Print Production / Prepress — Architectural & Environmental Graphics (ZR-722)
Job Description:
Horizon Tech is looking for a print production and prepress seat inside a large-format graphics operation — not an agency or marketing design role. You will take approved concepts, brand assets, and site measurements and build production-ready files that run on wide- and grand-format digital presses: full-wall murals, decorative and security glass films, and full-building wraps.Your files go straight to the RIP, onto the press, and then onto a wall. If a seam lands in the wrong place, a panel comes up short, or color drifts from the approved proof, it shows up twenty feet tall in a client lobby. Precision, print knowledge, and clean file discipline matter more here than styling.
Key responsibilities:
- Build 1:1 and scaled production files for wall coverings (murals, writable/dry-erase surfaces), glass films (decorative, frosted, gradient, security, distraction bands), and building and window wraps
- Tile and panel artwork to roll width and press capability — sequencing drops, setting overlap allowances, and placing seams away from focal points, sightlines, and architectural features
- Set correct effective resolution for viewing distance — a close-viewed interior mural and a building wrap read from 100+ feet are not built the same way — and manage file weight so large files stay printable
- Build mirrored/reverse artwork and white-ink layers for second-surface glass applications; set spot channels, underbase, and overprint correctly
- Work from architectural drawings, elevations, field measurements, and site photos — accounting for mullions, door swings, outlets, corners, returns, and wrapped edges
- Retouch and composite high-resolution imagery that holds up at full scale, not just on screen
- Run jobs through the RIP (ONYX Thrive / ProductionHouse or equivalent) — preflight, nesting, tiling, media profile selection, cut-path and registration mark setup, and quick sets
- Apply and troubleshoot ICC profiles and media linearizations; hit Pantone and brand-critical colors within tolerance and match to approved printed proofs
- Preflight and correct incoming client art — resolution, transparency flattening, overprint, spot vs. process, fonts, embedded profiles, bleeds, and PDF/X output
- Produce printed proofs and draw-downs on the final substrate, and flag anything that will not hold at scale before it reaches the press
- Write detailed installer instructions — panel maps, drop order, overlap direction, orientation keys, and finished-size callouts
- Calculate square footage, material yield, and waste to support estimating
- Report scope discrepancies — measurements, substrate, coverage, or missing assets — to project management and estimating before production starts
- Maintain running communication with the Production Manager throughout the job cycle
- Build installed mockups and renders for client approval where required
- Manage multiple concurrent projects against hard install dates
Required skills:
- 5+ years in a print production or prepress environment producing large- or grand-format output — in-house print shop, sign shop, wide-format printer, or environmental graphics producer.
- Agency, marketing, or studio design experience alone is not a substitute. Hands-on RIP software experience — ONYX strongly preferred (Caldera, ErgoSoft, Wasatch, ColorGate, or Flexi also considered).
- You should be able to walk through your own tiling, nesting, and media-profile workflow inside the RIP, not simply say that files were "sent to production."
- Demonstrated full-wall and architectural-scale output — wall murals, building wraps, and applied glass graphics. Posters, trade-show booths, and vehicle wraps on their own do not cover this requirement.
- Strong color management — ICC profile application, media linearization, spot-color matching, proofing workflows, and the judgment to know when a color simply will not reproduce on a given substrate.
- Wide/grand-format file prep — scaling, tiling, panel and seam logic, overlaps, bleeds, oversize allowances, and resolution-at-final-size decisions.
- Expert Adobe Creative Suite — Photoshop (high-resolution retouching and compositing at 1:1), Illustrator (production vector, cut paths, panel layouts), InDesign.
- Precision working from dimensions, drawings, and site specs; clean and predictable file naming and organization; clear written communication with production and install teams.
Preferred:
- Substrate fluency by name — 3M, Avery, Drytac, LINTEC, ORAFOL/ORACAL; perforated window film, mesh, textured and coated wall vinyls, and how each affects color, detail, and finishing
- Press and finishing familiarity — HP Latex, EFI VUTEk, Durst, swissQprint, Canon Colorado, Roland, Mimaki; Zünd, Kongsberg, or Summa cutting and i-cut workflows
- Enfocus PitStop or comparable preflight automation
- Environmental, architectural, or experiential graphics background (EGD); signage and building-wrap experience
- Space visualization — 3D rendering or Photoshop compositing into site photography
- Working knowledge of install constraints — surface prep and adhesion, substrate width limits, wind load on exterior wraps, and code/ADA considerations for glass manifestation and distraction band
- CorelDRAW
Other Details:
- Job Timings: On-site (8:00 pm till 5:00 am PKT)
- Office location: Off Shahrah-e-Faisal, PECHS, Karachi.
Required Skills:
Environment Proof 3D Go Support Profiles Illustrator Print Graphics Transparency Waste Organization InDesign Adobe Creative Suite Load Visualization Registration Art Returns Features Photoshop Instructions Photography Automation Security Software Accounting Design Marketing Project Management Communication Management