SK AX announced on the 31st that it has launched an integrated support service for carbon data to prepare Korean manufacturing corporations for the intensified supply chain regulations of the European Union (EU).
The EU's sustainable product design regulation (ESPR), which took effect in July last year, is imposing new survival conditions on manufacturing corporations. To distribute products in the European market, corporations must submit product unit ESG information in the form of a digital product passport (DPP), including ▲ product composition information ▲ raw material sources ▲ carbon emissions ▲ recycling history. Particularly, as the application of the digital product passport becomes visible in carbon-intensive industries such as batteries, steel, textiles, and home appliances, the capabilities related to data design, consolidation, and protection are becoming critical to export competitiveness.
In this context, SK AX plans to provide customized services that can respond to EU regulations while also linking to Korea's data ecosystem based on verified practical capabilities. Previously, SK AX demonstrated its advanced technology and industry-leading capabilities by leading the establishment of guidelines for the 'Korean-style data space' project overseen by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
The Korean-style data space is being implemented as a domestic distributed data ecosystem that flexibly responds to EU digital product passport requirements while preventing the leakage of confidential information from domestic corporations. SK AX has presented solutions for implementing data infrastructure that can connect to the global ecosystem while safely protecting sensitive information, from technical requirements to standard architecture design.
SK AX has already conducted a data linkage demonstration project between European finished vehicle corporations and domestic parts suppliers and has completed technology validation. In June, it also obtained qualification as an official onboarding service provider (OSP) for Catena-X. Additionally, through the actual data linkage demonstration project, it fulfilled all key technological requirements necessary for DPP response, including ▲ connector-based data transmission and reception ▲ digital twin-based standard format design ▲ and the data pipeline.
SK AX also plans to offer solutions that integrate support for corporations' enterprise-wide ESG data strategies. Digital product passport data is likely to serve as key materials related to ESG disclosures, such as corporate sustainability reporting guidelines, making it essential to establish a consistent strategy from the initial design phase.
Accordingly, SK AX, based on its experience in building the ESG data platform within the SK Group, provides customized services from establishing enterprise-wide ESG data strategies to system development, including ▲ product unit digital product passport data design ▲ sensitive information protection systems ▲ securing international standard consistency ▲ and history tracking solutions.
Kim Min-hyuk, head of the manufacturing and global business division of SK AX, said, "Now that global regulations such as the EU digital product passport and corporate sustainability reporting guidelines are becoming more established, manufacturing corporations that do not respond will inevitably be excluded from supply chains and miss market opportunities." He added, "Based on the technology verified through collaboration with government projects and European finished vehicle corporations, SK AX will provide comprehensive support so that domestic manufacturing corporations can secure global competitiveness through strategic responses aligned with ESG standards and protection of sensitive data."