This is a guest post from Barb Sichel at International Language Services.

When preparing for technical projects, advance planning and investments in research and design, packaging, engineering, marketing, and more are required in order to ensure the project’s success. Another vital consideration in the technical project planning process is language translation services.

Failure to consider the document translation needs of any technical project will inevitably lead to extra costs, a delayed project, and possibly even lost revenue. In addition, a rushed translation process will typically produce deliverables of inferior quality. This can seriously undermine the desired outcome of the technical project in question.

Early Budgeting Considerations

To effectively budget for translation services, companies need to understand how translation services are priced and what factors make a translation project more or less labor-intensive, further impacting costs. International Language Services provides some key elements to consider in preparation for the translation needs that accompany any new technical project.

Before looking at specific factors that impact a technical translation project, it’s important to determine where translation services fit into your overall project budget. Ideally, this is considered early in project planning, so that adequate funds are allocated. Advanced budget planning also allows a company to get funding approval from the departments responsible for the project.

Key Budgeting Questions

• Will a specific department be responsible for covering translation costs?
• Are translation costs part of the overall technical project budget?
• Will more than one department share responsibility for the cost?
• If so, how will the cost for translation be divided?

Another vital factor is the budget scope. Is this technical undertaking a large project that will be completed in phases, lasting longer than one budgeting cycle? Should it be billed in advance so it can be paid from the current year’s budget and completed next year? It’s important to ensure that these details are dealt with early to avoid unnecessary delays in obtaining approval for your project from each department that is involved.

Budgeting Questions to Ask About Your Technical Translation Project

Every new technical translation project will have its own unique considerations that affect how the translation process will be carried out. Some of the most common factors for technical translations are discussed briefly below.

What is the length and complexity of each document?

In general, a short product brochure will take a lot less time to translate than a complex user manual, with technical terminology, that spans hundreds of pages. Many companies and organizations fail to take differences in length, complexity, or file format into account when budgeting their translation costs.

Your source application and layout may impact cost, as well as the length of your document.

Translation services are typically priced based on word count, so the more text, the higher the cost. This is why it is a good idea to streamline and edit the document(s) in English first, which can reduce unnecessary verbiage and save money and time.

Will the documents be translated into more than one language?

Translating one document from English into Spanish, a commonly requested language, will take less time and resources than translating a document into a less widely used language, or five different languages. For example, translating one short document from English into Spanish may cost $250, but translating it into Italian, Spanish, German, and Dutch could cost closer to $1000.

Planning and determining language needs during the early planning stages of a technical project will help avoid delays, and likely keep costs lower than treating each individual language translation as a separate project.

What languages do you need?

In general, languages that are most commonly spoken, or for whom many professional translators exist, are less expensive to translate into than others. For example, translating a document into Spanish may cost $500, but the same document translated into Turkish or Nepali will likely cost much more. That’s because there are far fewer professional translators available for those languages.

And taking highly technical subject matter expertise into account reduces the pool of qualified resources even further. Supply and demand play a role in determining the market price for technical translation services. Not taking these factors into consideration when preparing to translate documents can result in unexpected costs which may delay your project.

What technical complexities or cultural barriers exist?

For example, if a company based in the US is planning to market a new model of their digital scanner to a Middle-Eastern market, the translators must know English and whatever Arab language is to be targeted (North African Arabic, Hassaniya Arabic, Egyptian Arabic, Levantine Arabic, Iraqi Arabic, or Gulf Arabic)— and he or she must also understand the technical aspects and terminology of digital scanners and the new model.

And because this product concept is not well known to the Middle-Eastern market, the translator will also have to account for cultural nuances when translating to properly convey the product messaging for this audience. Issues like these can take time for professional translators to address and therefore, need to be considered in order to complete a translation within a specified time frame.

Are there any regulatory issues? 

Companies involved in technical projects typically rely on experienced regulatory and compliance experts to monitor and advise them on ever-changing requirements abroad that impact exports. These may be either in-house compliance professionals or outside consultants. International or other local regulations touch on many areas of business and can include specific requirements for content translation.

