Beaulieu International Group and Digimarc Demonstrate Digital Watermarks as a Scalable Solution for Digital Product Passports in the Flooring Industry

Business Wire

a day ago

WAREGEM, Belgium & BEAVERTON, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Beaulieu International Group (B.I.G.), a global leader in material and flooring solutions, and Digimarc Corporation (NASDAQ: DMRC), a pioneer in digital watermarking technologies, have successfully demonstrated that invisible digital watermarks are a highly effective solution for delivering CPR-mandated construction Digital Product Passports (DPP) to the flooring industry while uniquely meeting its complex needs.
'Facilitating the circular economy through DPP compliance is a top priority for Beaulieu, because eventually, all flooring products will be removed and replaced,' said Nele Cattoor, B.I.G.'s Regulatory Compliance Lead. 'The challenge was to find a data carrier that not only functions while the flooring is in place, but also survives the damage that inevitably occurs during removal. This data carrier must therefore be imperceptible to the human eye—something that could be integrated directly onto the surface of our flooring solutions—without affecting the design, appearance, or thickness. It must also be pervasive and durable enough to remain detectable even on small, cut, or damaged pieces of material.'
Traditional technologies, such as QR codes, NFC, and RFID cannot meet these requirements. 'You could potentially be technically DPP-compliant by printing QR codes on the backs of glue-down flooring, but once the flooring is installed, those codes can no longer be read, nor are they likely to survive the removal process and therefore be accessible to recycling facilities,' explained Dorine Degryse, Sustainability Coordinator CV at B.I.G. 'As a company committed to sustainable living, that was not acceptable. We needed something better—and we found it in Digimarc's digital watermarking technology.'
Digimarc's invisible, thumbnail-sized digital watermarks cover the entire surface of the product in a redundant pattern, making them robust, long-lasting, and detectable even after substantial wear and tear. Each watermark carries a unique digital ID linked to product-specific data hosted on Digimarc's Illuminate SaaS platform, enabling a seamless DPP experience via mobile or web applications. Requiring no special ink or printing process, the solution is highly scalable and cost-effective compared to many traditional alternatives. Most importantly, due to their covert nature and robustness, Digimarc digital watermarks can support the entire life cycle of flooring, from installation all the way to recycling.
B.I.G. partnered with Digimarc to validate the technology's performance in real-world flooring scenarios. Together, the teams enhanced six B.I.G. artworks with digital watermarks, created corresponding DPP profiles within Digimarc's beta DPP module, and successfully scanned the products to simulate field use.
The success of this initiative was showcased at major industry events, including Flanders Flooring Days in June 2025 and the VinylPlus® Digital Product Passport event in Brussels in January 2025. Both demonstrations generated significant interest from flooring manufacturers facing similar DPP compliance challenges. 'Many attendees had never encountered digital watermarking before, so seeing our solution in action—providing instant, invisible access to critical sustainability, circularity, and compliance information stored in the cloud—was eye-opening,' said Lara Misseeuw, Innovation Project Manager at B.I.G. 'It quickly became clear to the industry why digital watermarking technology is so valuable as a next-generation data carrier, which we can use as a more durable and sustainable option alongside, for example, QR codes printed on the backs of products, if desired.'
Digimarc has also presented this successful collaboration to the technical group responsible for standards harmonization for the flooring industry (CEN/TC 134 WG 10, AHG Tagging). 'Our ambition is to establish digital watermarks as the industry-validated data carrier for construction materials, starting with flooring,' said Riley McCormack, President and CEO at Digimarc. 'Digital watermarks are a natural fit for construction products because of their invisibility, resilience, redundancy, and simple detection using a mobile phone or scanner. And because they can be applied using varnishes, etchings, molds, and inks, the technology is compatible with a wide range of materials, including pipes, panels, and tiles.'
'Our next step is to continue collaborating with the VinylPlus consortium to drive momentum for digital watermarks as the data carrier of choice to deliver CPR-mandated construction Digital Product Passports (DPP) for the flooring industry,' concluded McCormack.
Learn more about Digimarc's digital watermarks.
About Beaulieu International Group (B.I.G.)
As a global family business, we develop and co-create—in an innovative, entrepreneurial and sustainable way—flooring and material solutions to enhance the quality of living and working for every generation. Headquartered in Belgium, B.I.G. employs over 4,500 people worldwide in 19 countries throughout Eurasia, America, and Oceania and serves customers in 150 countries. In 2024, B.I.G. reported sales of €2 billion. At B.I.G., we work purposefully to build a sustainable future. Our sense of entrepreneurship and our ambition enable us to continue to grow together with our employees, customers, suppliers, shareholders, and the society in which we operate.
About Digimarc
Digimarc Corporation (NASDAQ: DMRC) is the pioneer and global leader in digital watermarking technologies for the identification and authentication of physical and digital items. For nearly 30 years, Digimarc innovations and intellectual property in digital watermarking have been deployed at a massive scale and across a wide range of industries. A notable example is our partnership with a consortium of the world's central banks to deter counterfeiting of global currency. Digimarc is also instrumental in supporting global industry standards efforts spanning both the physical and digital worlds. In 2023, Digimarc was named to the Fortune 2023 Change the World list and honored as a 2023 Fast Company World Changing Ideas finalist. Learn more at Digimarc.com.