A battery's lifecycle data starts taking shape long before it leaves the factory. During product development, engineering teams define its materials, components, chemistry, performance characteristics and physical configuration. As the battery moves into manufacturing and use, additional information is generated that helps explain how it was produced and how it performs.
Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) systems help manage this design information. Connecting PLM with a Digital Battery Passport (DBP) can help manufacturers link the original product definition with relevant manufacturing, environmental and lifecycle records.
In our previous article, LCA Systems And Battery Passports: How Environmental Data Moves Into The DBP, we explored how environmental assessment results can contribute to Passport information. Here, we look at the product design data that provides another important foundation for a reliable Battery Passport.
What Is PLM, And Why Does It Matter For Battery Passports?
Product Lifecycle Management is an approach to managing product information and processes from initial design and development through manufacturing, service and end-of-life activities. PLM software commonly brings together engineering documents, product structures, component specifications, revisions and change records.
For battery manufacturers and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), this information can describe the battery model, its cell and pack configuration, materials, technical specifications and design history.
The EU Batteries Regulation requires a Battery Passport for each light means of transport battery, industrial battery with a capacity greater than 2 kWh and electric vehicle battery placed on the market or put into service from 18 February 2027.
Under Article 77 and Annex XIII, the Passport includes information relating to the battery model as well as information about the individual battery. Relevant model-level information includes material composition, battery chemistry and technical characteristics. Certain detailed composition and dismantling information is subject to restricted access.
PLM systems can help organisations manage and supply relevant design information, provided that the data is mapped to the applicable Passport requirements.
What PLM Data Can Feed A Digital Battery Passport?
The information available depends on how the manufacturer's PLM environment is configured and how product data is managed across the organisation.
PLM Data | Potential Relevance To The Battery Passport |
Product and model identifiers | Connects the Passport to the correct battery model |
Battery chemistry and material specifications | Supports relevant material composition information |
Product structure and bill of materials | Helps establish component relationships and material traceability |
Technical specifications | Supports applicable battery characteristics and performance information |
Engineering drawings and pack configuration | Can support technical understanding and authorised dismantling activities |
Design revisions and change records | Helps identify changes that may affect product data or compliance |
Supplier and component references | Supports links to upstream information and supporting records |
These are potential data sources, not a list of mandatory Passport fields. Organisations should determine which PLM records are relevant to the applicable requirements and whether additional evidence or data from other systems is needed.
Connect Design Data To The Correct Battery Model
One of the first challenges is maintaining a reliable relationship between the product definition in PLM and the identifiers used by manufacturing and Battery Passport systems.
A PLM system may identify a battery model through an engineering part number or product configuration. Manufacturing systems may use production orders and batch numbers, while individual batteries have their own serial numbers and Passport identifiers.
These identifiers need to be connected without losing the distinction between model-level and individual-battery information.
A simplified data relationship could look like this:
Battery Model → PLM Product Structure → Manufacturing Configuration → Battery Serial Number → Battery Passport
For example, an engineering change may introduce a revised component or a different material specification. The organisation needs to determine which product configurations are affected and how the change relates to the relevant production records and Passport information.
A clear identity structure helps prevent information from one design revision or battery model from being incorrectly associated with another.
Keep Product Design And Lifecycle Data Connected
PLM provides the product definition, but other systems record what happens after that definition enters production.
An MES can record manufacturing activities and quality checks. An ERP system can hold purchasing and supplier information. LCA tools can calculate environmental impacts using material, energy and process data. A BMS can provide operational information as a battery is used.
The Battery Passport needs relevant information from these different sources to remain connected and consistent.
Rather than copying every record into a single database, manufacturers can establish defined interfaces between systems. These may use APIs, structured data exchanges or other integration methods, depending on the existing architecture.
The objective is to connect the right information to the right product, while retaining the source records and context needed to interpret it.
Our guide on How To Map Existing Business Data To Battery Passport Requirements explains how organisations can identify relevant fields, their source systems and the checks required before publication.
Manage Engineering Changes And Data Quality
Product designs evolve. Engineering teams may update materials, replace components, revise pack structures or introduce changes to improve safety, performance or manufacturability.
When a design changes, organisations need to assess whether the affected Battery Passport information also needs to change. The answer depends on the nature of the revision, the batteries affected and the applicable requirements.
For example, a change to a material specification may affect material composition information or the inputs used for an environmental assessment. A revised pack configuration may affect technical documentation and information used by authorised repairers or recyclers.
A controlled process should record the approved design revision, identify the affected product configurations and determine which downstream records require review.
Data quality checks are equally important. Before information reaches the Passport, teams should confirm that it is associated with the correct model and revision, follows the required format and is consistent with supporting evidence.
See How To Validate Battery Passport Data Before Publication for further guidance on validating data before publication.
Protect Sensitive Engineering Information
PLM systems may contain commercially sensitive information, including detailed component designs, proprietary materials and engineering specifications. Not every record should be publicly accessible through a Battery Passport.
The EU Batteries Regulation establishes different access levels for Passport information. Some information is publicly accessible, while detailed composition, dismantling information and other specified data are restricted to users with a legitimate interest or designated authorities, as applicable.
Manufacturers should classify PLM data before integration and establish which fields can be published, which should be made available only to authorised users and which should remain within internal systems.
This approach allows relevant design information to support transparency and circularity without unnecessarily exposing confidential engineering data.
How BASE Supports Connected Product Data
The BASE project is developing and validating a trusted, interoperable Digital Battery Passport framework for the battery value chain. Connecting PLM information with manufacturing, environmental and operational data aligns with BASE's focus on traceability, data authenticity, interoperability and privacy by design. By helping establish reliable connections between product information and its source systems, BASE supports a more coherent approach to managing Battery Passport data throughout the battery lifecycle.
Build PLM Integration Into Your Battery Passport Strategy
For OEMs, engineering teams and PLM specialists, preparing for Battery Passport requirements starts with understanding what product information already exists and how it is maintained.
Practical priorities include mapping relevant design data to Passport requirements, establishing reliable links between product models and individual batteries, managing engineering revisions, validating information, and applying appropriate access controls.
When PLM is connected to the wider battery data architecture, the Battery Passport can draw on a more consistent product definition while remaining linked to relevant information generated during manufacturing, use and end-of-life activities.
This gives manufacturers a clearer path from engineering knowledge to a traceable, trustworthy Digital Battery Passport.
The BASE project has received funding from the Horizon Europe Framework Programme (HORIZON) Research and Innovation Actions under grant agreement No. 101157200.
References & Resources
European Union - Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 Concerning Batteries and Waste Batteries: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/1542/oj
European Commission - EU Digital Product Passport FAQ for Batteries: https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/single-market/digital-product-passport/eu-digital-product-passport-faq-batteries_en
European Commission - Digital Product Passport: https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/single-market/digital-product-passport_en
European Commission - Guidance to Support Preparations For The Digital Batteries Passport: https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/news/guidance-support-preparations-digital-batteries-passport-2026-08-21_en
European Commission - Digital Product Passport for Batteries: https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/single-market/digital-product-passport/batteries_en