Can I compile the furniture passport myself?
Yes, in principle you can collect and structure the data for the furniture passport yourself. The regulation does not require a mandatory intermediary: it does not state that a manufacturer or importer is obliged to use an external platform to compile the content. What the regulation does require is that certain product information is made available in a fixed, machine-readable manner and remains accessible for ten years via a data carrier, usually a QR code.
The question is therefore not so much whether it is permitted, but whether it is practically feasible within your organisation. Compiling is more than filling in data in a form: it involves collecting reliable information about materials, origin, repair and end of life, structuring that information in the correct format, and ensuring that the information remains accurate and accessible for ten years. It is this last part where most companies run into limits.
What 'compiling' exactly entails
Compiling a product passport actually consists of three parts. First, collecting the data: which materials are used, where do they come from, how can the product be repaired or disassembled. Next, structuring the data in a form that complies with the requirements that follow from the regulation and the associated delegated acts. And then making the link with a data carrier, so that a user or supervisor can request the information by scanning the QR code.
The first two steps are often already within the reach of a company that knows its own production or imports well. Companies usually know which materials they process and where their parts come from. The challenge lies in the correct format and in keeping track of changes: a changed supplier, a modified part or a new repairability score must be traceable in the passport, years after the first version.
Where the line between doing it yourself and outsourcing lies
This limit usually does not shift at the point of collecting the data, but at maintaining it over a period of ten years. Anyone who compiles a passport themselves must also set up a system that still works after staff changes, system replacements or business takeovers. A supervisor does not look at the intention behind a passport, but at the question of whether the information at the time of inspection is still correct and accessible.
In addition, it matters how many products and variants a company carries. For a small range, manual compilation is straightforward. With many variants, materials that vary per delivery, or sales in multiple EU countries, maintaining the data quickly becomes an ongoing task rather than a one-off project. At that point, many companies choose to outsource the compilation and updating, while the responsibility for the accuracy of the underlying data remains with the company itself.
To determine which part of the process involves the most time or risk for your situation, it helps to first get clear on what role your company plays in the chain and which data is exactly required for that. The topics selected for each situation give an overview of this, so that you do not remain in general information but reach your own position in the chain.
What a platform such as furnipas.eu does and does not take over
A platform that takes over the compilation does not collect the source data itself: the manufacturer or importer supplies that. Where the platform adds value is in structuring that data according to the required format, linking it to a QR data carrier and keeping it accessible for ten years, even if something changes internally. How these steps proceed in detail and where the underlying information comes from is explained on the page about how data becomes a product passport.
Whether assembling it yourself is feasible for your company depends on the size of your product range, the changes in your supply chain and the extent to which you already maintain structured product data. A lawyer or the competent supervisory authority can help you with questions about your specific obligations; for an initial assessment of where your company stands, this is not necessary.
Do you want to first see how large the task is for your own product range before you choose between doing it yourself and outsourcing? Take the free product scan with an indication in five questions, or browse through the other frequently asked questions about the furniture passport to see which step is most urgent for you.