How do I use the PPWR module?

TABLE OF CONTENT

• I. Structure of the PPWR module

• II. Recommended setup workflow

• III. Data collection status

• IV. Entering data yourself

• V. The packaging list

I. Structure of the PPWR module

The PPWR module is built around three interlinked record types. Understanding how they relate to one another is the foundation for working with the module.

Products

A product is the goods you place on the EU market — that is, the content that gets packaged. The product itself is not subject to the PPWR; it serves as a reference point for structuring and mapping the associated packaging.

Example: a 0.75 l bottle of apple juice, a pack of screws, a cosmetics item.

Components

A component is an individual material constituent of a packaging — for example, a glass bottle, a paper label, an aluminium closure, or a plastic film.

At the component level, you record the PPWR-relevant sustainability and compliance data: material composition, weight, PFAS, heavy metals, and recyclability. Weight can be recorded in several units, including per piece, per roll, and per 1,000 pieces, to match how each component is actually measured. Compliance with the relevant EN standards is tracked per component, with each standard marked as Fully or Partly compliant.

Each component is assigned to exactly one supplier, who is responsible for entering this data. If you source the same component from several suppliers (multi-sourcing), create a separate component for each supplier.

A component can be used in several packaging units.

Example: A paper label is used for both the 0.5 l and the 1.0 l bottle — a single component is sufficient.

Packaging unit

A packaging unit describes a specific, complete packaging as it is actually placed on the market. It consists of one or more components.

For each packaging unit, you define:

• your company's PPWR role for this packaging (e.g. manufacturer, importer)
• the packaging type (sales, grouped, or transport packaging)

At the packaging unit level, you also create the declaration of conformity and the technical documentation.

Example: The sales packaging "Apple juice 0.75 l" consists of the components glass bottle, paper label, and aluminium closure.

II. Recommended setup workflow

To use the PPWR module, we recommend the following order:

1. Create components – First, record the individual constituents of your packaging (e.g. bottle, label, closure) and assign the responsible supplier to each component (see: How do I upload my (packaging) components?).
2. Create packaging units – Set up the specific packaging and determine the PPWR role and packaging type for each packaging unit (see: PPWR: Packaging types and roles, and How do I upload my packaging units?).
3. Create products (optional) – Record the products you place on the market if you want to associate your packaging with a content (see: How do I upload my PPWR products?), and link them to the packaging units (see: How do I upload my PPWR mapping files?).
4. Link components and packaging units – Connect the created components to the appropriate packaging units. This produces the complete representation of each packaging (see: How do I upload my PPWR mapping files?).
5. Request supplier data – Request the missing compliance and master data (e.g. material composition, weight, PFAS, heavy metals) from the assigned suppliers (see: How do I send a PPWR data request?).
6. Create proof documents – At the packaging unit level, create the declaration of conformity and the technical documentation (see: How do I create a declaration of conformity and technical documentation?).

III. Data collection status

For each component, the data completeness status is displayed. It shows at a glance how far the collection of PPWR-relevant master data and sustainability data has progressed:

• Incomplete – Required data is still missing for the component (e.g. material composition, weight, PFAS, heavy metals). No request has yet been sent to the supplier.
• Requested – The missing data has been requested from the assigned supplier but is not yet fully available.
• Complete – All required data for the component has been recorded. The component can be used in the proof documents (declaration of conformity, technical documentation).

On the components list, you can also see whether each component's assigned supplier is Connected, Pending, or Not invited, and filter by this.

IV. Entering data yourself

Each component must be assigned to a supplier. However, this does not mean the data must necessarily come from the supplier — you can also enter the master data and sustainability data yourself, directly in the Sustainability data tab of the component.

This is useful, for example, when

• the assigned supplier is not yet registered in the Supply Chain Hub,
• you manufacture the component yourself, or
• the details are already available to you from another source — such as a declaration of conformity, a data sheet, a test report, or earlier requests.

In these cases, you enter the values directly in the Sustainability data tab; a request to the supplier is not required. This keeps you able to act even when a supplier does not respond, or responds only with a delay.

Once the data is complete, click Mark as complete on the component to set its status to Complete. From the components list, you can also select multiple components at once and mark them all complete in a single action, instead of one at a time.

V. The packaging list

The Packaging units list shows all packaging units of your company. Each row contains the name, the type, the role, the number of components, and a completeness status badge.

The completeness status indicates the current state of the packaging unit:

Use the Completeness filter above the list to narrow results by status. You can select several statuses at the same time.

From a packaging unit's detail page, you can jump directly to a pre-filtered list of the products that use it, instead of browsing the full product list.