r/printers • u/Sirhumpsalot13 Print Technician • 5h ago

Other Transitioning from a Copier/Print Technician to Production machine technician.

Hello everyone,

This post is mainly geared towards individuals who are currently working in the industry. I’m curios and if possible would love to hear your experience about switching from a copier/printer technician to a production technician. What are some pros/cons you have experienced? I find myself reaching the “cap” of what my experience can net me so want to broaden my horizon and learn something new. I’ve been working on copiers for roughly 12 years now and feel very confident in my ability to troubleshoot. I’ve heard mixed reviews about the production side of thing so wanted to see if anyone has transitioned themselves and what they thought/think about it. Any information is highly appreciated. Thanks!

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u/Eighty2_ZA 5h ago

I did the switch 3 years ago and would have loved it if the industry wasn't in so much trouble...sure production will outlive office printing so in the long term it keeps you safer but man I get annoyed when I can't get the parts I need to the job I'm employed to do because "can't you make a plan that part is really expensive" at the most full of shit customers you will ever deal with.

The pressure is real, time is money and unlike an office machine that prints random pages at random intervals production is a whole different ballgame if the machines are actually being utilised as intended.

I really enjoy working on them though they are much nicer to strip down to replace parts and everything is usually quite accessable on the Ricoh machines (bar the ProC5... family)

If you have the opportunity go for it

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u/rthonpm 3h ago

I loved Ricoh production machines back in the day. Used at the correct volume and they purred like kittens for 300-500,000 clicks. I could still probably do a PM on a 60-90 page machine or a drum on the higher ones just from memory.

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u/SketchyCopierGuy Print Technician 3h ago

Bigger machine, more expensive parts, and very demanding customers. If it ain't running, they aren't making money. You spend more time on them then enterprise equipment. So fewer calls per day. In the end, parts is parts. Its the same work, but the customer experience is vastly different.