From Material Passports to Digital Product Passports Creating and Validating Linked Databased Digital Product Passports for the AEC industry
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Last Updated: 5-2024
The use of materials is not indefinite. Producing new materials results in significant CO2
emissions across the entire value chain of the construction industry. To address this, action at
the highest level of the 10R ladder is crucial, focusing on ”Refusing,” ”Reducing,” and
”Renewing” materials, which also encompass the reuse of materials. Material Passports can
play an essential role in facilitating this process. However, the absence of a standardized
format for these passports and the lack of consensus among stakeholders regarding their
content pose challenges. Furthermore, data verification is essential to enhance the likelihood
of reuse. A Digital Product Passport (DPP) (expected to become mandatory by 2026) can
address these concerns and is regarded as a solution to the issue of inconsistent and unreliable
information. Additionally, the DPP can serve as a tool for tracking and tracing. The stakeholder
responsible for introducing a product to the market will retain the responsibility of providing
the DPP. Consequently, throughout the entire lifecycle of a product, multiple DPPs will need
to be exchanged to ensure the data is available and up-to-date. Given the amount and
complexity of information and its stakeholders, Linked Data can help prevent the loss of
information.
This study introduces a DPP format and validation process using BIM and semantic
technologies. It applies this format and process to two case projects (a transformation building
and a terraced house) stored in RDF graphs. Additionally to the RDF graphs, a product and
material database is established. Based on defined ’must-haves’ a DPP ontology is proposed,
and validation rules in the Shape Constraint Language (SHACL) are created. The final validation
is carried out using a enhanced pySHACL script. This script generates a file with any constraint
violations and corresponding IFC GUID. Based on this information the original files can be
improved. The proposed process and a prototype mock-up of a dashboard are validated using
requirements, competence questions, and user input. This format and validation will
contribute to the standardization and correctness of DPP data to increase the chances of
object reuse in the future.