Case Studies

Challenge:

A public sector company required the translation of their website content in 11 Indian languages (From English into Urdu, Assamese, Punjabi, Gujarati, Marathi, Bengali, Oriya, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, and Malayalam) at extreme urgency.

• The source text was given in batches in Excel format, in the form of sentence strings which were incomplete segments, sometimes lacking context.
• Other specific requirements regarding text colours, abbreviations, transliteration were also present.
• A large number of translators and editors was to be managed, while ensuring good quality and timely delivery to the client.

Solution:

• A team of total 22 members worked on the project. A pair of one translator and one editor/proof-reader was assigned for each language.
• Context: Due to the nature of the text, the translators had to refer the original website constantly to overcome the lack of context.
• Language application: The translators had to take special care about making the target text effective in application. This became particularly challenging due the uniqueness of each language.
• Layout constraints: As the original website was already designed, space constraints were present. This became a challenge for Indian languages. Translators took care to make the translation extremely concise but fulfilling the meaning of the source text.
• Effective project planning: Delivery schedules for all batches were made and met with. Frequent and accurate communication was maintained with the entire team.

Result:

• The translation and editing/ proofreading of a total volume of 2,64,000 words was managed in three weeks time.
• The client received timely deliveries complying with their requirements, which enabled them to launch the multilingual website on schedule.
• Completion of this challenging project only left us with great satisfaction and a sense of pride for our team!

Challenge:

A government office required several legally and administratively sensitive documents to be translated from English into Marathi. A large volume of words was to be managed in extreme urgency and confidentiality. This particular language pair posed various conceptual, structural and terminology related challenges to our translators.

Solution:

• Team of experienced translators: Three experienced translators worked on the project, 1 proof-reader reviewed the translation for language perfection and one QC person worked on the layouts and formatting of the final files.
• Effective project planning: The work was assigned to different team members so as to ensure project completion as per client requirement.
• Centralised terminology glossary: Since there was no possibility to use any CAT tool for this particular project, a centralised glossary was created and was being updated constantly as the work progressed. The updated glossary was periodically shared with all the team members to ensure complete consistency and accuracy of translation.
• Confidentiality: Complete data confidentiality was ensured throughout the project, as is the case for every project as LSB!

Result:

• The translation, layout and formatting of documents with a large number of words (53000 words) was managed in a very short period of 2 weeks.
• The project team successfully dealt with the language pair related challenges to create an accurate and effective end-product.
• The client was satisfied with the final product and the delivery period which allowed them to stick to their schedule for the further procedures.

Challenge:

A start-up software company in Pune, India wanted its User Documents localised and license agreement translated from English into Italian, Portuguese and Spanish, and the project was to be completed before the launch of this product in various European countries in a tight schedule.

Solution:

• International translation team: as per international practice, a translator should always translate in his/her mother tongue. Also as the project was on a tight schedule, it helped a lot to have experienced translators and proof-readers from the respective countries work on the project so as to benefit from the different time zones and save time.
• CAT (Computer Assisted Translation) tools: With the use of the latest Translation Memory solutions, our company ensured consistent terminology and cost effectiveness to the customer.
• Interactive proofreading: was incorporated during the various stages of the translation to guarantee the end product was grammatically accurate and technically perfect.
• Legal translation: For the license agreement, the translation was proofread by a person with legal background so that the legal text in the target language was fool proof.

Result:

• On time, consistent, legally correct, cost effective native translation completed as per the clients guidelines, ensured that the product was launched as scheduled, in various Italian, Portuguese and Spanish speaking countries, thus giving a feeling of accomplishment to us and our translators.
• The end users were pleased with the fact that all the software documentation was available in their language from day one!!

Challenge:

A reputed Software company in Pune, India needed to work with its Japanese client on a Japanese software with the User Interface, completely in Japanese. They needed someone with thorough knowledge of the language to understand the Japanese UI, explain it to the Indian employees, help them modify it wherever required and attend weekly meetings with the Japanese client along with the Indians at their premises for a period of 1 month.

Solution:

LSB suggested one of its senior Japanese interpreters with experience in IT for the project. The interpreter worked along with project managers and software developers at the company.

Result:

As the interpreter was available throughout working hours, understanding, and modifying the Japanese software was facilitated and the weekly meetings went well as both sides had someone speaking their language and interpreting their message correctly, thanks to the actual presence of the interpreter during all the project phases.

