One question AZ World often gets from new clients is why do I need to hire two interpreters?  It seems like it will just cost twice as much, and they might think they only need one.  But for long conferences, two simultaneous interpreters are absolutely necessary.   Interpretation is an incredibly intensive job and in order to remain fresh and accurate interpreters must take regular breaks.  Without these breaks interpretation quality quickly decreases and the interpreters can no longer guarantee industry standards of consistency and quality.

In addition to spelling each other out at regular breaks, the second interpreter, or booth partner, helps the interpreters with difficult words or confusing acronyms.  This second pair of ears will also further increase the accuracy and quality of the services provided.

Two interpreters is the industry standard for a reason, demanding only one for “cost concerns” is dangerous and may lead to false economies.

It is simple; you are delivering a crucial presentation to a group of potential investors.  You have practiced this presentation endlessly.  You know your stats and figures, your pauses and your jokes.  You know preparation is key and you leave nothing to chance.  You can’t be expected to just walk in with only a vague understanding of your topic and be expected to deliver a stunning presentation.  You know this and so you prepare.

But your interpreter?  They just need to know the language right?  Wrong.  The interpreter is also giving a presentation just like you.  Sure they don’t need to know it as well as you, but they need as much information as possible.  They need to know what’s coming up, where you’re headed and why.  You have the benefit of leading, the interpreter is always playing catch-up so a sense of the overarching plan can be a great asset.

It really is simple; you leave nothing to chance in your presentations, so expect the same of your interpreters.  Help them prepare, give them all your materials and update them on any changes.  Your presentation will become twice as effective.

Today we’re going to share some of AZ World’s best practices for working with an interpreter.  Interpreters are professionals and will do their utmost to help you present your ideas, but here are a few things you can do to improve communication even more.

-          When writing your speech or presentation, avoid acronyms or abbreviations as they may not be present in the target language.

-          Always provide the interpreter with your speech or presentation materials early on so they have time to prepare for any less common words.  Update them with the latest versions if possible.

-          Confer with the interpreter prior to the presentation to confirm the main objectives of the presentation and to adjust for any last minute modifications.

-          Warn the interpreter about any jokes, they don’t always translate well and the interpreter may need time to prepare.

-          Following standard public speaking advice like speaking clearly and at a steady pace will not only improve your presentation, but also the interpretation.

-          If you plan on saying a few words in the audience’s language, such as words of thanks at the end, ask the interpreter to proofread it so that it has the most beneficial impact.

-          Expect delays; interpreters will operate a few words behind you, so the audience may react at different times, with those waiting to hear the interpretation reacting later than others.

-          Similarly, leave slides up for a few seconds longer as the interpreter will be behind you.

-          Interpreters will also interpret an audience member’s question, so don’t worry about repeating questions

-          Always provide feedback for the interpreters to help them improve and consider requesting feedback from the interpreters too.

These tips and guidelines will really help the interpreter, which will in turn help you better communicate your message.  Your interpreter can be your best friend if used properly!

What are you really expecting from your translator? Yes you want accuracy and on-time delivery.  That’s pretty basic.  But it’s important to really be sure that you know what you’re really trying to get from this translation.  Are you looking for a way to expand into new markets?  Do you want to non-English speaking engineers to be able to understand your software?  These are different goals and need to be communicated to the translator.  Does your company prefer one term to another?  Let the translator know. As we’ve discussed previously, synonyms are not errors and terminology can change.

Translators are not mind readers; you need to talk to them.  Context can both clarify and obviate so at times the client must provide some direction to the translator.  Translators are professionals and are more than capable of working independently.  They will always produce a high quality and polished product, but if the client doesn’t communicate effectively, it might not be the right high quality product.

Chances are that when people think of technological innovations and advancements in the translation industry they’re thinking about the latest version of Google translate or other machine translators.  They’re probably not thinking about powerful advances in translation memory technology, despite the fact that these have been huge in increasing the productivity of professional translators.  And innovations in translation memory have still probably had a much greater impact on the translation world than machine translation.

