The registration number is in place. But as the first reporting deadline approaches, sales figures from the ERP system, packaging weights from product databases or Excel files, material information from purchasing departments and supplier documentation, and market information from sales teams suddenly all need to align. Companies that only start gathering this data when the reporting deadline is approaching turn compliance into a new project every time.
Registration is therefore not the end of the EPR project. It marks the beginning of a recurring data management process. The more products, packaging levels and sales markets are involved, the harder it becomes to manage this process reliably through isolated manual solutions.
From Registration to Reporting
The PPWR explicitly links the producer register to reporting obligations. Producers, authorised representatives or producer responsibility organisations must submit information to the relevant registers. As a general rule, the regulation provides for reporting on complete preceding calendar years by 1 June. The specific operational implementation must be aligned with the applicable national requirements.
This transforms a one-time registration into a recurring data management process.
Companies need to know what quantities of packaging they have placed on each market and how these quantities should be allocated to the required categories. This is precisely where the importance of a consistent data foundation becomes clear.
Reporting Doesn’t Start on the Submission Date
Companies that only begin collecting packaging data shortly before a reporting deadline are often already too late. The required information is frequently spread across different systems: sales figures in the ERP system, packaging weights in product databases or Excel files, material information held by purchasing departments or suppliers, and market information within sales organisations.
All this data must be consolidated to prepare a report.
For example, product sales data and packaging master data must make it possible to trace which packaging quantities were relevant in a particular country during a specific reporting period.
However, with thousands of products, multiple packaging levels, changing suppliers and numerous sales markets, this quickly becomes a complex data management process.
The Real Challenge Is Scalability
A company with only a few products and a single sales market may still be able to handle many tasks manually. However, the workload increases significantly with every additional market.
Companies should therefore avoid managing EPR as a collection of separate country-specific projects. Instead, they should establish a centralised compliance process that accommodates local requirements.
An effective structure includes a central packaging database, clearly defined responsibilities, documented calculation methodologies, an overview of national obligations and a process for regular updates.
This allows the same underlying data to be used across different markets and then prepared according to the respective national requirements.
From Reporting to a Sustainable, Manageable Process
EPR compliance does not end with registration or the first packaging quantity report. What matters is keeping the required packaging and market data continuously up to date and efficiently integrating different regulatory requirements into existing business processes.
1cc clarifies the regulatory and country-specific requirements. TechProtect ensures that sales, packaging and market data are brought together in a structured way and made available for reporting. Together, we turn recurring data searches into a reliable, scalable EPR process.
Looking ahead, however, the quality of packaging data will not only determine whether reporting is accurate. It may also influence the financial contributions companies are required to pay. In the next article in our series, we will explore why packaging characteristics are becoming increasingly important in this context.
We ensure that your EPR reporting doesn’t start with a new data hunt every time: obligations are clarified, data sources are connected, responsibilities are defined and calculation methodologies are documented.