Screen Printing - June/July 2020 - 32

I'm sure you're wondering how
production issues are a topic for postproduction processes. Every step of our
workflow directly ties into how
efficiently we progress through each
job. If the first step is not done correctly,
the next step is a stumble. And that's
exactly what happened with the missed
counts. In this scenario, the shop
stumbled and skinned their knee.
We're going to look at how production
transitions from finishing the print job to
properly shipping, efficiently breaking
down the press, and then processing the
screens and ink - making sure no knee
scraping happens again.

END OF THE DRYER
For most small to mid-sized shops,
those at the end of the dryer are the
last set of eyes safeguarding the quality of the job. They're the last people to
touch and fold the shirts your customer
will first see upon receiving and opening their product. They have multiple
responsibilities, including spotting any
errors in the final product.
When shirts are caught, inspect for
flaws like:
* Holes in the garment
* Lint or threads in the print
* Inconsistent and incorrect print
placement
* Crooked and/or compromised designs
* Wrong ink colors
While doing all of this quality control, the end-of-the dryer employee also
needs to be counting in increments of
dozens so they can have final garment
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SCREENPRINTING | JUNE + JULY 2020

counts confirming the job is complete.
Now, while not all jobs (mostly contract)
need 100-percent complete counts
(there's usually an over/under percentage
allowed) they do still need to fall within
that plus/minus count range. So, making
sure the counts are within what's needed
for the job is essential in good production flow. Following these steps and
communicating with both the lead press
operator and the floor manager, if there
are any inconsistencies, ensures a smooth
progression in getting everything fixed.
There are several shop management
software packages available that help
to make communication between shop
sections easier. They allow tracking of all
parts of the job order, from art through
shipping, often in real time. These tools
help immensely in keeping everyone on
the same page and aware of where things
are at any given time. But remember, all
data is still entered by people and these
tools should not be taken as a substitute
for proper and clear communication.
Depending on the size of the print
shop, they may have a second person
handling the garments and actually boxing them up. If not, the person at the end
of the dryer is responsible for this. The
smaller the print shop gets, the more you
see employees taking on multiple job
duties. Typically, you see either an office
worker or the printer themselves handling
the end of dryer duties. Because of this,
it's important that every person involved
is well aware of the steps to take and can
communicate well with everyone. If the
communication chain breaks down, everything breaks down and money is lost.
Screen Printing - June/July 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Screen Printing - June/July 2020
