Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials

• Summary

• Details

Work Activities

• Finish velvet garments by steaming them on bucks of hot-head presses or steam tables, and brushing pile (nap) with handbrushes.
• Examine and measure finished articles to verify conformance to standards, using measuring devices such as tape measures and micrometers.
• Clean and maintain pressing machines, using cleaning solutions and lubricants.
• Select, install, and adjust machine components, including pressing forms, rollers, and guides, using hoists and hand tools.
• Operate steam, hydraulic, or other pressing machines to remove wrinkles from garments and flatwork items, or to shape, form, or patch articles.
• Brush materials made of suede, leather, or felt to remove spots or to raise and smooth naps.
• Activate and adjust machine controls to regulate temperature and pressure of rollers, ironing shoes, or plates, according to specifications.
• Identify and treat spots on garments.
• Sew ends of new material to leaders or to ends of material in pressing machines, using sewing machines.
• Shrink, stretch, or block articles by hand to conform to original measurements, using forms, blocks, and steam.
• Spray water over fabric to soften fibers when not using steam irons.
• Remove finished pieces from pressing machines and hang or stack them for cooling, or forward them for additional processing.
• Measure fabric to specifications, cut uneven edges with shears, fold material, and press it with an iron to form a heading.
• Hang, fold, package, and tag finished articles for delivery to customers.
• Position materials such as cloth garments, felt, or straw on tables, dies, or feeding mechanisms of pressing machines, or on ironing boards or work tables.
• Measure fabric to specifications, cut uneven edges with shears, fold material, and press it with an iron to form a heading.
• Moisten materials to soften and smooth them.
• Block or shape knitted garments after cleaning.
• Insert heated metal forms into ties and touch up rough places with hand irons.
• Position materials such as cloth garments, felt, or straw on tables, dies, or feeding mechanisms of pressing machines, or on ironing boards or work tables.
• Finish pleated garments, determining sizes of pleats from evidence of old pleats or from work orders, using machine presses or hand irons.
• Examine and measure finished articles to verify conformance to standards, using measuring devices such as tape measures and micrometers.
• Press ties on small pressing machines.
• Slide material back and forth over heated, metal, ball-shaped forms to smooth and press portions of garments that cannot be satisfactorily pressed with flat pressers or hand irons.
• Finish pants, jackets, shirts, skirts and other dry-cleaned and laundered articles, using hand irons.
• Straighten, smooth, or shape materials to prepare them for pressing.
• Select appropriate pressing machines, based on garment properties such as heat tolerance.
• Remove finished pieces from pressing machines and hang or stack them for cooling, or forward them for additional processing.
• Finish fancy garments such as evening gowns and costumes, using hand irons to produce high quality finishes.
• Push and pull irons over surfaces of articles to smooth or shape them.
• Select, install, and adjust machine components, including pressing forms, rollers, and guides, using hoists and hand tools.
• Clean and maintain pressing machines, using cleaning solutions and lubricants.
• Hang, fold, package, and tag finished articles for delivery to customers.
• Lower irons, rams, or pressing heads of machines into position over material to be pressed.
• Use covering cloths to prevent equipment from damaging delicate fabrics.
• Measure fabric to specifications, cut uneven edges with shears, fold material, and press it with an iron to form a heading.

Skills

• Complex Problem Solving
  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
• Management of Material Resources
  • Managing equipment and materials.
• Programming
  • Writing computer programs.
• Quality Control Analysis
  • Testing how well a product or service works.
• Troubleshooting
  • Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
• Systems Analysis
  • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
• Management of Financial Resources
  • Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
• Operations Monitoring
  • Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
• Time Management
  • Managing your time and the time of other people.
• Writing
  • Writing things for co-workers or customers.
• Speaking
  • Talking to others.
• Technology Design
  • Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
• Equipment Selection
  • Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
• Equipment Maintenance
  • Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
• Systems Evaluation
  • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
• Management of Personnel Resources
  • Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
• Critical Thinking
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
• Service Orientation
  • Looking for ways to help people.
• Coordination
  • Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
• Judgment and Decision Making
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
• Installation
  • Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
• Learning Strategies
  • Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
• Repairing
  • Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
• Operation and Control
  • Using equipment or systems.
• Operations Analysis
  • Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
• Science
  • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
• Active Learning
  • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
• Instructing
  • Teaching people how to do something.
• Monitoring
  • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
• Negotiation
  • Bringing people together to solve differences.
• Persuasion
  • Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
• Reading Comprehension
  • Reading work-related information.
• Active Listening
  • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
• Mathematics
  • Using math to solve problems.
• Social Perceptiveness
  • Understanding people's reactions.

