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3rd May 2016
 

This newsletter was delayed from yesterday due to the Labour Day holidays in Queensland and Northern Territory - apologies to anybody that is inconvenienced by this delay.
 
This week's survey 
(These survey questions are sent in by our readers. Please spend a minute to give your answer to this week's survey as one or possibly more of your industry peers thinks this question is important and wishes to see your point of view as well as others in the industry.)  
 

Last week's survey results... 

Regarding apprenticeship schemes, do you think we do enough to sell our industry to youngsters? What ideas can you offer that would improve the number of apprentices entering our industry?
  • "THE INDUSTRY" (bunch of old thinkers with a brush) Have for a long time tried to contain training to "Traditional" signcraft. I put an apprentice through the system, he was trained solely in old systems, with no acknowledgement that the industry may be moving through new technologies such as cut vinyl, digital printing, even drafting a layout on computer was not something that could possibly assist the trade. So the apprenticeship system has lost its appeal to both those entering the industry and those who need trained staff. so the end result is that PARTIALLY trained staff feel that they know enough to go and start their show. The skills of costing, job safety are not being learned under any formal framework. So now we have a system where totally untrained people are coming in with no understanding of the costs. Then '"THE INDUSTRY" complains bitterly about the demise of "THE INDUSTRY. I came to this industry as a trained fitter and machinist, I had no brush training, the equipment that was being used for vinyl signage and routing was direct from my industry (CAD Drafting for vinyl and CNC machining for routers). Yet the keepers of the industry shunned me rather than embrace the knowledge that I bought to the industry. This question should have been asked 20 years ago and changes made to keep training up with the times and technology that was actually being used, rather than attempt to preserve that little patch of art. I attended Sign Association committee meetings for some time and tried in vein to change attitudes to change, I am saddened by some of what has happened to this industry but much of it we have bought on ourselves. 
  • New sign apprenticeship slogan: GET PAID A TRUCK LOAD OF CASH to climb buildings and paint letters. Many of the graffiti kids have real talent - just need to learn how to do it where people want it. Sadly computers and safety legals have taken the fun away from the job - kids love risk (just look at where the graffiti is). Sign writing is now a desk job with a 'really big photocopier' - that's boring if I'm sitting at a computer I'd rather be on Facebook/Google looking for great graffiti ideas. :-) 
  • Unfortunately it is a difficult sell... The "signwriting" industry was once an elite trade dominated by skilled artisans. It was also one of the most lucrative of all trades for those willing to use those skills and work hard.
    Technology entered the trade in the 80's courtesy of companies like Gerber under the guise of "efficiency".
    Now the "trade" has deteriorated almost to the stage of being a poor cousin to industrial painting.
    Traditional design and production skills are no longer taught and clients now present us with designs "created" by "their" graphic designers who in many cases have questionable qualifications.
    Our industry has been hijacked by "charlatans" and "wanabes" with some spare cash from previous redundancies that they use to buy printers then tell the world that they are "signwriters".
    What possible advantage is a signwriting apprenticeship to a young lad or lass when in most cases there is not even a TRADESMAN present to teach them.
    This may all sound somewhat negative, and I may well look like a dinasaur, but since I entered the signwriting trade in 1963 I have seen many changes. Initially most for the better but in latter times few enhancing the reputation of "signwriters".
    After fifty three years I am looking forward to retirement and regretfully I predict signwriters in the future will be absorbed into a graphics arts industry that will in turn be dominated by Asian interests and Asian wage rates.
  • The industry associations and TAFE's need to equip sign shops to go into schools and present their trade. These organisations are under resourced with staff so they need to empower the sign shops to do the ground work in their area. (Matt, Motosigns). 

(As a publishing practice to protect ourselves from any potential liability, company and individual names that are referred to negatively in any of these comments are removed.
In addition we reserve the right to remove comments that are blatant advertising for one product or company)


You can view most the surveys we have done by clicking here.

 
Please spend a minute to give your answer to this week's survey as one or possibly more of your industry peers thinks this question is important and wishes to see your point of view as well as others in the industry.

