Hand Finisher, production department
Orphans Press is one of the region's leading commercial printers, as well as most established, with a history dating back to 1873. With our mix of presses, we produce a very broad spectrum of work, from leaflets and brochures to newsletters and books. Orphans has a reputation for quality and responsive turnarounds and this extends to finishing the vast majority of jobs in-house.
This position is to work as part of the finishing team, primarily with responsibility for hand finishing jobs, such as inserting items, assembling folders, wiro binding, packing or collating items. You will also operate some of the finishing machines, all of which are easy to set up and run, such as cards cutting, folding and creasing. We have a very experienced team who will help support and guide.
Overall, the priority is for speed and accuracy and also an appetite to get jobs ready for despatch, packing and entering details on courier systems, so we meet customer deadlines.
Your Responsibilities & Skills
You will be responsible for the safe, accurate, and efficient finishing of jobs, ensuring they meet customer specifications and internal quality standards. This role plays a key part in maintaining production delivery as well as supporting the wider press and finishing teams.
Key responsibilities
- Reporting to our Print Manager and liaising closely with production and administration colleagues
- Hand finishing and packing. Ensuring work is ready for couriers or collection.
- Operation of various finishing machines for folding, creasing, cutting and punching holes.
- Minimising wastage and reporting on issues impacting on efficiency and quality - if something doesn’t look right don’t let it through.
- Working with production colleagues to meet job deadlines
- Ensuring accurate times recorded for each job (to make sure our quotes reflect reality)
- Flexibility to move from job to job or machine to machine as work dictates
- Follow job specifications precisely, ensuring all customer requirements are met.
- Work closely with press and finishing colleagues to maintain workflow and resolve issues quickly.
- Maintain a clean, safe working environment, adhering to company health and safety procedures at all times.
- Support continuous improvement by identifying opportunities to improve efficiency and enhance quality.
Skills & Experience
- Strong attention to detail with the ability to spot defects and maintain high quality standards.
- Confidence to operate light machinery and take on board training and support.
- Ability to read and follow job specifications, production paperwork, and quality standards.
- Comfortable working to deadlines and productivity expectations.
- Good communication skills and the ability to work as part of a team.
- Basic IT or data‑entry skills for recording production information.
Personal Attributes
- Reliable, punctual, and committed to consistent performance.
- Proactive approach to problem‑solving and quality control.
- Positive attitude with a willingness to learn and develop.
- Pride in producing high‑quality work.
- Safety‑conscious and disciplined in following procedures.
- Manual dexterity to handle papers and hand tools like scalpels and bone folders.
- Attention to detail when measuring, cutting, aligning, and gluing to ensure flawless final products without tears, smudges, or misalignments.
- Patience and focus to perform repetitive or intricate manual assembly tasks with consistent quality.
- Stamina to handle the physical demands of manual crafting and material lifting.
Working Conditions
- Orphans is a green business. We recycle meticulously and have a pleasant wildlife friendly environment. It’s important our people share this commitment.
- Very light, bright and clean, fast‑paced production environment.
- Standing and moving around for long periods
- 5 days (37.5 hours) a week, broadly 8am to 4pm with 30 minute lunchbreak - however, we will consider school hours for the right candidate. You may be asked to work overtime if the work dictates. This will be paid at time and a half.
Salary
Crica £25,000 per annum depending on experience.
Pay: £25,000.00 per year
Work authorisation:
- United Kingdom (required)
Work Location: In person
