B08 Automation 102 – Standard Operating Procedures
Why Someone Should Come
Automation works best when the shop has repeatable systems behind it. A press can only print as efficiently as the process that feeds it, and many shops lose time because each operator handles setup, screens, approvals, ink, garments, maintenance, and cleanup differently. This session focuses on the standard operating procedures that help shops create consistency, train employees, reduce errors, and turn automatic printing into a repeatable production system instead of a daily guessing game.
Who Should Come
This session is designed for shop owners, production managers, automatic press operators, lead printers, and teams preparing to scale. It is especially useful for shops adding their first automatic press, training new operators, trying to reduce production mistakes, or looking to document best practices so the business can grow beyond one person’s knowledge.
What They Will Learn
- SOP Foundations: Learn what standard operating procedures are, why they matter, and how they create consistency across art, darkroom, setup, production, quality control, and cleanup.
- Press Setup Standards: Understand how to document repeatable procedures for loading screens, registering jobs, setting squeegees and flood bars, staging inks, and preparing garments.
- Darkroom and Screen-Making Procedures: Learn how consistent coating, exposure, washout, drying, labeling, and screen storage help the press run more efficiently.
- Training and Accountability: Discover how written procedures make it easier to train new employees, set expectations, evaluate performance, and reduce reliance on tribal knowledge.
- Quality Control Systems: Learn how checklists, approvals, test prints, production samples, and job notes prevent mistakes before they become full-run problems.
- Continuous Improvement: Understand how to use SOPs as living documents that evolve with better equipment, stronger habits, and lessons learned from real production.
Speakers
More Information
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