How to Use Microsoft Copilot to Draft SWMS
Australian safety laws require a Safe Work Method Statement (SWMS) before high-risk construction work starts, and most start life as the last job's, with the project name changed. Describe the high-risk work, the site and the crew to Microsoft Copilot and it drafts one written for this job in minutes. You check it against the site, and a competent person signs it off before work starts.
Trusted by companies, projects and teams of all sizes
The short answer
Tell Microsoft Copilot the high-risk work, the site and the crew, and it drafts a SWMS in the chat: the job steps in order, the hazards at each step, a risk rating before and after controls, the controls and a sign-on section. A competent person reads it against the site, fixes what's wrong and signs it off before work starts.
How to Get Microsoft Copilot Drafting Your SWMS
A SWMS worth signing doesn't need a long prompt. Give Copilot the specifics of the work and the sections a SWMS needs, then tighten what comes back. Do it properly once and the same prompt carries to the next job, where only the work and the site change.
-
Step 1
Give Copilot the Work and the Site
The draft's only as specific as what you give it. Name the task, the site, the plant and the crew, plus whatever makes this job different: an EWP near power lines, a trench beside a public footpath. A SWMS for roof sheeting over a fragile skylight reads nothing like a generic one.
- The high-risk construction work involved, named plainly
- The site and the conditions on the day
- The plant, access and permits the job needs
- Who's exposed: the crew, other trades or the public
-
Step 2
Tell It the Sections a SWMS Needs
Left open, Copilot writes prose. Name the sections and it writes to them, so the draft matches the SWMS format your principal contractors already accept.
- The job steps, in the order the crew will do them
- The hazards at each step, specific to this work
- A risk rating before and after controls, on your matrix
- Controls that follow the hierarchy of control, not just PPE
- A sign-on section for every worker on the job
-
Step 3
Tighten the SWMS to the Site
The first draft's a starting point. Cut anything generic, add the hazard that's actually on site today and check the job steps match how the crew will work. Then it goes to the supervisor or safety officer to review and sign off.
Prompt Guidance for Drafting SWMS with Microsoft Copilot
The prompt is the part worth building. Get it right once and it becomes your SWMS prompt, where only the work and the site change. The rule that matters most: the more specific the work you describe, the less generic the SWMS, so name the task, the plant and the site every time.
- "Draft a SWMS for [high-risk work] at [site], for a crew using [plant]. Set out the job steps in order, the hazards at each step, a risk rating before and after controls, and the controls."
- "Draft a SWMS for installing roof sheeting from an EWP on a warehouse at [site], with a fragile skylight section and power lines along the rear boundary."
- "Rate each hazard on a 5 by 5 likelihood and consequence matrix, and show the residual risk once the controls are in place."
- "Order the controls by the hierarchy of control, and only fall back to PPE where nothing higher is practical."
- "Add a sign-on table with name, company, date and signature for every worker, and a line for the supervisor who approved it."
- "Same shape, new job: [task] at [site]. Keep the hazards specific to that work and list anything you've assumed."
Troubleshooting Prompts for Drafting SWMS
A weak draft is usually a thin prompt, or a SWMS template that gives the draft nowhere to land. These are the fixes worth trying, in order, and most of them are about the template.
- The SWMS reads generic: you named the task but not the site. Add the location, the plant and who's nearby
- The hazards are wrong for the work: Copilot doesn't know your site, so paste the relevant part of an existing SWMS or procedure and ask it to draft from that
- The risk ratings don't match yours: your template doesn't spell out its risk matrix. Write the matrix into the template and paste it into the prompt
- The draft has sections your template doesn't: give Copilot your template's headings by name and ask it to write to them
- There's nowhere for the crew to sign on: your SWMS template has no sign-on table. Add one with name, date and signature, so the signed SWMS becomes the record
- The controls drift away from the job steps: set the template up as one row per job step, with the hazards, rating and controls on the same row
Limitations
Copilot drafts the SWMS in the chat and can help you check the wording. Running the job is outside what it does. A competent person reviews the SWMS, stays accountable for every control in it and signs it off before work starts.
What Copilot Does Well When Drafting a SWMS
Given a specific brief, this is where it saves the most time.
- Draft a full SWMS from a description of the work, shaped to the job
- Set out the job steps in order, with hazards and controls against each
- Suggest risk ratings and controls you can accept or change
- Write to your SWMS template's headings, so the draft drops straight in
- Rework the wording in seconds, plainer for the crew or tighter for the principal contractor
What Copilot Leaves to You When Drafting a SWMS
And here's what stays with people, so nobody treats the draft as the finished SWMS.
- Know your site. It drafts from what you tell it, not from the ground
- Decide whether a control is adequate. A competent person owns that call
- Sign the SWMS off or make it compliant with WHS law
- Take the crew's sign-on or run the job. That happens on site
What This Assumes You Already Do
This page assumes your team already writes a SWMS for high-risk construction work and gets it signed. Copilot drafts the document, but it only helps if there's a habit of reviewing it and capturing who signed on.
- Your team prepares a SWMS before any high-risk construction work starts
- There's a SWMS format your principal contractors accept
- A competent person reviews each SWMS and signs it off
- Every worker signs onto the SWMS before starting, and again when it changes
Why Use Microsoft Copilot to Draft SWMS
Anyone who knows the work can describe how to do it safely, but there's rarely time to write it up from scratch. The job starts Monday, the principal contractor won't let anyone through the gate without a SWMS, and the quickest option is last job's with the project name changed. The crew ends up signing onto a document written for different work.
A specific starting point in minutes changes that. Copilot gives you a draft that already fits the task, so the competent person spends their time checking real hazards rather than retyping a master.