This is the future of translation technology; the advancements will enable professional translators to further leverage their own skills.  A new piece of technology in this vein is the ELSA device that Minnesota Public Radio recently reported on.  This device is simple, but its applications are enormous.  It is basically a small speaker-phone that quickly connects first-responders with interpreters.  We’ve discussed before how essential proper medical interpretation is in emergencies and this device can help provide it.  The ELSA device can reportedly connect first-responders with professional interpreters in as quickly as 30 seconds and operators can even help determine what language is needed.

This kind of device is certainly more effective than other handheld machine translation devices that have been developed for tourism or even military purposes.  These kinds of technological advancements, which further enhance or enable a professional linguist’s existing skills are the future and will have a much greater impact on the industry than advances in machine translation.

It’s worth noting that the MPR report refers to translators, not interpreters, we’ve discussed the difference before here.

Todos los años AZ World asiste a la mayor convención de minería en el mundo. Este año más de 30.000 personas asistieron a la conferencia.

Ustedes se preguntarán porqué asistimos a la conferencia y la razón es muy simple: más del 80% del trabajo que hacemos en AZ World está relacionado con la minería.  Esto incluye estudios de factibilidad, estudios ambientales, informes técnicos, software minero, equipo minero, contratos mineros y sitios web para compañías mineras o compañías relacionadas con la industria minera. Creemos que PDAC es el mejor lugar para conversar con los clientes y encontrar a otros.

AZ World se ha creado un nombre en la industria como una compañía de traducción especializada en la industria minera y esto se ve reflejado en el hecho que contamos entre nuestros clientes a Barrick, Goldcorp, Kinross y KGHM, y más de 70 otros clientes mineros.

Hoy me gustaría compartir algunas preguntas que se me hicieron con frecuencia mientras caminaba por los pasillos de PDAC.

No eres ingeniero, cómo conoces la terminología

Correcto, no soy ingeniera pero soy traductora y AZ World cuenta con ingenieros, abogados, geólogos y otros especialistas que editan nuestros documentos; cuenta con extensas bases de datos, nuestros traductores están capacitados para trabajar en la industria minera ya que se han especializado en el área y usan el software más avanzado que usan los traductores hoy en día.

¿Cuánto se demoran en traducir un informe?

Bien, depende de cosas como el formato, la terminología, la cantidad de repeticiones que tiene el documento y si tenemos una base de datos terminológica para el proyecto en cuestión.  Una regla general es que un traductor produce unas 2000 palabras diarias.

¿Cuánto cobran?

Antes de proporcionar una cotización nos gusta ver el documento. Un documento en  Word, Powerpoint o Excel es más económico que traducir un PDF ya que el PDF requiere más formato antes de poder empezar a traducir el documento.  Proporcionamos cotizaciones sin ningún compromiso en www.a-zworld.ca/request-a-quote-translation.php.

Y recuerden que hay una razón por la cual contamos con más de 70 compañías mineras como clientes, si usted no es una de ellas, envíenos una cotización y felices le ayudamos.

Another year, another PDAC!

Every year AZ World attends the largest mining convention in the world. This year, over 30,000 people attended the conference.

You might wonder why we attend this conference and the reason is very simple: more than 80% of the work we do at AZ World is mining related.  This includes feasibility studies, environmental studies, technical reports, mining software, mining equipment, mining contracts and web sites for mining companies or companies that service the mining industry. We think PDAC is the best place to talk to clients and find new ones.

AZ World has created a name in the industry as a translation company specialized in the mining industry and this is shown by the fact that currently Barrick, Goldcorp, Kinross and KGHM are among our over 70 mining clients.

Today I would like to share some of the questions that I was often asked as I walked the stands yesterday,

You are not an engineer, how do you know the terminology?

You’re right; I am not an engineer but I am a translator that has engineers, lawyers, geologist, and other specialists as editors, that has extensive terminological databases, that works with translators trained to work for the mining industry, and that uses the most advanced software available to translators today.

