A Day In The Life Of A Printer

Down to the wire, expecting a delivery of special-order material to print on, and when the call is made to check on its status, our vendor says it won’t be there until Monday.

MONDAY

And it is due end of day today, FRIDAY.

These are the times when you realize the value of stress-management training  -and having back-up vendors in your speed-dial!

All hands on deck, our team makes ready to handle the rush job. It becomes a little like a finely synchronized pit crew. Some are working on the product, some are handling quality control and some are getting ready to perform the next steps.

Prepping the board, printing the board, cutting the work, mounting the finished pieces -it’s all a ballet of almost artisanal skill based on years of experience.

There’s no room for almost in printing – it’s got to be perfect.

It’s an education to watch the guys who have been doing it for most of their lives. The almost monk-like concentration on the task at hand, oblivious to any distractions. And, then, when their part is done, they share an inside joke with a colleague.

There are no secret handshakes in this industry, but there are many deep layers of knowing nods about shared jobs like this one –

get it done, 

get it done fast, 

get it done right.

And, in the end, you present the finished work without a drop of sweat on your brow. In fact, you joke with the client – “No sweat, glad to do it!” You know the somersaults you had to go through to get there, but the client just sees professional results achieved on time.

Then it’s Miller Time!

Scantech Graphics, located in the Kearny Mesa neighborhood of San Diego, has what you need to make it all happen.