Professional Technical Translation

Our Technical Translation Process:

1. Receive the document: You send us the technical document/s for translation in a variety of methods, including secure file transfer.  
2. Translation Memory: We analyse the document against our Translation Memory database to see whether there is any previously translated content or repeated phrasing, both of which will be translated automatically saving you time and money.  
3. Translation and review: Our expert translators get to work translating the technical document/s, with draft translations reviewed for accuracy and suitability.   
4. Quality assurance and delivery: Before delivery, the translation undergoes our strict quality assurance process. 

Technical documents we can translate

User manuals
Instructions for use and installation
Datasheets
Technical reports

Compliance guidance
Material specifications
Machinery installation guides
Health and safety documents

Patents
Product catalogues
Websites
Drawings/illustrations

Sales training
Instructional videos
Bulletins
Safety documentation

 If you’ve got a technical document to translate in a format not included in this list, please get in touch with us for a bespoke quote. We can cover almost any format, including industry-specific or other non-standard formats.   

Languages we can provide technical translations in:

Our bank of experts includes translators with the highest level of proficiency in an array of languages. The most common languages for business document translation are as follows, and you can see our full list of languages here:

German
French
Spanish
Italian
Portuguese
Dutch
Czech

Hungarian
Welsh
Greek
Turkish
Croatian
Farsi
Swedish

Norwegian
Danish
Finnish
Polish
Russian
Ukrainian
Korean

Vietnamese
Thai
Serbian
Romanian
Japanese
Chinese
Arabic

We can translate from English into the languages above, into English from the languages above, or between language pairings above.

Whatever languages you need, get in touch for a bespoke quote.

Technical translation for:

We are proud to have helped businesses around the world with their technical translation needs. Our clients include global businesses looking to internationalise their communications, smaller businesses looking to expand into new audiences, and everything in between.

Our bank of specialists includes technical translators with expertise in a range of industries, letting us deliver impactful and engaging translations in fields like:  

• Engineering
• IT & Telecoms
• Software

and many more.  

To find out how we can help your business with its translation needs, whatever your industry, get in touch for a bespoke quote.  

Technical translations FAQs:

What is technical translation?

Technical translation is the translation of technical documents like manuals, datasheets, specification documents, and similar. These documents often have a high level of complexity, and may be used in situations where safety is critical. It is therefore crucial that alongside proficiency in the target language, the translator has a deep understanding of the technical aspects of the document and the surrounding process.

At The Translation People, our ISO 9001:2015 certification demonstrates our high levels of quality management, giving you the piece of mind that our technical translation services are carried out to the highest standard.

What does a technical translator do?

The role of technical translator has many parts, including (but not limited to):

• Development of and reference to style guides and glossaries to ensure that phraseology in translations represents your brand, communicates the necessary aspects, and is understood by the target audience
• Undertaking of the translation with utilisation of their linguistic and technical expertise
• Employment of relevant specialist technical software including FrameMaker, AutoCAD and similar to provide non-text assets to augment your content

A technical translator must also have a suitable understanding of the sector/s to which the translation relates. Our bank of translators includes former engineers and other senior technical roles, ensuring that we can always provide the translator best suited to the project.

What are the features of technical translation?

An effective, high quality technical translation will demonstrate several features, including:

• Accuracy: the translated text must accurately reflect the original both in terms of linguistic content, and in terms of technical aspects like terms, instructions and specifications.
• Expertise: the translated text must be translated by a translator with enough expertise to fully understand the technical contents of the document, as well as the linguistic ones. They must also possess sufficient expertise to convey these technical aspects in the target language.
• Consistency: as well as being accurate, specialist technical terms, abbreviations, acronyms and other phraseology must be used consistently throughout to ensure consistency of meaning.
• Localised: where necessary, the contents of the translated document must be brought in line with different regulatory conventions in the target market. Localisation also refers to the language used, i.e. ensuring that all phrasing is understandable by readers in the target regions.
• Confidentiality: technical translations often include sensitive information, meaning that the full process must adhere to relevant rules and regulations.

What is an example of technical translation?

There are many types of technical translation. Some examples of technical translation projects we have undertaken include:

• Safety documentation
• Instructional videos
• Compliance guidance documentation
• Machinery installation guides
• Health and safety documents
• Datasheets
• Technical reports

You can read a full technical translation case study here: we helped Hydronix – the world’s leading manufacturer of digital microwave moisture measurement sensors – to build a highly sophisticated translation memory, and to translate a range of complex documentation into numerous languages including German, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Chinese, Russian and Turkish. The types of translated documents include brochures, technical documents and software through to website content and adverts.

What documents need technical translation to be used?

Many document types lend themselves better to technical translation services than regular translation services. These are documents with higher levels of complexity, where higher levels of technical expertise will facilitate the translation process. Some examples include:

• Engineering documents
• Patents and intellectual property documents
• Software documentation and user manuals
• Safety manuals

How much do technical translation services cost?

Technical translation services will vary in price depending on the nature and scale of the project. Our process is to provide bespoke quotes for each project, so that you know from the outset what you can expect to pay. To get a quote, fill in our contact form with details about your project. We’ll review this information and get back to you as quickly as possible.