What a Good SWMS Contains
A SWMS that a principal contractor accepts and a crew actually understands does a few things. A good draft should hit all of them before it goes to the competent person for sign-off.
- The high-risk construction work it covers, named plainly
- Job steps in the order the work actually happens
- The hazards at each step, with a risk rating before and after controls
- Controls that follow the hierarchy of control, rather than defaulting to PPE
- How the controls get checked on the day, and who checks them
- The names of the people who prepared it, approved it and signed onto it
The principal contractor wants the SWMS before the crew's allowed through the gate at six. The only one on the laptop was written for a different job.
Connecting Sitemate MCP to Microsoft Copilot
Sitemate MCP is how Copilot reads your SWMS records once they've been signed and captured in Dashpivot by Sitemate, as covered below. It's read-only, so it reads records but can't create, edit or delete anything. Microsoft Copilot isn't self-serve, so three things have to be in place, and the first two aren't in Copilot. An Org Controller switches MCP access on in Dashpivot. Then, because the Sitemate app is a Microsoft 365 agent, a Microsoft 365 admin deploys it once for everyone from the Microsoft Marketplace. You'll also need a Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription, the premium plan rather than the basic add-on.
-
Step 1
Turn On MCP Access in Dashpivot
An Org Controller opens Settings, then Security, and sets the MCP Access toggle to anything other than None. Save changes. Until this is on, the agent won't authenticate.
-
Step 2
Deploy the Sitemate App from the Microsoft Marketplace
A Microsoft 365 admin opens the Sitemate MCP listing on the Microsoft Marketplace, selects Get it now, and signs in with a Microsoft 365 admin account. That opens the Microsoft 365 admin console. Choose who gets access, everyone or a pilot group, accept the permissions, and finish the deployment. It then appears under Settings, Integrated apps.
-
Step 3
Check the Agent Is There
Open Microsoft Copilot at copilot.microsoft.com or in the Microsoft 365 app, and the Sitemate agent shows up as an available tool. Allow a few minutes after deployment for it to appear. Sitemate MCP is read-only, so Copilot can read your records but can't create, edit or delete anything.
If the Agent Won't Appear
Three things account for almost every failed connection, and the first is the most common by a distance.
- Nothing connects at all: MCP Access is still off in Dashpivot, and only an Org Controller can turn it on
- The app can't be deployed: uploading the Sitemate agent needs a Microsoft 365 Global Administrator or AI Administrator role, plus a Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription
- The agent doesn't show after install: allow a few minutes to propagate, refresh Copilot or open a new chat, then check Integrated apps in the Microsoft 365 admin console
How the SWMS Gets Captured
Copilot's part ends with the draft, in the chat. Storm, Sitemate's data capture agent, takes it from there, importing it into Dashpivot and capturing it on site. Sitemate MCP comes last, reading the signed SWMS back.
-
Storm Imports the Draft into Dashpivot
Save the draft out of Copilot as a PDF, Word or Excel file. Storm rebuilds it as a Dashpivot SWMS template with AI Templates, and the supervisor or safety officer checks the template before it goes to a crew.
-
Storm Captures It on Site
The crew opens the SWMS on a phone or tablet, and Storm fills in the site detail from what they say and photograph with AI Form Fill. The supervisor checks it, every worker signs on before starting, and the signed SWMS is held against the job in Dashpivot.
-
Sitemate MCP Reads It Back
With each SWMS captured in Dashpivot, Copilot can read across them over Sitemate MCP: which jobs have a signed SWMS and which workers haven't signed on. It's read-only and your own permissions still apply. How to use Microsoft Copilot to review SWMS covers that side.
Storm Captures the SWMS Copilot Drafts
Copilot drafts the SWMS, but it still has to be completed and signed on site. Storm captures it, with every worker's sign-on, as the job starts, so the record's there before a principal contractor asks for it.
AI Form Fill
Capture what you see and say, and Storm drafts the form for you. The details land in the right fields, so there is a record to check the moment the work is done, and you review and submit it yourself.
Listens to the work
Captures voice cleanly through machinery, wind, and movement. Accents and trade language understood. No headset needed.
Works on site
Built for gloves, cabs, and screen protectors. Captures inputs offline and processes in the background. No waiting on the field.
You stay in control
Storm never commits a record on its own. Every output is a draft for human review. Admins control what Storm can write to.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Microsoft Copilot write a SWMS for me?
It can write the first draft. Describe the high-risk work, the site, the plant and the crew, and Copilot sets out the job steps, hazards, risk ratings and controls. A competent person still reviews it against the site and signs it off before anyone starts.
Does Copilot know the WHS rules in my state or territory?
Name your state or territory and the high-risk work in the prompt and Copilot drafts with them in mind, but treat that as a starting point. A competent person checks the SWMS against the WHS duties that actually apply before work starts.
Can I match the draft to our own SWMS format?
Yes. Give Copilot your format’s headings and risk matrix and it writes to them, sign-on table included, so the draft drops into the template your principal contractors already accept.
What does Copilot see of our SWMS and site data?
While drafting, only what you type or paste into the chat. If you connect Sitemate MCP, Copilot can also read the SWMS records your Dashpivot permissions already allow. The connection is read-only, so it can’t create, edit or delete anything. A Microsoft 365 admin deploys the Sitemate app, and it needs a Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription.
Where does the SWMS get signed on and stored?
On site, in Dashpivot by Sitemate. Save the draft from Copilot as a PDF, Word or Excel file, and Storm, Sitemate’s data capture agent, rebuilds it as a template with AI Templates. The crew completes and signs onto it there, and it’s held against the job as the record.