Abilities

• Auditory Attention
  • Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
• Stamina
  • Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
• Arm-Hand Steadiness
  • Keeping your arm or hand steady.
• Trunk Strength
  • Using your lower back and stomach.
• Glare Sensitivity
  • Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
• Multilimb Coordination
  • Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
• Gross Body Equilibrium
  • Keeping your balance or staying upright.
• Memorization
  • Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
• Wrist-Finger Speed
  • Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
• Explosive Strength
  • Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
• Information Ordering
  • Ordering or arranging things.
• Problem Sensitivity
  • Noticing when problems happen.
• Originality
  • Creating new and original ideas.
• Manual Dexterity
  • Holding or moving items with your hands.
• Finger Dexterity
  • Putting together small parts with your fingers.
• Oral Comprehension
  • Listening and understanding what people say.
• Category Flexibility
  • Grouping things in different ways.
• Peripheral Vision
  • Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
• Spatial Orientation
  • Knowing where things are around you.
• Inductive Reasoning
  • Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
• Selective Attention
  • Paying attention to something without being distracted.
• Time Sharing
  • Doing two or more things at the same time.
• Dynamic Strength
  • Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
• Static Strength
  • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
• Gross Body Coordination
  • Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
• Sound Localization
  • Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
• Written Expression
  • Communicating by writing.
• Response Orientation
  • Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
• Far Vision
  • Seeing details that are far away.
• Written Comprehension
  • Reading and understanding what is written.
• Oral Expression
  • Communicating by speaking.
• Number Facility
  • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
• Flexibility of Closure
  • Seeing hidden patterns.
• Visual Color Discrimination
  • Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
• Extent Flexibility
  • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Hearing Sensitivity
  • Telling the difference between sounds.
• Perceptual Speed
  • Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
• Mathematical Reasoning
  • Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
• Control Precision
  • Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
• Dynamic Flexibility
  • Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Near Vision
  • Seeing details up close.
• Deductive Reasoning
  • Using rules to solve problems.
• Speed of Closure
  • Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
• Rate Control
  • Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
• Reaction Time
  • Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
• Night Vision
  • Seeing at night or under low light.
• Speech Recognition
  • Recognizing spoken words.
• Speech Clarity
  • Speaking clearly.
• Depth Perception
  • Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
• Visualization
  • Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
• Speed of Limb Movement
  • Quickly moving your arms and legs.
• Fluency of Ideas
  • Coming up with lots of ideas.

Knowledge

• Law and Government
  • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• History and Archeology
  • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
• Physics
  • Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
• Customer and Personal Service
  • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Therapy and Counseling
  • Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
• English Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Administration and Management
  • Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Fine Arts
  • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• Biology
  • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Mechanical
  • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Administrative
  • Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
• Chemistry
  • Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• Medicine and Dentistry
  • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
• Personnel and Human Resources
  • Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
• Mathematics
  • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Food Production
  • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• Building and Construction
  • Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
• Education and Training
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Psychology
  • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• Telecommunications
  • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
• Philosophy and Theology
  • Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
• Computers and Electronics
  • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Foreign Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
• Production and Processing
  • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
• Geography
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
• Economics and Accounting
  • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
• Communications and Media
  • Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
• Sociology and Anthropology
  • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
• Sales and Marketing
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
• Public Safety and Security
  • Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
• Transportation
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
• Engineering and Technology
  • Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• Design
  • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

Education

Education

No formal educational credential

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

Less than 1 month on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

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Education and Training Opportunities

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Pay

Washington Annual Salary

38260/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

18.39/hr

Washington Employment Trends

Currently Employed

590

Yearly Projected Openings

90

Personality

Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They do well at jobs that need:

• Attention to Detail
• Integrity
• Dependability
• Independence
• Stress Tolerance
• Innovation

Tools

• Adjustable wrenches
• Clothing hangers
• Domestic clothing irons
• Garment brushes
• Hammers
• Hand sprayers
• Hoists
• Ironing boards
• Ironing machines or presses
• Laundry type combined washing or drying machines
• Micrometers
• Personal computers
• Rulers
• Screwdrivers
• Sewing machines
• Shears
• Slip joint pliers
• Steam pressing machines
• Straight edges
• Tape measures

Technology

• Electronic mail software
• Spreadsheet software
• Word processing software