A Blockchain-Based Framework for Securing Geospatial Terrain Data in Smart Manufacturing and Industry Logistics

Abstract

Digital elevation model (DEM)-based terrain analysis is an important geographic information system (GIS) methodology that serves as the core aspect for spatial analysis applications in geomorphological studies. These analyses can be performed using cloud-based platforms like Google Earth Engines or ArcGIS online, or using a local GIS platform called quantum GIS (QGIS). The resulting terrain data must be disseminated. Geospatial data sharing and dissemination are crucial for promoting cooperation, effectiveness, efficiency, and optimized decision-making in a variety of industries. Geospatial terrain data plays a crucial role in site selection and industrial planning, automated logistics, autonomous vehicle navigation, and infrastructure resilience in manufacturing ecosystems. However, existing literature states that traditional systems lack mechanisms to detect tampering in elevation models, land surveys, or hydrological data. Because of this, manufacturing systems face risks such as flawed factory site selection, disrupted supply routes, or unsafe autonomous vehicle navigation, data tampering in production logs, 278 counterfeit parts in supply chains, and a lack of real-time traceability. Hence, to manage the limitations of conventional terrain data storage and handling, this study proposes a blockchain-based framework to secure QGIS-processed terrain data, ensuring immutability and traceability for smart manufacturing applications. Blockchain distributed ledgers can permanently store high-resolution terrain data, minimize the chance of unintended alterations, and promote transparent, unrestricted collaboration. Using the country of the Republic of Mauritius as a case study toward tropical island states, this work demonstrated how elevation, slope, and aspect data extracted via QGIS can be securely stored and verified on a distributed ledger. Furthermore, this study incorporates an integration layer into the framework. The purpose of this integration layer is to enable real-time terrain alerts, smart contract-driven compliance checks, and to arrive at closed-loop feedback from IoT sensors. Thus, this proposed framework bridges blockchain-secured terrain data with manufacturing execution systems (MES) and IoT-enabled logistics networks.