How Manufacturers Can Eliminate Gray Work: Lessons from the Nuclear Industry's Use of Low-Code Platforms

In today’s fast-paced industrial landscape, data has become both the fuel and the friction of productivity. While companies have invested heavily in automation, sensors, and enterprise software, many still find themselves shackled by an often invisible but deeply entrenched problem: gray work.

Gray work refers to the time-consuming, repetitive, and non-value-adding tasks that employees must perform just to gather, clean, and transfer data across disconnected systems. These tasks may not appear on a balance sheet, but they consume time, delay decisions, frustrate teams, and quietly undermine a company’s operational effectiveness.

In sectors like manufacturing and energy—where assets are vast, workflows are complex, and safety is paramount—gray work is especially harmful. Despite the adoption of digital tools, many organizations are still plagued by information silos. A quarterly operations report, for example, might require pulling data from spreadsheets, PDFs, mobile notes, legacy ERP systems, and emails—all housed in different departments. The process can take several people days to complete.

What’s more troubling is that this “invisible overhead” persists even in companies that consider themselves digitally mature. Going paperless is not the same as being digitally integrated. When various tools don’t talk to each other, digitization itself can become a bottleneck. That’s where low-code platforms come into play—not just as a new category of software, but as a fundamental enabler of agile, bottom-up digital transformation.

This shift is most clearly demonstrated in one of the world’s most risk-sensitive and tightly regulated industries: nuclear energy. At the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station in the UK—Europe’s largest infrastructure project—contractors faced the enormous challenge of managing thousands of assets, workers, and workstreams across 400 acres, running 24/7 shifts.

Historically, many of the daily operational processes relied on paper forms, printed checklists, and fragmented communication. Equipment inspections, shift reports, and maintenance requests were manually recorded, slowing down response times and increasing the risk of data errors. Even a single piece of defective machinery, if left unnoticed or unresolved, could cost the project £20,000 per day in downtime.

Enter low-code platforms. To address these challenges, construction contractor Balfour Beatty partnered with NDC Certification Bureau Ltd., a company specializing in compliance audits and digital safety solutions. NDC had already begun transitioning from spreadsheet-based audit management to custom-built low-code applications that integrated real-time data capture, QR code-based asset tracking, and centralized compliance documentation.

Using a low-code development platform, NDC created a streamlined asset management solution. Each physical asset on site—from machines to safety gear—was tagged with a unique scannable code. Workers on the ground could scan the tag using a mobile device and instantly log equipment status, defects, or required maintenance. The data would then flow seamlessly into a central dashboard, visible to site managers, compliance officers, and procurement staff alike.

One night shift operator used the system to report a machine’s worn-down tracks. Thanks to the automated workflows, the maintenance team was notified immediately, and repair operations were initiated by the following morning. The defect, which might have previously triggered multiple days of unplanned downtime, was addressed before it had a chance to halt progress. Real-time transparency meant that everyone—from field technicians to executives—had access to the same data, leading to faster decisions and dramatically reduced risk.

This isn’t just about speeding up workflows—it’s about transforming how people work. By eliminating gray work, the Hinkley Point C project team was able to reduce maintenance lag, avoid unnecessary downtime, and better prioritize operational tasks. Teams now begin their day with an “action tracker,” a live dashboard showing all unresolved issues, scheduled maintenance, and at-risk assets.

The results extended beyond the nuclear sector. NDC, originally a certification and auditing provider, was able to parlay its success into broader opportunities. Before adopting low-code technology, the company managed audits and compliance logs using a patchwork of spreadsheets, Dropbox folders, and manual document compilation. Site managers responsible for thousands of safety assets struggled to prepare for audits, often buried under forms and version control nightmares.

Once NDC digitized its workflows and brought everything onto a unified platform, it reduced its average audit time by 60%, significantly improved client satisfaction, and doubled its business volume. Its clients—spanning energy, manufacturing, and construction—could now access audit trails, inspection records, and compliance certificates at the click of a button. What was once a burden had become a value-added service.

