Towards Autonomous Digital Product Passport Creation

The project is about to reach a new milestone: the launch of a second batch of Digital Product Passports (DPPs) covering more than 100 Thomson washer-dryer machines for Fnac Darty.

A redesigned and more flexible process

Until now, DPP generation was directly tied to the factory’s production flow - a controlled and pragmatic choice to ensure reliability in the first phase of deployment. Building on this foundation, the new pilot aims to test and validate a more agile approach: ‍

1. Autonomous URL generation: factories now generate GS1-compliant product URLs, giving each product a unique and standardized identifier recognized by the industry.

2. QR Code creation: these URLs are then transformed into QR Codes by Arianee, making them interactive and accessible to all stakeholders (factory, distributor, repairer, consumer).

3. Flexible DPP creation: the DPP itself no longer needs to be generated in real time on the line. It can be created before, during, or after production — as long as it is ready before the product reaches distribution. This shift was a deliberate decision to work asynchronously, keeping DPP generation off the production critical path and ensuring that manufacturing is never slowed down. For the factory, the process is therefore much simpler to adopt, while still preserving the same level of product traceability.

4. Data transmission: at the end of production, the factory sends a simple Excel mapping file containing the required data. While still manual today, this step is being automated to prepare for large-scale deployment.

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Why does this matter?

This redesigned process unlocks several key benefits:

• Scalability: a repeatable approach that can be replicated across different sites and production lines.
  
  
• Efficiency: reduced complexity and lower risk of bottlenecks in manufacturing.
  
  
• Interoperability: Arianee ensures DPPs are interoperable across systems, while GS1-aligned URL structures guarantee standardized identification for international use.

• Transparency: the same level of product traceability is preserved for partners and consumers, but now in a way that is easier to scale.

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Preparing for scale

Once validated, this method can be rolled out at scale for all products manufactured in this factory and destined for the French market. It represents a decisive step towards the industrialization of Digital Product Passports — a crucial milestone for their broader adoption across the electronics and home appliance industry.

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