A New Era of Product Stewardship
Alan Johnson
August 28, 2025
Compliance and sustainability are now converging at the product level. This fundamental shift is causing companies to operationalize both objectives as part of their core business processes.
Factors contributing to this shift include:
- Emerging global regulations moving away from SDS and chemical safety to full-product environmental accountability
- ESG expectations from investors and customers demanding traceable, accurate product data
- Digitalization of supply chains driving the need for structured compliance and sustainability information that can be fed directly into PLM, ERP, and procurement systems
However, while trying to meet these demands, many companies are facing the following challenges:
- Siloed systems and data—compliance teams, sustainability leads, and procurement often use disconnected platforms.
- Inconsistent supplier engagement—most companies struggle to get reliable, complete data from across their value chain.
- Lack of regulatory interpretation at the product level—even with good data, many firms are unsure how to apply it to specific compliance requirements.
For organizations without integrated data infrastructure, this is a growing risk. To make meaningful progress, here are some actions you can take now:
- Assess regulatory and sustainability maturity
Use regulatory audits and gap assessments to benchmark your organization’s readiness and prioritize areas for improvement
- Digitize and centralize product compliance data
Explore solutions to create a single source of truth for product-level regulatory and hazard data
- Operationalize supplier data collection
Evaluate tools to streamline supplier engagement to ensure completeness and accuracy
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About the Author
Alan Johnson
3E
Alan leads the strategic vision and execution of 3E’s global chemical and workplace safety product portfolio, ensuring leadership in the space. He is responsible for driving product innovation, expanding market reach, and aligning with regulatory requirements, all while delivering exceptional value to 3E’s clients worldwide.