Fi Forrest

I was employed for nearly five years by a small design studio, Edge Reprographics, in Gateshead. Here we produced a wide variety of design work, from full colour sales brochures and catalogues, annual reports, posters, leaflets and packaging, to bureau duties. Edge was Mac based and used an image-setter to create films for output to local printers as well as providing bureau services.
We provided a complete design service from original design concept through to computer-generated proofs and final artwork for output to films or disk. This included the use of scanning equipment and software such as Photoshop for image manipulation. Documents were produced with QuarkXpress with graphics created in Freehand. Packaging artwork was produced using Illustrator. I was involved with all aspects of the company, including consultation with business-to-business clients and dealing with external suppliers and printers. As Edge was a small business I was also called upon to deputise for my manager whenever she was absent from the office and also for securing the premises. As with all companies, customer satisfaction is paramount and at Edge we ensured this by consulting the client at all stages from original design brief through to delivery.
At Edge I was often working alone, in conjunction with the client, producing design solutions and artwork. This meant planning my time carefully and prioritising work so that deadlines were kept. My work experience previous to Edge included working for various printers and this has proved to be a valuable asset as I can relate well to printing staff in regards to problems and practical solutions.