Challenge:

An Indian software company which had been awarded a contract by an Argentinian company had to train its employees in Latin American Spanish language so as to interact with the client on phone, mail, etc. and also for on-site visits. The trainees needed to start interacting within 1 month.

Solution:

• LSB has specially designed 2-months foreign language crash courses for on-site corporate language training.
• Focus is on spoken language, with the use of authentic audio visual aids that detail day to day conversations starting from basics like asking directions, ordering in a restaurant, shopping, etc.
• Corporate communication skills (phone and email etiquettes) are imparted to the trainees in the language.
• Field specific glossaries are prepared for the trainees as per their requirements enabling them to speak the domain specific jargon in the language.
• Cultural training is also included in the training program so that the trainees know about the dos and don’ts in that specific culture.

Result:

• As required, trainees could start interacting with the client in 1 month.
• The client was happy about the effort taken from the Indian side in learning their language, and the comfort level in communication thus increased.
• People going on site found it very easy to communicate on a day to day basis due to the different spoken language drills that they had practiced as per situations. They were also aware of the target culture and therefore there were no shocks or surprises to be faced!

Challenge:

A reputed software company in Pune, India needed its help documents of an application (approximately 2 lakh words) translated from German to English in a specified Help file format (Fasthelp) within a 6 weeks period. A technically precise and spotless translation of the industry terminology was required.

Solution:

• Training: As LSB was new to Fasthelp software, we trained our translators and proof-readers in working with it.
• Teamwork: Four linguists worked on the documents, 2 proof-readers checked whether the translation was correct, consistent and complete as per the original and one QC person reviewed the file layouts at the end.
• Terminology management: As the project was voluminous and many people were working on it, a centralized terminology was prepared and used by everyone.
• Weekly delivery: Translation of lots were sent to the client every week, as per requirements specified.

Result:

The client was satisfied with the services provided, as:

• they received the translation in the format required by them, thus facilitating integration in their earlier Help files,
• the translation was submitted on time as specified, and due to weekly deliveries the client could suggest modifications/changes to translation as and when required, which were promptly dealt with and the documents were finalized immediately so that the client could release on time.
• The translation was found consistent and the end client in UK and Germany was happy with the project turnaround.

Challenge:

During the first week of November in 2017, a global multinational Automobile Conglomerate organized a skill contest for all their technicians throughout the world, who regularly repair on vehicles produced by this Indian company.

This contest included a written test, a practical exam on equipment and a Viva examination.

The technicians who generally do not have a sound education have trouble understanding and speaking the English language.

There were participants from over 16 different countries from the world over at the event.

Solution:

Language Services Bureau provided 14 interpreters for this event to facilitate communication between the examiners and the technicians.
Before the event, LSB got all question papers translated into the respective languages help translate the exam questionnaire
The languages involved were

• Spanish,
• Arabic,
• Turkish,
• Nepali,
• Bangla

• rare languages like
• Khmer
• Philipino.

The challenge for us at this event was to help the technicians understand the complex technical jargon used by the examiners and help them succeed in the contest to make their countries win.

Result:

• The interpreters established a clear link of communication between the examiners and the technicians.
• This enabled the participants to effectively complete the said tasks and bag various awards which also included a grand prize of 1000 USD.

Challenge:

A renowned insurance company needed Training and other Legacy documents of a software system to be translated from French into English. A large number of words in various file formats such as PPT, Excel sheets, Bitmap images was to be handled. The client requirements went on changing as their work on the software system progressed.

Solution:

• CAT tool: With the latest CAT tool used, the translation in various file formats was handled ensuring consistency and uniformity throughout the project.
• Domain specific glossary: A requirement was put forth by the client in a later stage of the project to use a particular glossary for translation. All the changes arising due to this were managed and the final documents were delivered as per client requirement.
• Formatting: The file format related challenges were resolved using basic software thus making the project cost-effective for the client.
• Batch delivery schedule: The documents were scheduled to be delivered in batches every third day. Due to this the client could suggest modifications/changes to translation as and when required, which were promptly dealt with and the updated documents were delivered. This also ensured less rework as these modifications/changes were incorporated in the ongoing translations.

Result:

• The client was satisfied with the one-stop solution for handling various file formats without requiring any specific software which reduced the ultimate processing cost for the client.
• The continually evolving nature of client specifications and requirements was respected and the final deliveries were maintained up to date.