Long-Term Maintenance and Governance of Software Systems in Smart Manufacturing

Abstract

Smart manufacturing systems integrate production control, quality inspection, and logistics coordination into unified software platforms. These systems often operate continuously for decades with incremental upgrades. This paper reports on a longitudinal study of software maintenance practices in automated production facilities. Code repositories, configuration files, and incident reports were analyzed to identify long-term degradation patterns. Results indicate that undocumented customization and vendor-specific extensions are major contributors to maintenance complexity. Refactoring initiatives improved modularity but required substantial organizational commitment. Sustainable manufacturing software depends on governance practices as much as on technical architecture.