Occupation Profile

Industries Employing

Prepress Technicians and Workers

(SOC Code : 51-5111)

in California

Set up and prepare material for printing presses. Include prepress functions, such as compositing, typesetting, layout, paste-up, camera operating, scanning, film stripping, and photoengraving.

Employers usually expect an employee in this occupation to be able to do the job after Long-term on-the-job training (> 12 months) .

Occupational Wages

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Area	Year	Period	Hourly Mean	Hourly by Percentile
				25th	Median	75th
California	2023	1st Qtr	$24.47	$18.76	$23.15	$28.31

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Occupational Projections of Employment (also called "Outlook" or "Demand")

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Area	Estimated Year-Projected Year	Employment		Employment Change		Total Job Openings
		Estimated	Projected	Number	Percent
California	2018 - 2028	3,600	3,000	-600	-16.7	3,430

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Job Openings from JobCentral National Labor Exchange

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Enter a Zip Code Find a Zip code in California

Within miles of Zip Code.

Industries Employing This Occupation (click on Industry Title to View Employers List)

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Industry Title

Number of Employers in State of California

Percent of Total
Employment for Occupation in State of California

Business Support Services

4,896

1.0%

About Staffing Patterns

Training Programs (click on title for more information)

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Program Title

Graphic and Printing Equipment Operator, General Production

Graphic Communications, General

Graphic Communications, Other

Platemaker/Imager

Prepress/Desktop Publishing and Digital Imaging Design

About Training & Apprenticeships

About This Occupation (from O*NET - The Occupation Information Network)

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Top Tasks (Specific duties and responsibilities of this job.)

Generate prepress proofs in digital or other format to approximate the appearance of the final printed piece.

Proofread and perform quality control of text and images.

Enter, store, and retrieve information on computer-aided equipment.

Perform "preflight" check of required font, graphic, text and image files to ensure completeness prior to delivery to printer.

Enter, position, and alter text size, using computers, to make up and arrange pages so that printed materials can be produced.

Maintain, adjust, and clean equipment, and perform minor repairs.

Operate and maintain laser plate-making equipment that converts electronic data to plates without the use of film.

Operate presses to print proofs of plates, monitoring printing quality to ensure that it is adequate.

Examine photographic images for obvious imperfections prior to plate making.

Monitor contact between cover glass and masks inside vacuum frames to prevent flaws resulting from overexposure or light reflection.

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Top Skills used in this Job

Time Management - Managing one`s own time and the time of others.

Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Operation Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.

Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

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Data for Abilities not available.

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Top Work Values (Aspects of this job that create satisfaction.)

Support - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Independence - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions.

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Top Interests (The types of activities someone in this job would like.)

Realistic - Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Conventional - Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

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