Chapter One — 1.1 Background to the Study

Low-Code/No-Code Development Platforms has become one of the more actively explored innovations in the design of modern e-commerce platforms, promising gains in efficiency and reliability that legacy, largely manual approaches have struggled to deliver.

In practice, however, adoption of low-code/no-code development platforms within e-commerce platforms has been uneven, and its actual impact on predictive maintenance is not yet well understood in a rigorous, evaluable way — a gap this study is positioned to address.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Current e-commerce platforms in many organizations struggle with inadequate predictive maintenance, often relying on manual processes or outdated architectures that were not designed for today's operating environment. Without a structured approach to integrating low-code/no-code development platforms, these limitations are likely to persist, exposing organizations to inefficiency, risk, and a poor user experience. This study is motivated by the need to design and evaluate a low-code/no-code development platforms-based approach to addressing this problem.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

1. To design and implement a low-code/no-code development platforms-based approach to improving predictive maintenance in e-commerce platforms.
2. To evaluate the effectiveness of Low-Code/No-Code Development Platforms in enhancing predictive maintenance within e-commerce platforms.
3. To identify the key requirements and constraints relevant to deploying low-code/no-code development platforms in this context.
4. To assess user and stakeholder perception of the resulting system.

1.4 Research Questions

1. How can low-code/no-code development platforms be applied to improve predictive maintenance in e-commerce platforms?
2. How effective is Low-Code/No-Code Development Platforms at enhancing predictive maintenance within e-commerce platforms?
3. What requirements and constraints are relevant to deploying low-code/no-code development platforms in this context?
4. How do users and stakeholders perceive the resulting system?

1.5 Significance of the Study

This study is significant to software developers and system architects seeking practical guidance on applying Low-Code/No-Code Development Platforms within e-commerce platforms. It is equally relevant to organizations that rely on these systems, offering a reference point for evaluating whether such an investment is justified, and it adds to the growing body of work on low-code/no-code development platforms applications in software technology / IT.

1.6 Scope of the Study

As a MSc-level study, its scope is confined to designing and evaluating a low-code/no-code development platforms-based solution for e-commerce platforms, focused specifically on predictive maintenance; broader deployment considerations fall outside this scope.