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    Loftware has been recognized as a Pace Setter in the Gartner® Emerging Market Quadrant for Digital Product Passport — Established Vendors report

    We believe Loftware's placement in the Pace Setters quadrant reflects its deep enterprise infrastructure, regulatory fluency, and unique ability to help manufacturers build a compliant, scalable Digital Product Passport program

    We are pleased to share that Loftware has been recognized as a Pace Setter in the Gartner® Emerging Market Quadrant for Digital Product Passport — Established Vendors report, published July 6, 2026 (ID G00850583). 

     

    The Pace Setters quadrant assessment is based on Gartner's opinion of the collective characteristics of its featured vendors. In our opinion, being named among a field of more than a dozen evaluated vendors speaks directly to Loftware's foundational infrastructure and its proven ability to execute complex, enterprise-scale deployments. 

     

    For Loftware, this recognition validates what our customers have known for years: An enterprise labeling and product identification platform is more than just a printing solutionit’s an operational backbone that enables supply chain collaboration and makes DPP compliance scalable and sustainable. 

     

    Preparing for DPP

     

    Regulations are spurring rapid growth in the DPP market. The EU's directives for a circular economy, including the mandatory Batteries Regulation taking effect in February 2027 and the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) later in 2027 are two such examples. Whether your business falls under near-term mandates or it is watching future outcomesnow is the time to begin. Here is what manufacturers should be prioritizing: 

     

    • Audit your data infrastructure now. Data scarcity at the product level continues to be a critical operational bottleneck. Many organizations lack digitized bills of materials (BOMs) or end-of-life records for their products. Start by identifying where your product data lives, and where the gaps are. 
    • Leverage your existing tech stack. Gartner's recommended action for Pace Setter customers is clear: “Don’t start from scratch if not necessary. Evaluate your existing tech landscape to discover leveraging opportunities with solutions and vendors to optimize development time and expense.”
    • Harmonize data across systems. Vendors provide complex systems like enterprise resource planning (ERP), product life cycle management (PLM), and manufacturing execution systems (MES), to harmonize disparate data. Connecting these data sources is foundational to building an accurate, updatable DPP. 
    • Address supplier data challenges proactively. Extracting data from supply chains can be difficult due to upstream suppliers' low digital maturity and reluctance to share proprietary production information. To overcome this barrier, vendors can employ selective disclosure technologies, zero-knowledge proofs for authentication and verification, and third-party verified pathways. 
    • Know your deadlines by product category. DPP will be required for batteries over 2 kWh from February 2027, as specified in the EU Battery Regulation. Categories such as iron and steel, textiles/apparel, tires, and aluminum are priority product groups under EU ESPR, with DPP requirements expected to begin around 2026, subject to the adoption of implementing acts. Furniture and mattresses are identified as the next priority groups in the EU ESPR roadmap, with DPP requirements likely to start in 2028 to 2029. 

    Rather than relying on isolated platforms, leading vendors increasingly align their architectures with universal standards like GS1 Digital Link and EPCIS 2.0. This native interoperability ensures product data is not trapped in vendor-locked ecosystems, enabling DPPs to be continuously updated and read by any authorized stakeholder — from raw material suppliers to recyclers and regulators.

    Gartner

    Emerging Market Quadrant for Digital Product Passport — Established Vendors, July 2026

    How Loftware enables DPP

    Loftware's enterprise platform was purpose-built to manage the operational complexity that DPP demands. Here is how we help customers at every layer of implementation: 

     

    1. Enterprise labeling and serialization at scale  
      Loftware generates compliant labels — including QR codes, barcodes, and RFID — across global manufacturing sites at high volumes. Every label carries a unique item identifier, giving each physical product a distinct digital identity. This is the foundation of any DPP program; without item-level serialization, there is no passport to populate.
    2. Dynamic link management that keeps the passport current  
      A defining capability of the Pace Setters quadrant is integrated management of the digital resolution layer. Loftware provides the digital infrastructure to serialize items at high volumes and manage where those identifiers are directed. By enabling dynamic, updatable endpoints, the technology allows for modifications to the content after manufacture. This supports additional use cases beyond regulatory compliance, such as recall management, product life cycle tracking, and branded digital experiences. Loftware's enterprise link management capabilities are the enabler — delivering QR codes printed at manufacture that resolve to living, updatable DPP records.
    3. Deep ERP, PLM, and MES integrations  
      Pace Setters use their existing operational infrastructure to consolidate fragmented data from supply chain, sustainability, and compliance sources into a unified asset that can then be shared with stakeholders. Loftware enables its customers to integrate the same data collected for existing reporting, also directly into the DPP. And, Loftware connects natively with SAP, Oracle, and leading PLM systems, so manufacturers can route existing product data directly into their passport pipeline without building net-new infrastructure.
    4. Proven regulatory fluency across highly compliant industries
      According to the research: “Vendors in this quadrant have relatively high execution potential through deeper industry experience, strong financial backing and extensive partnerships. They have broad experience in highly regulated and/or compliance-intensive industries such as pharmaceuticals, and demonstrate deep regulatory fluency. They tend to be midsize to large organizations with the ability to deploy complex, multisite enterprise solutions globally. Their leadership teams are multidisciplinary, combining supply chain operations expertise with software engineering, which enables them to anticipate regulatory shifts and scale solutions globally.” Loftware has broad and deep experience in regulated and compliance-intensive industries across life sciences, consumer goods and industrial categories. Loftware's track record in pharmaceutical serialization, medical device labeling, and food safety traceability translates directly into DPP readiness across manufacturing sectors.

    While regulations serve as the initial catalyst, forward-leaning brands recognize that DPPs can fundamentally transform their operations and customer relationships, bridging the gap between back-end supply chain visibility and front-end consumer engagement…Because businesses maintain control over what data is exposed and to whom, they can leverage DPPs for competitive differentiation, sustainability storytelling and brand trust.

    Gartner

    Emerging Market Quadrant for Digital Product Passport — Established Vendors, July 2026

    Where are you in your DPP journey? 

     

    DPP compliance is not a single check box. It is a progression. Wherever you are today, Loftware has a path forward. 

     

    StageWhere you areHow Loftware helps
    Early awarenessJust learning what DPP means for your business DPP readiness assessment and expert consultation
    Building the foundationEstablishing product identification and data infrastructureEnterprise labeling, unique item serialization, ERP integration
    Connecting the passportLinking physical products to digital endpointsDynamic QR code management, GS1 Digital Link compliance, resolver integrations
    Scaling for complianceRolling out across multiple sites, product lines, and geographiesCloud and on-premises deployment, multi-site label management
    Fully compliant + value expansionCompliance achieved; ready to use DPP for brand trust and consumer engagementConnected packaging, post-manufacture passport updates, anti-counterfeiting

     

    No matter where you are in your journey, Loftware brings the infrastructure, integrations, and industry expertise to move you forward — faster.

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