need for large upfront infrastructure investments. In many sectors, leading companies will also provide shared DPP platforms to their suppliers, offloading much of the technical burden associated with Digital Product Passport implementation and ESG data management. It is therefore not necessarily the case that every company must build its own architecture from scratch.
The Question No One Asks — but Should
There is, however, an aspect that goes beyond technology, and in my experience as a DPP strategist and advisor, it is the one most often underestimated. Before asking which ERP module, DPP platform, or traceability software to use, companies should ask: who is responsible for data quality? Who updates the information when a supplier changes? Who verifies that what we declare in the passport actually reflects what we produce?
The DPP is not an IT project. It is a data governance and supply chain transparency project. Technology, no matter how sophisticated, cannot compensate for internal processes that do not exist. A company that has never needed to systematically track the origin of its raw materials will not solve the problem by buying software: it must first build the processes, and only then choose the tools.
This is also why the right moment to start Digital Product Passport preparation is not when the Delegated Act for your sector is published. It is now — when there is still time to carry out the diagnosis calmly, without the pressure of a deadline.
The ERP is not the problem. The problem is knowing which sustainability and traceability data you still do not have — and building processes to collect it before someone asks for it by law.
