Verification infrastructure, PPWR, EUDR, DPP and DIWASS.
Plain-language definitions for the terms Xworks works with most, and how Xworks uses each one.
Verification infrastructure for fragmented physical supply chains
Verification infrastructure checks whether the operational evidence behind a supply-chain claim actually supports it, instead of only recording what was declared. Fragmented physical supply chains generate evidence across many disconnected systems, formats and languages — which is why that evidence usually needs a dedicated layer to check it.
PPWR
PPWR is the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation. It sets requirements for recycled content, recyclability and reporting on packaging placed on the EU market. Xworks checks whether the evidence behind a PPWR claim supports it.
EUDR
EUDR is the EU Deforestation Regulation. It requires companies to demonstrate that certain commodities are deforestation-free, supported by geolocation and supply-chain evidence. Xworks checks whether the available evidence supports an EUDR claim.
Digital Product Passport (DPP)
A Digital Product Passport is a structured record that carries information about a product across its lifecycle. A DPP can carry self-declared information or independently verified information — the passport format alone does not establish which. Xworks helps establish whether the data behind it can be trusted.
DIWASS
DIWASS refers to digital waste and shipment tracking and reporting requirements for materials moving across borders and facilities. Xworks checks whether the evidence behind a DIWASS record supports the movements and handling being claimed.
CSRD
CSRD is the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive. It requires in-scope companies to report detailed sustainability information, much of which depends on operational evidence from across the supply chain. Xworks checks whether that evidence supports the disclosures being made.
CBAM
CBAM is the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. It requires importers of certain goods to report and pay for the embedded carbon emissions in those goods. Xworks checks whether the evidence behind a CBAM emissions claim supports it.
Limited assurance
Limited assurance is a lighter-touch review in which an independent third party concludes that nothing has come to their attention to suggest the claim is materially misstated. It involves fewer procedures than reasonable assurance and gives a moderate, not absolute, level of confidence.
Reasonable assurance
Reasonable assurance is the higher, more in-depth level of independent review, comparable in rigour to a financial statement audit. It involves more extensive procedures and evidence-gathering than limited assurance, giving a high (though never absolute) level of confidence in the claim.
Chain of custody
Chain of custody is a record of a material's movement, ownership and handling from source to end use. A mapped chain of custody is only as reliable as the evidence supporting each step — recording a journey is not the same as verifying it.
Verification vs. certification vs. audit
These terms are often used interchangeably but differ. Verification checks whether evidence supports a specific claim. Certification is a formal attestation of ongoing conformity to a defined standard, usually with periodic surveillance. An audit is a structured examination of records or processes against a set of criteria, which may support either a verification or a certification decision.
Scope of assurance
The scope of assurance defines exactly what a verification statement covers — which claims, which sites, which time period and which evidence — and, just as importantly, what it does not cover. A record can be verified within a narrow scope without that verification extending to unrelated claims.
Materiality
Materiality is the threshold at which missing, incomplete or incorrect information would be significant enough to change a decision made on the basis of that information. CSRD assurance and other reporting frameworks use materiality to decide what must be evidenced and disclosed.
EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility)
Extended Producer Responsibility makes producers responsible for the end-of-life impact of the products and packaging they place on the market, typically through reporting obligations and funding contributions tied to volumes and material types.
Recycled content claim
A recycled content claim states the proportion of recycled material in a product or packaging. Regulations including PPWR set minimum recycled-content thresholds, and the claim is only as strong as the evidence tracing that material back through the supply chain.
Mass balance, segregation and identity preservation
These are the three common chain-of-custody models used for tracking material through a supply chain. Identity preservation keeps a specific batch physically separate throughout. Segregation keeps a certified material type separate from non-certified material, without preserving individual batch identity. Mass balance allows certified and non-certified material to mix, with the certified volume tracked administratively rather than physically.
Deforestation-free
A deforestation-free claim states that a commodity was not produced on land subject to deforestation or forest degradation after a defined cut-off date. Under EUDR this claim must be supported by geolocation data and traceable supply-chain evidence, not by declaration alone.
Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions
Scope 1 covers direct emissions from a company's own operations. Scope 2 covers emissions from purchased energy. Scope 3 covers all other emissions across the value chain, including suppliers and product use — typically the hardest category to evidence, and central to CBAM and CSRD reporting.
Conflict minerals and OECD due diligence
Conflict minerals regulations require companies to trace certain minerals back through the supply chain to confirm they are not funding armed conflict or human-rights abuses. The OECD Due Diligence Guidance sets out the widely referenced five-step process for that supply-chain due diligence.
What "verified" means at Xworks
Verified is not a generic label for uploaded documents, completed fields or mapped journeys. A record is described as independently verified only where a named independent third party has made that assurance decision.