My Job

Craig Tedder
Art Worker
Printing Centre

What are your main duties?
The majority of my time is spent setting and designing material for the university departments in corporate identity. This ranges from simple business cards to full colour publications. I am also responsible for imposing and plate making jobs ready for production.

Craig Tedder, Art Worker in the University's Printing Centre

What is your busiest time of year and why?
When September comes along I know that I am going to be putting in a lot of extra hours! This is our busiest period of the year and continues to the end of October. All the Universities Departments require their new material to be ready for when the students come back! A lot of team effort goes into making this happen.

How long have you worked at the University?
I have worked at the University since I left college in 1999. So I have worked here for 7 years and 3 months.

Where (if anywhere) did you work before joining the University and why did you leave?
This is my first full time job after leaving college where I studied IT, I wasn’t really sure when I first started working here but as time has gone by my interest in the printing industry has grown immensely.

What do you enjoy most about your job?
I find it satisfying when I have designed a publication and then actually see it being produced in-house. Also it is nice when I am around Campus to see my work being used by students or staff.

What do you like about working at the University?
I really enjoy the variety of work that we produce in the Printing Centre. There are always different types of jobs required and that provides a good balance, as every week is different.

What do you dislike about working at the University?
Well if I am honest the workloads are sometimes overwhelming! You can find yourself juggling several jobs at a time, all of them required for the same deadline.

What facilities on campus do you make use of, e.g. sports facilities, social venues etc?
I generally don’t really use many facilities at the University, occasionally using the Sports Centre. If the University had a swimming pool I would definitely make the most of that!

What has been your biggest work-related challenge this year and how did you solve it?
The biggest challenge I have faced at work happened last year when our previous designer left. I had to cover their work as well as my own while a suitable replacement was found. In this 5 month period I worked flat out to keep up with the workload, whilst learning new skills. Although this was a steep learning curve, I really enjoyed the challenge and found it has been very beneficial to me.

What would you change about the University if you were Vice-Chancellor for a day?
I would move the Printing Centre to a different location on Campus! Somewhere where we could have windows and see daylight! You find yourself feeling like a mole some days! Somewhere more obviously accessible to our customers like the Copy Centre.

Whereabouts is your office and what is it like?
The Printing Centre is located right at the very depths of the University! 2.400 Level 2, under the podia. Our office is fairly spacious and cool but has no noticeable light.

If you were to enrol as a student at the University, what would you study and why?
If I had the chance I would like to study Computer Science as I have always found this interesting. I have always liked technology and gadgets so it would be cool to be at the forefront of technology.

Describe a typical day at work.
In the morning I check the workload and go through it with my work colleague. Then I need to make sure that the pressmen have work ready to go on their presses. This generally involves imposing and plate making. I would then work through the workload making sure that deadlines are meet.

Does your job take you off campus much and if so where to?
All my work takes place in the studio so I don’t really leave campus. Customers come down to the Printing Centre to discuss their jobs or they contact via telephone.

What other job in the University would you like, and why?
I would like to work in Students Union in their design department as they have more flexible guidelines on design.

How long does your journey to work take?
It takes me around 20 minutes to travel to work. I don’t have to contend with Clingo Hill so traffic isn’t really a problem.

Who would you most like a one to one with, and why?
I would like to have a one to one with Jamie Oliver as I have always enjoyed cooking being inspired by my dad who is a chef. I would love to go to one of his kitchens and be shown some of the tricks of the trade.

Do you have a claim to fame? E.g did you go to school with someone famous, have you ever appeared on television etc?
I haven’t been in the right place at the right time as of yet, but who knows what the future holds!