Flexographic Print Operative

DS Smith Europe

Belper CP

On-site

GBP 33,000 - 40,000

Full time

6 days ago

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Benefits offered by this job

DS Smith pension scheme

Death in service life assurance

Company sick pay scheme

Income protection

Employee assistance programme

Occupational Health including physiio

Job summary

DS Smith Europe in Belper seeks an experienced Flexographic Print Operative to operate wide web printing presses, set up jobs, and maintain quality, safety, and efficiency. You will contribute to waste reduction and productivity in a busy packaging production environment.

Role requires hands-on printing expertise, strong colour management, problem solving, and teamwork across production, quality, and maintenance teams. Training will progress you from start to full capability on our presses.

Qualifications

Proven experience operating printing presses within a manufacturing or packaging environment.
Strong understanding of print processes, colour management, and print quality standards.
Experience with print fault finding and problem solving.
Ability to work independently and make sound operational decisions.
Strong attention to detail and commitment to quality.
Excellent communication and teamwork skills.
Positive, proactive, and safety-focused approach.
Good understanding of production performance measures, waste reduction, and efficiency improvement.

Responsibilities

Accountable for own and others' health and safety while at work, operating in line with SSOW and company procedures.
Raise unsafe acts immediately and report health and safety incidents to management.
Operate and optimise wide web flexographic printing presses safely and efficiently.
Set up printing jobs, including inks, plates, sleeves, anilox rolls, substrates, and press settings.
Ensure print quality meets customer specifications and company standards.
Monitor colour consistency, print registration, and overall press performance throughout production runs.
Troubleshoot print and mechanical issues to minimise downtime and waste.
Complete routine maintenance, cleaning, and housekeeping to ensure equipment reliability.
Work closely with colleagues across production, quality, and maintenance departments.
Support continuous improvement initiatives to enhance productivity, quality, and operational efficiency.
Maintain accurate production records and documentation.

Skills

Safety first

Printing press operations

Colour management

Print quality standards

Fault finding

Independent working

Attention to detail

Teamwork

Continuous improvement

Education

Relevant print industry qualifications

Job description

Flexographic Print Operative

Salary: Starting £32,950, raising to £39,863 once trained

Hours: Working a 3-shift pattern (6am to 2pm, 10pm to 6am, 2pm to 10pm)

About the role

We are looking for an experienced and accomplished wide web flexographic printer to join our team at our Belper site.

This is an exciting opportunity for a skilled print professional who takes pride in producing high-quality work, maintaining excellent machine performance, and driving continuous improvement. You will play a key role in ensuring that customer requirements are met through the efficient operation of our flexographic printing equipment, delivering exceptional print quality while maximising productivity and minimising waste.

Health & Safety is our number one priority and therefore you will be accountable for your own health and the health and safety of others, operating in line with safe systems of work (SSOW) and company procedures, immediately raising any unsafe acts with those concerned and reporting health and safety incidents to management, to ultimately help create a safe working environment for all.

As part of a highly skilled production team, you will be responsible for setting up, operating, monitoring, and maintaining the printing press to consistently achieve quality, efficiency, and performance targets.

Key responsibilities include

To be accountable for own and others health and safety whilst at work, operating in line with SSOW (safe systems of work) and company procedures to enable a safe working environment.
To raise any unsafe acts seen immediately with individual(s) concerned and immediate reporting of health and safety incidents to management.
Operate and optimise wide web flexographic printing presses safely and efficiently.
Set up printing jobs, including inks, plates, sleeves, anilox rolls, substrates, and press settings.
Ensure print quality meets customer specifications and company standards.
Monitor colour consistency, print registration, and overall press performance throughout production runs.
Troubleshoot print and mechanical issues to minimise downtime and waste.
Complete routine maintenance, cleaning, and housekeeping activities to ensure equipment reliability.
Work closely with colleagues across production, quality, and maintenance departments.
Support continuous improvement initiatives to enhance productivity, quality, and operational efficiency.
Maintain accurate production records and documentation.

About you

Minimum requirements:

Puts safety first
Proven experience operating printing presses within a manufacturing or packaging environment.
Strong understanding of print processes, colour management, and print quality standards.
Experience with print fault finding and problem solving.
Ability to work independently and make sound operational decisions.
Strong attention to detail and commitment to quality.
Excellent communication and teamwork skills.
Positive, proactive, and safety-focused approach.
Good understanding of production performance measures, waste reduction, and efficiency improvement.

Preferred requirements:

Knowledge of CI flexographic presses.
Mechanical aptitude and first-line maintenance experience.
Experience working within Lean Manufacturing or Continuous Improvement environments.
Relevant print industry qualifications.

Benefits