Since farming was of great importance from the outset of settlement, there was a steady demand for farm implements, which were imported from England. The need for the local blacksmith to carry out repairs to these implements provided the impetus for the development of a local engineering industry. The blacksmith soon became a maker of ploughs, harrows, and more complex farm machinery, and there was plenty of scope for inventiveness. It was far easier, cheaper, and more satisfactory to import the materials, iron bars and sheets, and a few parts, such as hooks, nuts, and bolts, and to manufacture machinery to suit the special needs of the different techniques beginning to be used in the local farming. Equipment designed to save labour was in particular demand and New Zealand patents became well known in many other countries. In spite of high ocean freights, thousands of New Zealand made wool presses were sold to South America, and ploughs, disc harrows, chaff cutters, and seed cleaners were made here and sold in all parts of Australia and, to some extent, in South Africa. Before the end of the century, however, the high freight costs, together with the specialised methods and lower wage rates of the English and American manufacturers, effectively defeated the New Zealand products in overseas markets. Nevertheless, the expansion of farming in this country provided a growing home market for New Zealand made agricultural implements and the industry continued to flourish. The value of output increased from £112,000 to £200,000 between 1885 and 1905 and, in the latter year, about 800 men were employed.

It was the blacksmith and his apprentices, and the later employees of the agricultural equipment manufacturers' who provided many of the skilled workers needed for the development of other branches of the engineering industry. Immigration also contributed many skilled workers. The provision of roading and railways, so necessary in a country being opened up, especially one which was so rugged in parts, called for the building of many bridges and the supply of many simple engineering or metal products which could more conveniently be made in this country. The bridge work was at first fabricated in engineering works owned by private firms, but later it came from State engineering works which were established along the routes of railway lines under construction. From these works developed the railway workshops, which became established in each of the four main centres in the 1880s to build railway equipment and rolling stock of all kinds. Locomotives were first built about 1892 and by the end of the century all the railway rolling stock needed came from these workshops.

Other products of the engineering industry, which were generally being produced by 1880, included land engines of various kinds for mills and mines, water engines, office safes, presses, kitchen ranges, stoves, grates, ornamental castings, brewery plant, steam, water, and gas fittings, and many other small items, such as replacement parts for imported machinery of various kinds.