Low-code integration: A complete guide

How does low-code integration work?

Low-code integration platforms provide pre-built connectors and templates for creating integration workflows. Users drag and drop connector components to establish connections between systems, map data fields, and configure business logic.

Low-code development principles also apply to integration tasks. This means teams do not have to spend a lot of time on technical work. They can avoid spending hours on building APIs and designing API connections. Instead, they can focus on more creative and innovative projects.

Benefits of low-code integration for enterprise app development

Why should you consider using low-code to create your enterprise applications? There are many reasons for this. It offers benefits like speed and lower costs while helping solving many integration challenges.

Here are some of the advantages of using low-code integration.

• Accelerated delivery: Low-code platforms eliminate time-consuming manual integration tasks. They offer connectors, systems, and a development environment that allows users to build connectors from scratch using low-code.
• Reduced technical debt: Standardized, maintainable integration connectors replace one-off custom code or negotiations for APIs. These consistent approaches stop teams from accumulating brittle, hard-to-maintain custom integrations that they rarely use again.
• Improved visibility: Visual interfaces make integration flows easier to understand and monitor. Teams gain clear insights into how systems connect, simplifying troubleshooting and knowledge transfer across the organization.
• Increased agility: Update integrations quickly as business needs change. Visual editors allow teams to modify connection points, data mappings, and business logic without extensive recoding or regression testing.
• Lower costs: Reduce the need for developers who specialize in integrations and APIs. Organizations save on both initial development and ongoing maintenance costs through simplified tools and broader resource availability.

What challenges do low-code integration platforms solve?

Integrations are the lifeblood of today’s applications, but they have their challenges that low-code platforms that offer integration solutions can solve.

• Legacy system connectivity: Low-code platforms include adapters for legacy protocols and file formats, extending the lifespan and value of existing IT investments. As a result, it is easier and quicker to connect modern applications with older systems that lack modern APIs.
• API complexity: Low-code simplifies interaction with complex APIs. Pre-built connectors handle authentication, retry logic, and error management, shielding users from technical implementation details.
• Integration backlogs: Address the growing demand for connections between business systems. Empowering more team members to make these connections helps organizations clear mounting backlogs caused by difficult or multiple integrations.
• Data silos: Create unified data views across disparate enterprise applications. Low-code tools enable consistent data mapping and transformation, presenting coherent information regardless of where it originated.
• Scarce integration expertise: Integration, connector, and API development are specialized skills, ones for which there is a shortage. By lowering the technical barrier, organizations can tap into a larger talent pool for integration projects. This way, they won't have to compete for rare specialized skills.

Low-code integration platforms provide application integration tools that bridge the gap between technical complexity and business needs.

Low-code integration use cases

Multiple companies across industries are benefitting from using low-code for integrations. From healthcare to manufacturing, here are some examples.

Healthcare patient data integration

Luz Saúde, a major healthcare provider, used OutSystems to integrate patient data across multiple systems. They also connected legacy hospital systems with new mobile applications, creating a unified patient experience.

Financial services loan processing

Corporate One Federal Credit Union used low-code to build a business lending platform that required multiple connections. The platform integrates with core banking systems, credit bureaus, and document management systems to streamline loan processing.

Manufacturing supply chain visibility

Manufacturers use low-code data to build enterprise applications and applications that link to databases, ERP systems, supplier portals, and logistics platforms. These integrations provide real-time visibility into inventory levels, production status, and shipment tracking.

Retail omnichannel customer experience

Retailers implement workflow integration between e-commerce platforms, in-store systems, and customer service tools. Low-code integration platforms enable consistent customer experiences across all touchpoints, even in real-time.

Government service delivery

Government agencies use low-code tools to connect citizen data across departments. These integrations enable personalized service delivery while maintaining data security and compliance.

• Capability spectrum: No-code integration platforms focus exclusively on simplifying integration through completely visual interfaces. Low-code integration platforms support both simple and complex integration scenarios with options to build connectors from scratch.
• User focus: No-code platforms target business users with zero technical background in building integrations or using them. Low-code platforms accommodate both citizen developers and professional developers, offering different levels of abstraction.
• Customization depth: No-code solutions provide limited customization through pre-defined templates. Low-code platforms let users customize more, offering ways to extend features and use custom code for connectors when needed.
• Integration complexity: No-code tools excel at straightforward point-to-point integrations. Low-code integration platforms handle complex enterprise scenarios including multi-step processes, data transformations, and error handling.
• Business outcomes: Organizations choose between low-code and no-code options based on their integration complexity, in-house skills, and governance requirements. Low-code platforms typically offer more sustainable solutions for enterprise-scale integration challenges.

OutSystems low-code integration capabilities

OutSystems provides a comprehensive low-code integration platform with capabilities that address the full spectrum of enterprise integration needs:

• Universal connectivity: Connect to any system through REST, SOAP, OData, SAP, database, or file-based integrations.
• Integration Builder: Visual tool for creating integrations without writing code.
• API management: Create, publish, and manage APIs with built-in documentation and testing.
• Process automation: Integrate systems as part of broader business process automation.
• Scalability: Handle enterprise integration workloads with cloud-native architecture.

The OutSystems low-code platform streamlines app integration technology while maintaining the flexibility professional developers need.

Explore the OutSystems Integration Platform or schedule a demo to see low-code integration in action.

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