Companies should always rely on experts for guidance as to what needs to be translated. Failure to do so could result in severe penalties that can be disruptive and delay your project indefinitely. Not knowing which content translation is required and failure to comply can carry serious business risks. Requirements may be limited or extensive, as language and content translation requirements vary depending on product type, product class, industry, and the worldwide locations in which your technical project will be used or shared.

What are the EU-specific regulations?

It’s critical that companies regularly consult with their professional advisors so they know exactly which specific documents, labels, and other communications need translation. For example, in the European Union (EU), if a product bears the CE mark, companies are required to translate all safety-related information into the official language of each country where it will be sold or distributed. This includes labeling, instructions for use, packaging, and user manuals.

Preparing Your Project Materials

Companies can minimize costs by preparing their materials for technical translation and providing certain tools for their translation services provider. The right input from your company can significantly speed the translation process, saving you valuable time and resources.

Provide a glossary or reference guide of key technical terms.

Before the translation project is to begin, prepare a glossary of key terms or a reference guide that defines and explains terminology that is specific to the project. Doing so will give the translation services provider a head start and provide greater clarity toward understanding key technical terminology unique to your industry, company, product, or service.

This will save time and help keep your technical translations accurate and consistent with your preferences. A key benefit of having a reliable technical translation partner is that they can help maintain this glossary or reference guide, incorporating new terms as necessary, and maintain consistency across company projects by keeping track of your preferred translations.

Work with your translation provider to build a company translation memory.

A good manufacturing translation services provider, that works on multiple projects for the same company, will retain translated files indefinitely. There are many benefits to this, particularly with respect to managing document version control and future updates. The translation provider should maintain a “translation memory” on behalf of your company to become increasingly efficient over time in completing your projects.

If discrepancies or uncertainties arise about which terminology is correct, the translation services provider can look back and see what terminology has been used previously. This will ensure accuracy and consistency, as well as money and time savings, in your technical translations going forward.

Prepare your documents according to the translation provider’s specifications.

Documents that are to be translated, especially documents containing technical information and terminology, must be written in a certain way to facilitate translation. Try these tips to help with clarity:

• Express only one thought per sentence
• Don’t embed text inside of images in your documents
• Avoid using words that have multiple meanings
• Leave a lot of white space for text expansion

These may seem like small things, but they can save time and funds on your technical translation project.Your technical translation services provider can give you more tips and suggestions for preparing your documents for translation. Most will ask for “live” versions of the original source files; they will also specify what kinds of document files they can or cannot use.

Have realistic expectations regarding technical translation services.

Quality translation is a professional service provided by specially trained individuals. Translators are not only proficient in the languages involved and trained in linguistics and translation, but they also typically have masters’ or other advanced degrees and specific industry credentials. To be effective, they must be fluent in the source language, native speakers of the target language, and vetted for their subject matter expertise. In short, they must be able to fully comprehend a company’s technical content in order to translate it properly.

Partner with an Experienced Technical Translation Services Provider

A good translation services company can not only provide high-quality translation services but will also work with a company to help sort through options and establish a budgeting process that works for each new technical translations project.

Comprehensive Technical Translation Services

ILS has vast experience when it comes to translating technical documents of every scope, and we can provide advice and assist with budget planning for documents like:

• Technical & User Manuals
• Maintenance Manuals
• Safety Documentation
• Software User Interfaces
• Material Data Safety Sheets
• Installation Guides
• Contracts & Patents
• Packaging & Product Labeling
• Multimedia Presentations & Training Materials
• Engineering Bid Specifications
• Product Data Sheets & Catalogs
• Marketing & Advertising Materials

A Trusted Technical Translation & Budgeting Partner

After handling technical translations for a company, an alert translation vendor should be able to identify patterns regarding a company’s translation needs and how they can impact budgeting for future technical translation projects. Their advice can save you time and money on future translation projects. So, don’t hesitate to ask for budgeting guidance and suggestions.

Whether you are planning for an immediate or future project, it is always helpful to consult your translation services provider as early as possible in the budgeting process. Their experience and advice can be invaluable when creating your documents and projecting costs for your technical translation project.

Bio:

Barb Sichel, Director of Business Development at International Language Services, Inc., has more than 30 years of business to business sales, marketing and management experience. She has been educating ILS clients about translations and assisting them with their multi-lingual project needs since 2006.

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