2025/07/18 by Francisco Martínez-Lasaca, Pablo Díez, Esther Guerra +1 · 1 voice · 1 citation
Business, Management and Accounting · Computer Science · #Advanced Software Engineering Methodologies #Business Process Modeling and Analysis #Model-Driven Software Engineering Techniques
paper · pdf · doi:10.1007/s10270-025-01308-y
openalex publication_date 2025/07/18 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
Abstract The need to produce software quicker and in greater quantities continues to grow, while the market for professional programmers struggles to meet the rising demand. Low-code development platforms (LCDPs) have been proposed as a solution that enables individuals without formal training to develop applications. However, current LCDPs typically rely on proprietary, fixed code generation processes, which limit flexibility, hinder interoperability, and risk vendor lock-in. To address these limitations, this paper introduces Dandelion+, a cloud-based low-code platform designed to create domain-specific LCDPs and applications within them. Our approach is highly model-driven, from defining the scaffolds of low-code platforms (e.g., models, meta-models, users, and roles) to creating applications. In particular, applications are powered by PlatFlow , a platform-aware graphical workflow language. Comprising both model operations and low-code-focused nodes, PlatFlow offers flexible control over the code generation process that drives LCDPs. We conduct two case studies to evaluate our approach. First, we confront Dandelion+ with other low-code platforms to design interactive applications and produce artifacts. Second, we report on the benefits of Dandelion+ in the industrial context of UGROUND, a Spanish software firm that uses low code in its projects.