If you have a subject that you would like us to survey, please send your subject to brian@wideformatonline.com. Thanks.) 

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2nd Hand Machinery/Auctions.

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If you would like to run a free ad in this section, just click here 
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New South Wales

(NSW, Gosford) Gerber Edge2
(Posted 19th April 2016)
(Posted 6th April 2016)
(Posted 29th March 2016)
(Posted 29th March 2016)
(NSW, Campsie) Viper 2 DTG Digital Printer.
(Posted 28th March 2016)
(NSW, Bankstown) Auto Laminating Machine
(Posted 16th February 2016)
(NSW, Sydney) Roland BN-20,
(Posted 15th February 2016)
(Posted 11th February 2016)
If you wish to remove your ad, please click here.

            ACT

Victoria

(VIC, Ballarat) HP Latex L26500
(Posted 26th February 2016)
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Queensland

(Posted 27th April 2016)
(Posted 20th April 2016)
(Posted 19th April 2016)
(Posted 19th April 2016)
(Posted 17th April 2016)
(Posted 13th April 2016)
(Posted 5th April 2016)
(Posted 1st April 2016)
(Posted 31st March 2016)
(Posted 29th March 2016)
(Posted 27th March 2016)
(Posted 17th March 2016)
(Posted 17th March 2016)
(Posted 9th March 2016)
(Posted 7th March 2016)
(Posted 25th February 2016)
(Posted 13th February 2016)
(Posted 11th February 2016)
(QLD, Yeppoon) WANTED Seiko V64S heads. (new) 07-49395835
(Posted 10th February 2016)
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Northern Territory
South Australia

Tasmania


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Western AustraliaRE
(WA, Perth) Electric Cold Laminator
(Posted 15th April 2016)
(WA, Perth) Electric Paper Drill,
(Posted 15th April 2016)
(WA, Kalamunda) Up for sale is a Contex A0 Scanner - 600dpi resolution.
(Posted 13th April 2016)
(WA, Welshpool) KALA LAMINATOR:
(Posted 15th March 2016)
(WA, Busselton) Roland XC540 print and cut wide format printer,
(Posted 2nd March 2016)
(WA, Port Kennedy) Agfa Annapurna M Hybrid Printer for Sale.
(Posted 26th February 2016)
 (WA, Malaga, Perth) Screen Truepress 2500UV Ink Jet Printer- 5 years old
(Posted 24th February 2016)

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         New ZealandACE HERE
(NZ, Rangiora) Our HP Latex L25500 60 inch large format full colour signage printer CMYKLcLm.
(Posted 21st April 2016)
(NZ, Auckland) Oce 550GT UV Flatbed Printer
(Posted 11th April 2016)
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Employment

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 New South Wales  
  
 
Queensland



South Australia

(SA, Alberton) Signwriter Required
(Posted 17th March 2016)

Tasmania

(Posted 8th February 2016)
 New Zealand  
  
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Businesses for sale/wanted

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Smile: It's only Monday!
  
Lawrence Livermore Laboratories has discovered the heaviest element yet known to science.
The new element, Governmentium (Gv), has one neutron, 25 assistant neutrons, 88 deputy neutrons, and 198 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 312. 

These 312 particles are held together by forces called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called peons. 

Since Governmentium has no electrons, it is inert; however, it can be detected, because it impedes every reaction with which it comes into contact.A tiny amount of Governmentium can cause a reaction that would normally take less than a second, to take from 4 days to 4 years to complete. 

Governmentium has a normal half-life of 2- 6 years. It does not decay, but instead undergoes a reorganization in which a portion of the assistant neutrons and deputy neutrons exchange places. 

In fact, Governmentium's mass will actually increase over time, since each reorganization will cause more morons to become neutrons, forming isodopes. 

This characteristic of morons promotion leads some scientists to believe that Governmentium is formed whenever morons reach a critical concentration.This hypothetical quantity is referred to as critical morass. 

When catalyzed with money, Governmentium becomes Administratium, an element that radiates just as much energy as Governmentium since it has half as many peons but twice as many morons!!
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