Microsoft Scenario Library Manufacturing Shift planning optimizer agent

Available with: Microsoft Copilot Studio

Manufacturing scenario: Shift planning optimizer agent

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Scenario

Use Copilot Studio to create a shift planning optimizer agent

Leverages data like labor availability, machine readiness, and workforce constraints to automatically generate and adjust shift schedules—ensuring optimal staffing, minimizing downtime, and improving overall operational efficiency.

1. Import labor & shift data

Aggregates workforce availability, skill sets, absentee data, and shift policies from HR and ERP systems.

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AI Agent

Benefit: Aggregates workforce availability, skill sets, absentee data to ensure visibility into staffing capacity and compliance constraints.

Cross-references current staffing levels with real-time production load and equipment readiness.

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AI Agent

Benefit: Matches labor with demand to minimize downtime by aligning labor with equipment and workload.

Applies optimization logic to suggest ideal skill matched staffing and flag areas of excess or insufficient coverage.

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AI Agent

Benefit: Generates accurate and optimized shift plans incorporating skills, etc.

Communicates optimized shift plans and real-time alerts to relevant supervisors.

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AI Agent

Benefit: Sends shift plan updates to improve visibility and response time to scheduling changes.

KPIs

Opportunity to impact key functional area KPIs

How Microsoft Copilot can help improve product time to market

Use Copilot capture customer needs and then support coordination of product development activities.
Boost productivity
  • Rapidly find information
  • Diagnose problems faster
  • Check for similar issues and resolutions
  • Quickly send follow-up communications

How Microsoft Copilot can help employee turnover rates

Retain critical plant and headquarters staff by improving the work/life balance of all workers by simplifying overhead tasks. Improve skilling to provide more growth opportunities and increase internal hiring.​
Improve quality of internal materials and processes
  • Improve job descriptions for further role clarity
  • Improve company meetings with summarization and recap
  • Completely focus during the meeting

How Microsoft Copilot can help customer satisfaction

Improve customer service performance with tailored LLMs for higher first-time call resolution. Improve customer communications whether through improved writing or improved call scripts.​
Incorporate feedback
  • Rapidly analyze customer feedback
  • Quickly create recommendations
  • Swiftly update scripts and processes
  • Create communications to socialize the changes

How Microsoft Copilot can help minimize scrap rate

Quickly identify quality issues by accessing and analyzing quality logs. Reduce the cost of any recall programs that are required with effective management and tailored responses.​
Speed problem resolution​
  • Rapidly find information​
  • Diagnose problems faster​
  • Check for similar issues and resolutions​
  • Quickly send follow-up communications​

How Microsoft Copilot can help supply chain performance

Use AI to generate evaluation criteria for new materials and suppliers. Review contracts to make the most effective deals and use AI analysis to evaluate supplier performance.
Speed data analysis and reporting​
  • Quickly analyze trends​
  • Generate informative charts​
  • Create strategy presentations ​

How Microsoft Copilot can help minimize production downtime

Use Copilot to analyze information from manufacturers apps to predict and prevent equipment failures, manage inventory levels and identify training that can help staff keep machines operating. 
Speed problem resolution​
  • Rapidly find information​
  • Diagnose problems faster​
  • Check for similar issues and resolutions​
  • Quickly send follow-up communications​

1Access Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat at m365copilot.com, or the Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat mobile app and set toggle to “Web”.

2Access Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat at m365copilot.com, the Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat mobile app, or the Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat app in Teams, and set toggle to “Work”.

3AI Agents allow Copilot to access your organization-specific apps. In the past this would have required an API call to get data from a system of record.

The content in this example scenario is for demonstration purposes only. You should evaluate how Copilot aligns with your organization’s business processes, regulatory requirements, and responsible AI principles.