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Prepress digital technician vs plate maker

The differences between prepress digital technicians and plate makers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a prepress digital technician and a plate maker. Additionally, a plate maker has an average salary of $40,483, which is higher than the $39,859 average annual salary of a prepress digital technician.

The top three skills for a prepress digital technician include mac, adobe illustrator and adobe photoshop. The most important skills for a plate maker are creo, flexo, and quality plates.

Prepress digital technician vs plate maker overview

Prepress Digital TechnicianPlate Maker
Yearly salary$39,859$40,483
Hourly rate$19.16$19.46
Growth rate-14%-
Number of jobs21,9657,031
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 42%High School Diploma, 39%
Average age4848
Years of experience44

Prepress digital technician vs plate maker salary

Prepress digital technicians and plate makers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Prepress Digital TechnicianPlate Maker
Average salary$39,859$40,483
Salary rangeBetween $27,000 And $57,000Between $22,000 And $72,000
Highest paying CityPhiladelphia, PA-
Highest paying stateAlaska-
Best paying companyWestRock-
Best paying industryMedia-

Differences between prepress digital technician and plate maker education

There are a few differences between a prepress digital technician and a plate maker in terms of educational background:

Prepress Digital TechnicianPlate Maker
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 42%High School Diploma, 39%
Most common majorGraphic DesignGraphic Design
Most common collegeUniversity of Texas at AustinCalifornia Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo

Prepress digital technician vs plate maker demographics

Here are the differences between prepress digital technicians' and plate makers' demographics:

Prepress Digital TechnicianPlate Maker
Average age4848
Gender ratioMale, 68.4% Female, 31.6%Male, 76.8% Female, 23.2%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 8.0% Unknown, 3.2% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 7.9% White, 64.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%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%
LGBT Percentage13%13%

Differences between prepress digital technician and plate maker duties and responsibilities

Prepress digital technician example responsibilities.

  • Administer and troubleshoot all computer systems, applications and networks.
  • Scan images on a desktop scanner and manipulate images using Photoshop.
  • Operate desktop publishing hardware and software to design and typeset forms, newsletters and other graphics.
  • Edit type and images according to mark-up copy usign photoshop, quark, illustrator and Indesign.
  • Update and troubleshoot prepress software to continue productivity.
  • Assemble and output advertisement using macintosh and windows workstations.
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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.
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Prepress digital technician vs plate maker skills

Common prepress digital technician skills
  • Mac, 11%
  • Adobe Illustrator, 8%
  • Adobe Photoshop, 7%
  • Adobe Indesign, 7%
  • Adobe Creative Suite, 5%
  • Quark, 5%
Common plate maker skills
  • Creo, 15%
  • Flexo, 9%
  • Quality Plates, 9%
  • Plate Material, 8%
  • ISO, 7%
  • Routine Maintenance, 6%

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