So, what makes low-code platforms so well suited to industrial environments?

First, they offer unparalleled speed and flexibility. Traditional IT development cycles are often too slow and too costly to respond to the dynamic needs of industrial operations. Building or modifying enterprise apps can take months, during which business needs may change. In contrast, low-code platforms allow developers—and increasingly, non-developers—to build fully functional applications in a matter of days or even hours. In the case of Balfour Beatty, the team digitized entire field forms and added mobile feedback capabilities in under a week.

Second, they democratize software development. Low-code enables “citizen developers”—plant managers, operations supervisors, safety officers—to co-create solutions without having to write code. This encourages bottom-up innovation, increases engagement across departments, and shortens the feedback loop between software users and software creators.

Third, they support true integration. Industrial organizations often rely on a mix of legacy systems, IoT data streams, cloud platforms, and manual processes. Low-code tools can act as a connective tissue—bridging ERP, MES, asset management systems, and field operations apps. This integrated approach drastically reduces the reliance on spreadsheets, double entry, and ad hoc workflows.

And most importantly, low-code platforms transform data into decisions. When performance indicators, maintenance logs, safety incidents, and procurement statuses are centralized in one place, managers gain a real-time understanding of the shop floor. They can predict equipment failures, optimize resource allocation, and identify compliance gaps before they escalate.

Despite all this, low-code adoption in manufacturing is not without barriers. Many businesses still underestimate the hidden cost of gray work. Others struggle with internal resistance—from IT teams wary of losing control, to frontline workers hesitant to embrace new tools. There’s also the perception that low-code is only for simple apps, not “serious” industrial systems.

These concerns, while understandable, are increasingly outdated. As the Hinkley Point C example shows, even the most complex, high-stakes environments can benefit from low-code agility. More importantly, the cost of inaction—of clinging to outdated, fragmented workflows—is rising. In an era where downtime is expensive, compliance is non-negotiable, and skilled labor is in short supply, organizations must eliminate inefficiencies wherever possible.

Manufacturing companies, in particular, stand to gain from this approach. Asset-heavy environments can deploy low-code apps to handle predictive maintenance, inventory management, production scheduling, safety checklists, and customer quality feedback. When tied together, these capabilities can elevate a factory’s digital maturity without replacing existing infrastructure.

This is especially critical as manufacturers face increasing complexity in their operations. From mass customization and tighter quality standards to global supply chain disruptions and environmental regulations, agility is no longer optional. Businesses that can’t adapt quickly fall behind. And adaptation today means having digital systems that are fast, flexible, and user-centric.

Low-code platforms offer a compelling answer to the pressing question: How can we do more with less? They empower organizations to digitize “the last mile” of operations—the places where legacy systems and spreadsheets still dominate. They allow workers to focus on problem-solving and productivity instead of administrative overhead. And they give leaders the data they need to act with speed and confidence.

Crucially, the low-code movement isn’t just about tools. It’s about a new way of thinking—one where digital transformation isn’t confined to IT departments or million-dollar systems, but is embedded into daily operations. It’s about empowering people closest to the work to continuously improve how that work gets done.

In the case of the nuclear industry, this mindset has already taken root. Strict requirements, complex processes, and zero-tolerance for mistakes have made it a proving ground for digital innovation. And now, the rest of the industrial world is beginning to catch up.

Manufacturers don’t need to overhaul everything at once to benefit. They can start small—digitizing inspections, automating asset reporting, or streamlining maintenance alerts. With each application, gray work gets reduced. And with every saved hour, the organization becomes more resilient.

The nuclear industry has demonstrated that with the right tools, even the most rigid and complex systems can become agile. For manufacturers, the challenge is not whether the technology works—but whether they are ready to rethink how they work. Low-code platforms offer a clear, proven path forward. The only question that remains is: Will you take it?