Plate maker vs mounter

The differences between plate makers and mounters can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a plate maker and a mounter. Additionally, a mounter has an average salary of $45,360, which is higher than the $40,483 average annual salary of a plate maker.

The top three skills for a plate maker include creo, flexo and quality plates. The most important skills for a mounter are hand tools, semi trailers, and customer specifications.

Plate maker vs mounter overview

	Plate Maker	Mounter
Yearly salary	$40,483	$45,360
Hourly rate	$19.46	$21.81
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	7,031	64
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 39%	High School Diploma, 45%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	4

Plate maker vs mounter salary

Plate makers and mounters have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Plate Maker	Mounter
Average salary	$40,483	$45,360
Salary range	Between $22,000 And $72,000	Between $22,000 And $90,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between plate maker and mounter education

There are a few differences between a plate maker and a mounter in terms of educational background:

	Plate Maker	Mounter
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 39%	High School Diploma, 45%
Most common major	Graphic Design	Business
Most common college	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo	New York University

Plate maker vs mounter demographics

Here are the differences between plate makers' and mounters' demographics:

	Plate Maker	Mounter
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 76.8% Female, 23.2%	Male, 74.1% Female, 25.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.0% Unknown, 3.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.3% Asian, 7.6% White, 61.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 3.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 6.7% White, 63.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between plate maker and mounter duties and responsibilities

Plate maker example responsibilities.

Operate and maintain laser plate-making equipment such as Creo Trendsetters and Kodak Magnus VLF.
Retain records for ISO audit.
Retrieve files from CTP server.
Set up jobs and run jobs on Autologic platemaker.
Monitor completion of plates for quality control distribution to the pressroom.
Pack lids on production line and make plates on plate-maker for flexo printing.

Mounter example responsibilities.

Latch, faceplate and misc.
Stuff PCB boards with through-hole parts.
Mount corrugate Flexo plates on Harley Opti-Check equipment.
Mount and repair printing plates used in the flexo printing operation.
Assemble hard rubber tires and wheel rims for machinery such as lawn mowers, tractors, ATVs, etc.
Set up and operate DEK printer.

Plate maker vs mounter skills

Common plate maker skills

Creo, 15%
Flexo, 9%
Quality Plates, 9%
Plate Material, 8%
ISO, 7%
Routine Maintenance, 6%

Common mounter skills

Hand Tools, 59%
Semi Trailers, 17%
Customer Specifications, 7%
Assembly Line, 4%
Numerical Order, 4%
Tape Measure, 3%