Data centres are among the most hardware-intensive environments in the modern economy. They depend on thousands of servers, storage units, networking components and power systems that are constantly installed, upgraded, repaired and replaced. Despite the scale and importance of this infrastructure, most operators still struggle with one fundamental requirement, which is meaningful traceability of the equipment they rely on.

Hardware typically enters data centres with documentation attached, yet the details that matter for compliance, sustainability and reuse gradually fade into fragmented files, spreadsheets and outdated asset systems or are lost. Many operators can identify the location of a server inside a rack, but far fewer can say where its components originated, what materials they contain, which subcontractor produced them, or how they have been maintained throughout their lifecycle.

This lack of transparency is no longer simply an operational inconvenience. It carries clear economic -and compliance consequences. When critical lifecycle data is incomplete or lost, valuable equipment is replaced earlier than necessary. Components that could be resold in secondary markets are classified as waste because their provenance cannot be verified. Recycling partners must handle undocumented hardware conservatively, which reduces recovery value and increases processing costs. Even procurement teams feel the impact, since they often approve new hardware purchases simply because they lack reliable data about the assets already in operation.

When multiplied across thousands of units, these inefficiencies represent a major and avoidable financial burden. At the same time, sustainability reporting is becoming more stringent, circular-economy expectations are rising and the environmental footprint of data-centre hardware is increasingly visible. The need for reliable documentation at both product and component level is becoming urgent. Valuable components often retain considerable life and economic potential long after their first deployment, but without credible documentation much of this value is lost.

Digital Product Passports provide a foundational shift toward solving this problem, and ProTag delivers the infrastructure that makes DPPs viable in data-centre environments.

Why Data-Centre Hardware Requires Real Traceability

Servers and ICT equipment are produced through complex global supply chains. A single server can contain components originating from multiple countries and multiple suppliers, each with their own compliance requirements, sustainability profiles and material compositions. While procurement teams may capture this information initially, it rarely survives years of operation, maintenance cycles or component replacements.

The consequences are visible across the industry. Refurbishers struggle to authenticate CPUs, memory modules, SSDs or power units, and often must downgrade or discard them because their origin cannot be verified. Recyclers must assume conservative material-handling procedures because they lack clarity regarding hazardous or valuable materials inside each server. Data-centre operators themselves frequently lack the information needed to determine whether a device still complies with updated environmental requirements.

Digital Product Passports create a persistent and secure identity for every product and for every component. However, the presence of a passport alone is not enough. Data-centre operators require a system that preserves this identity over the entire lifecycle of the hardware, from procurement to deployment to refurbishment and end-of-life processing.

Protag was built specifically to meet this need.

How ProTag Makes Digital Product Passports Work for Data Centres

Bringing Digital Product Passports into a data-centre environment requires more than the ability to attach a digital label. It demands an information infrastructure that is tamper-resistant, secure, interoperable and capable of surviving years of operational changes.

ProTag provides exactly this through its unique and innovative software-technology.

Each server and subsystem is assigned a continuously updated digital profile. This profile may include information about manufacturing origin, supplier details, material composition, servicing history, repair actions, replacement events, energy performance and environmental attributes. End-of-life handling instructions, reparability information and compliance documentation can be added to the same structured identity.

The result is a single source of truth that follows the asset throughout its entire life. ProTag ensures that information does not disappear into unstructured spreadsheets, inaccessible folders or gets lost. Instead, it remains accurate, verified and easy to access for all authorised stakeholders.

This clear line of visibility immediately improves operational decision-making. Operators can determine when equipment truly needs replacement, which components can be safely refurbished, and which materials can be recovered. Refurbished hardware retains higher value because its provenance is independently verifiable. Recyclers gain clarity about the materials they are processing, enabling higher recovery rates and safer handling. Sustainability teams can produce reliable documentation without long investigative efforts.

In short, ProTag enables data centres to transform their hardware fleets from opaque equipment inventories into transparent, traceable and economically optimised asset systems.

Regulatory Momentum Shows Why Data Centres Must Prepare Now

The rise of Digital Product Passports is being driven by regulatory developments with long-term implications for ICT infrastructure. The European Union’s Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation introduces mandatory DPPs for a range of product groups, and electronic equipment is positioned among the first categories to be affected. The goal is to ensure that material composition, environmental performance and lifecycle information follow products throughout their existence.

European standardisation bodies, including CEN and CENELEC, have already defined the structural requirements for DPPs. These frameworks describe how digital identities should be organised and which types of data must be accessible. Although they do not mandate specific technologies, they establish a clear expectation that operators must maintain structured, reliable product data for each asset.

