Microsoft Copilot for manufacturing and food processing
Manufacturers on Microsoft 365 use Copilot in the office and planning functions: production reporting, quality documents and supplier communication.
- Share of NZ employees
- 9.4%about 231,000 people, Feb 2025
- Highest local share
- 78%Eltham, Taranaki
- Highest region
- 16%Taranaki, 8,600 employees
Where we start
Manufacturers on Microsoft 365 use Copilot in the office and planning functions: production reporting, quality documents and supplier communication.
Production reports in Excel
Ask plain-language questions of production and quality data, and turn the answers into a weekly report.
Quality documentation
Draft and update SOPs and quality records in Word, grounded in your existing controlled documents.
Supplier and customer email
Summarise long supplier threads in Outlook and draft replies that keep to agreed terms.
Take care: Controlled documents need a clear source of truth. Label and store them so Copilot finds the approved version.
Where the jobs are
Manufacturing and food processing accounts for 9.4% of paid employees in New Zealand. These are the towns and regions where its share is highest. Towns need at least 400 employees to be ranked.
Towns with the highest share of jobs in manufacturing
| Town | Chart | Share | NZ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eltham | 78.0% | 9.4% | |
| Moerewa | 70.4% | 9.4% | |
| Mataura | 63.4% | 9.4% | |
| Pōkeno | 46.3% | 9.4% | |
| Kawerau | 44.2% | 9.4% | |
| Edgecumbe | 37.7% | 9.4% | |
| Hāwera | 37.6% | 9.4% | |
| Wairoa | 37.2% | 9.4% | |
| Waipū | 37.1% | 9.4% | |
| Te Aroha | 36.0% | 9.4% |
Share of paid employees at business locations in the town. The tick marks the national share.
Source: Stats NZ, Business Demography Statistics, February 2020 and 2025.
By region
| Region | Chart | Share | NZ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taranaki | 16.1% | 9.4% | |
| Southland | 16.0% | 9.4% | |
| Marlborough | 15.7% | 9.4% | |
| Hawke's Bay | 12.7% | 9.4% | |
| West Coast | 12.3% | 9.4% | |
| Waikato | 11.5% | 9.4% | |
| Canterbury | 10.8% | 9.4% | |
| Tasman | 10.8% | 9.4% | |
| Manawatū-Whanganui | 10.7% | 9.4% | |
| Nelson | 9.2% | 9.4% | |
| Bay of Plenty | 9.1% | 9.4% | |
| Auckland | 9.0% | 9.4% | |
| Northland | 8.5% | 9.4% | |
| Otago | 7.5% | 9.4% | |
| Gisborne | 7.3% | 9.4% | |
| Wellington | 4.4% | 9.4% |
Source: Stats NZ, Business Demography Statistics, February 2020 and 2025.
Courses
1Introductory
Microsoft 365 Copilot foundations
Hands-on Copilot across Outlook, Teams, Word, Excel and PowerPoint, using your own everyday tasks.
2Organisation
Copilot rollout and readiness
Plan a Copilot rollout that pays for its licences: permissions hygiene, sensitivity labels, pilot groups, champions and adoption measurement.
3Advanced
Copilot Studio agents and advanced Excel
Build agents in Copilot Studio over your own content and processes, automate the actions with Power Automate, and get more from Copilot in Excel.
Other industries
Questions
Is Microsoft Copilot safe to use in manufacturing?
With the right plan and rules, yes for most tasks. Controlled documents need a clear source of truth. Label and store them so Copilot finds the approved version.
Can training use our own manufacturing examples?
Yes. We ask for a few real, non-sensitive examples beforehand, or anonymised versions, and build the exercises around them.
Train your manufacturing team
- ScopeHeadcount, sites, Microsoft 365 plan and licences, and the teams you want to start with.
- PlanWe propose a course, a pilot group and a format, and agree the files and meetings to use.
- TrainOn-site or over Teams, in Outlook, Word, Excel and Teams, with your own work.
- In person
- Remote
- Half-day workshop
- Full-day workshop
- Team rollout
Independent training by TheColab. Not affiliated with Microsoft.
Enquire
Tell us about your team. We reply by email with a suggested course and format.