What is covered
One source text,
several target languages
A multilingual project translates the same content into several languages at once, for example a product launch, a manual set or a website for several markets.
An in-house project manager coordinates the translators for each language, collects their questions in one place and answers them once for all languages. Terminology is agreed at the start and shared across the language teams.
Delivery dates are confirmed in writing for the whole project. For suitable content and large volumes, machine translation with full post-editing under ISO 18587 can be agreed.
Multilingual projects in practice
Content, method
and standard
Typical content
Documentation sets, product and packaging texts, websites, software releases and training material needed in several markets at the same time.
Process specifics
One project manager, one glossary and one set of answered questions for all languages, so every version says the same thing.
Quality standard
Each language is translated and revised under ISO 17100; ISO 18587 applies where machine translation post-editing is agreed.
Questions
Questions about
multilingual projects
Which language combinations can a multilingual project include?
All language pairs from the agency's list of 32 languages and variants, including translation into several of them from one source text.
How is consistency kept across languages?
Terminology is agreed before translation, source-text questions are answered once for all languages, and every language version is revised by a second linguist.
Can machine translation be used for large volumes?
For suitable content, yes. Babylon Translations is certified to ISO 18587:2017 for full post-editing of machine translation output, which is agreed with the client in advance.