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Pressman vs press assistant

The differences between pressmen and press assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a pressman and a press assistant. Additionally, a pressman has an average salary of $39,994, which is higher than the $33,732 average annual salary of a press assistant.

The top three skills for a pressman include safety regulations, preventative maintenance and UV. The most important skills for a press assistant are hand tools, preventative maintenance, and safety policies.

Pressman vs press assistant overview

PressmanPress Assistant
Yearly salary$39,994$33,732
Hourly rate$19.23$16.22
Growth rate--5%
Number of jobs6735,056
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 53%Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Average age4848
Years of experience44

What does a pressman do?

A pressman is responsible for maintaining the printing press operations, maintaining the efficiency of the equipment and machinery to produce high-quality outputs. Pressmen ensure the readability and completeness of the content before distribution. They must be knowledgeable of the mechanical industry, spotting inconsistencies with the equipment, and performing immediate repairs or component replacement to avoid delays in operation. A pressman works closely with other printing operators to ensure that the outputs meet the clients' specifications and business' printing guidelines.

What does a press assistant do?

Press assistants require physical fitness, stamina, and inventory management skills. Some of the job responsibilities consist of supervising and operating the press machine that produces newspapers, magazines, and books. Press assistants can be hired as consultants, or work for a specific agency, business, or individual.

Pressman vs press assistant salary

Pressmen and press assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

PressmanPress Assistant
Average salary$39,994$33,732
Salary rangeBetween $31,000 And $51,000Between $26,000 And $42,000
Highest paying City-Leominster, MA
Highest paying state-Washington
Best paying company-CPI Card Group
Best paying industry-Transportation

Differences between pressman and press assistant education

There are a few differences between a pressman and a press assistant in terms of educational background:

PressmanPress Assistant
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 53%Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Most common majorGraphic DesignPolitical Science
Most common college--

Pressman vs press assistant demographics

Here are the differences between pressmen' and press assistants' demographics:

PressmanPress Assistant
Average age4848
Gender ratioMale, 96.3% Female, 3.7%Male, 77.0% Female, 23.0%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 6.1% White, 63.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 3.5% Hispanic or Latino, 15.6% Asian, 7.2% White, 62.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage5%5%

Differences between pressman and press assistant duties and responsibilities

Pressman example responsibilities.

  • Lead a team of three employees to help ensure production run smoothly.
  • Operate 40 Heidelberg 8-color CD with aqueous coater, CPC 2 & 3 and CP Tronics.
  • Operate a 110 gear less web Flexo press.
  • Adjust nip rollers and trolleys on upper formers.
  • Remove printed materials from stackers and prepare for shipping.
  • Adjust folder nips and trolleys for best paper delivery.
  • Show more

Press assistant example responsibilities.

  • Manage shop, warehouse & inventories, supervise employees, schedule production, maintain and run equipment when need.
  • Perform varied tasks in an ISO atmosphere.
  • Work with both uv and water base inks.
  • Employ root cause analysis to troubleshoot equipment and process issues.
  • Assist press operator in all operations of multiple wide-web flexo presses.
  • Learned basic table stripping skills, lm duping, proo ng and platemaking.
  • Show more

Pressman vs press assistant skills

Common pressman skills
  • Safety Regulations, 10%
  • Preventative Maintenance, 6%
  • UV, 6%
  • Web Press, 6%
  • Multi, 5%
  • Bindery Equipment, 5%
Common press assistant skills
  • Hand Tools, 12%
  • Preventative Maintenance, 12%
  • Safety Policies, 9%
  • Press Operators, 8%
  • Math, 5%
  • Basic Math, 5%

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