Integration
ERP Integration for the DPP
How to build a data flow from your ERP into a Digital Product Passport — field mapping, master data problems, bulk import and API patterns.
The first discovery in most DPP projects is that some of the data already exists in the ERP. The second discovery is less comfortable: it does not sit there in the shape the passport expects.
Step 1 — the field mapping table
For every field the passport expects, fill three columns:
| Passport field | ERP equivalent | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Product identity (GTIN) | Material master / EAN field | Exists |
| Model / variant | Material code | Exists |
| Production facility | Plant | Partial (no coded identity) |
| Material composition | Bill of materials | Insufficient resolution |
| Recycled content | — | Missing |
| Certificates | Quality module / attachments | Unstructured |
This table is the first honest view of the project's real scope. See preparing a bill of materials.
Step 2 — master data cleanup
Typical problems:
- The same product carrying different codes in different systems.
- GTINs stored as numbers rather than text (losing the leading zero).
- Facilities recorded as free-text addresses instead of coded identities.
- Variants (colour, size) collapsed into a single material code.
Automating before fixing these only makes the errors arrive faster.
Step 3 — choose an integration level
| Level | How | When |
|---|---|---|
| Manual export | Export CSV/Excel and upload | Pilot, low SKU count |
| Scheduled bulk transfer | Nightly file or database view | Mid-size, stable catalogue |
| API integration | Sync on change events | High SKU count, frequent change |
See starting DPP with spreadsheets and EN 18222 passport APIs.
Step 4 — where the missing fields live
For fields the ERP does not hold — recycled content, carbon, repairability — there are two options: customise the ERP, or keep them in the passport platform. In practice the second is faster and cheaper, because continually reshaping an ERP around regulatory change is expensive.
PLM and PIM
In textiles and consumer goods, composition and supplier data usually sit in PLM rather than ERP, and marketing content in PIM. See PLM and PIM for DPP.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to replace my ERP?
No. In most projects the ERP remains the source system while the passport platform manages missing fields and the publication layer.
Which direction should the sync run?
Usually one way: ERP → passport. The reverse is needed only for identity created in the passport, such as serial numbers.
I am a small business without an ERP.
Start in a spreadsheet, but keep a single master product list. The real risk is not the absence of an ERP — it is several lists disagreeing with each other.