Academic and industrial research confirms this direction. The RePlanIT project has developed a digital passport ontology for ICT devices, including servers. The Asset Administration Shell model, already common in industrial digital twin environments, is increasingly referenced as a foundation for multi-layered product data. Leading hardware manufacturers and analysts consistently highlight the need for data-centres to gain better component-level visibility.

ProTag aligns with this regulatory and technical landscape by providing a passport structure prepared for upcoming requirements. This allows operators to meet future obligations without costly retrofits or fragmented documentation.

Real-World Breakdown of Traceability

The challenges that DPPs and ProTag address appear daily in the field. Refurbishers often receive servers that are fully functional yet cannot be resold at their true value because essential component information is missing. Large cloud providers report difficulty verifying whether certain devices contain restricted substances or specific battery chemistries, which complicates compliance and disposal. IT asset-disposal companies sometimes resort to shredding entire server blades because insufficient data prevents them from safely extracting high-value components.

In each example, the absence of trustworthy documentation removes value and increases cost. Even small improvements in traceability lead to measurable economic and environmental gains. ProTag provides comprehensive lifecycle transparency, not incremental improvement.

What This Means for Data Centres Building a Future-Ready Infrastructure

Modern data-centre operators face rising expectations for sustainability, transparency and responsible asset management. Customers request reliable environmental documentation, regulators demand proof of compliance and investors increasingly reward circular and responsible operational models. Traceability is becoming an essential requirement, not an optional feature.

Digital Product Passports make asset-level transparency possible. ProTag turns that possibility into a practical, scalable and secure reality.

With ProTag, data centres gain full lifecycle visibility, verified component documentation, automated compliance-ready records, reduced operational waste, extended hardware life and a robust foundation for circular-economy practices. The platform ensures that data is accurate, secure and accessible, even across long hardware lifespans and global operations.

Hardware will continue to power the digital world, but the way organisations manage that hardware must evolve. ProTag enables this evolution by giving data-centre operators the clarity, structure and reliability they need to make informed, economically sound and environmentally responsible decisions.

Traceability is the future. ProTag delivers it.

References

• CEN–CENELEC (2025). CWA 18186: Digital Product Passport Framework. European Committee for Standardization. Establishes the DPP as a digital identity record for products, components and materials, including ICT and electronic equipment.
• European Commission (2024). Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR). Official regulation text outlining the mandatory introduction of Digital Product Passports for priority product groups, including electronics.
• UNECE & ISO (2025). Joint Initiative on Digital Product Passports for the Circular Economy. United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. Provides guidance on harmonizing DPP standards across industries, including ICT hardware.
• Cortés, A., et al. (2025). RePlanIT Ontology for ICT Devices. Semantic Web Journal. Introduces a detailed digital product passport ontology designed specifically for laptops and data servers, covering materials, components and lifecycle indicators.
• Zhang, Y., et al. (2025). “Digital Product Passport Design Supporting the Circular Economy Based on the Asset Administration Shell.” Sustainability, 17(3). Explains how the AAS model can structure DPPs for complex electronic products such as servers.
• UNIDO (2025). Global Assessment Report on Digital Product Passports. United Nations Industrial Development Organization. Identifies electronics and ICT equipment as high-priority sectors for DPP implementation due to current lifecycle transparency gaps.
• Uptime Institute (2023). Global Data Centre Infrastructure Report. Highlights operational problems caused by poor traceability of server components and its impact on circularity and sustainability targets.
• Dell Technologies (2024). Circular Server Design and Traceability Challenges. Corporate sustainability report discussing how lack of component-level documentation limits refurbishment and reuse.
• HP (2024). Sustainable ICT and the Role of Lifecycle Transparency. Outlines how Digital Product Passport–type systems can support the recovery, reuse and resale of enterprise hardware.
• Schneider Electric (2024). Data Centre Circularity Guide. Examines how improved transparency and component identification can enable better end-of-life outcomes for data-centre equipment.
• Green Mountain (2024). Sustainability Briefing. Notes challenges in identifying materials and components in decommissioned servers due to missing provenance data.
• Iron Mountain IT Asset Disposition (2023). Industry Commentary on Data-Centre Hardware Lifecycle Management. Discusses real-world recycling and refurbishing challenges caused by poor documentation.
• iFixit (2023). Why Refurbishing Enterprise Servers Is So Difficult. Describes practical examples of missing component provenance and undocumented hardware modifications.
• Platform Industrie 4.0 (2023). The Asset Administration Shell for Industrial Digital Twins. Provides the conceptual basis for structuring digital identities in complex products, now informing DPP architecture.
• GS1 (2024). Digital Identity Standards for Electronic Components. Explores how GS1 identifiers can be used to support consistent traceability for ICT components across global supply chains.