How long does it take you to translate a report?

Well, it depends on things such as the format, the terminology, the number of repetitions in the document, and if we have a database of terminology available for that subject.  A general rule of thumb is that a translator’s output is around 2000 words per day.

How much do you charge?

Before we provide a quote we like to see the document. A Word, Excel or Powerpoint document is always cheaper to translate than a PDF because a PDF requires more formatting prior to translating than a ready to edit Word document.  We are always happy to provide free quotes, available at www.a-zworld.ca/request-a-quote-translation.php.

And remember there is a reason why we count over 70 mining companies as clients, if you are not one of them, send us a note and we will be happy to assist you.

Last week we estimated that in a 100,000 word study you could expect about 10% to be repeated words that could be automatically translated by a translation memory.  Well the European Commission, the executive body of the European Union, estimates that about 25% of their translation responsibility tends to be previously translated material.  That is, a quarter of what they need to translate has already been translated.  The European Commission will launch a new specialized translation system in June that will incorporate this huge bulk of previously translated materials.

We’ve emphasized before that potential cost-savings increase exponential as the size of the translation memory grows.  The European Union clearly demonstrates this principle.  Without a translation memory the European Union is missing out on potential cost-savings of almost 25%.

The European Union also opens themselves up to liabilities if they do not maintain consistency of terms throughout a document.  Much of what the European Commission translates has legal importance and inconsistency of terms can significantly alter interpretation of legislation.  The use of translation memories by the European Union is clearly necessary, as it is for translators.

Here is a practical demonstration of how translation memories can save you money right away.

Say you need a 100,000 word feasibility study translated.  Well in a 100,000 word document you can expect about 10% of those words to be classified as “Repeated Words” by the translation memory.  “Repeated Words” are charged at 25% of the “New Word” rate.  That means that just by choosing a translator who uses a translation memory you are immediately getting a 7.5% discount.

This is the first and most immediate benefit of a translation memory.  Translation memories also maintain consistency.  An average translator can translate about 2500 words per day.  That means it would take about 40 days for one translator to finish your feasibility study.  It is nearly impossible for any translator to maintain consistency of terminology, diction, and style over such a long period.  Translation memory software helps translators remember terms over the long process of translation.  They also maintain consistency among translators and between projects as the same memory can be used for any of a client’s future projects.

As soon as you have chosen to use a translator with a translation memory you have already gained instant cost and consistency benefits, and as the memory grows those benefits will become even greater.

One of the biggest reasons why AZ World is a cost effective option is because we use translators from all over the world.  This enables us to find translators who are highly qualified, technically trained, well-educated and competitively priced.  In Canada, the biggest employer of French translators is the government, which pays much higher rates than private agencies can.  As a result, the rates of Canadian French translators are much higher than those of international French translators.  AZ World is able to avoid this by expanding our sources of translators to include those from other countries.

We are also able to maintain and increase the quality of our translators by searching internationally.  There are estimated to be about 300,000 translators in the world and of those only 15,000 are from Canada.  That means there are twenty times as many translators outside of Canada than within. By looking in that larger pool AZ World can find those translators that are better trained, better qualified, better experienced and better priced.

In addition to the benefits that can come from just looking in a larger pool, international translators can offer something useful that domestic translators aren’t necessarily able to.  International translators are often ex-pats living in a country whose language they translate into.  Many of our best French translators are native French speakers who then live in Canada or the United States.  They know the French natively and are able to keep their English strong and current by living in an English culture and environment.  We would be unable to get this level of quality in our translations of foreign languages if we only employed Canadian translators.

It’s important to mention here that AZ World does not outsource translations.  There are firms that do outsource and the quality is severely lacking.  AZ World looks internationally for translators in order to find the most qualified and most cost-effective translators.  The quality of our translators can easily be seen in their high levels of education.  Looking internationally increase the strength of the AZ World team; it does not dilute it.