Every time a professional translation agency starts a project for a new client, a Translation Memory (TM) can be created. This consists of a database in which all translated segments are stored, whether they are sentences, paragraphs or even isolated terms, as long as they represent a unit of meaning. An example of this latter case is the word “Danger!”, which can be considered a segment, because it makes complete sense on its own.

The advantages provided by the TM include consistency, increased productivity and lower cost. Take a look at the details of each below:

1. Consistency: memories can be imported into translation tools, which facilitates their use by everyone involved in the project, including translators, editors, project managers, etc. Then, when a new text is being translated and the tool identifies a segment identical or similar to the already translated segment, previously stored in the database, the translator will be notified about the existing translation and can choose to use it partially or wholly in the new project.

As an example, let’s suppose that the sentence “The book is on the table” has already been translated into Portuguese and saved in the memory as “O livro está sobre a mesa.” Then, a new text to be translated has the segment “The yellow book is on the table.” In this case, the tool will alert the translator to the great similarity between both segments in English, showing that only the word “yellow” needs to be added to the new translation.

2. Increased productivity: when using already existing translations, either wholly or partially, the translator spends less time than it would take to translate completely new segments.
3. Lower cost: making use of already existing translations opens the door to a reduction in cost for the client, considering that lower prices are charged for segments that can be wholly or partially reused.

It warrants mention that each company has an exclusive translation memory, used solely for its files. Moreover, to enable better control over content, this memory is created and updated according to certain criteria.

First of all, a memory must be configured with the language pair taken into account, which is the original text language and the language into which it is being translated. This is the only way to get truly reliable reuse, given that it’s not feasible to use the same translation for different languages, even when they are very similar.

Memories are also created according to the end client’s particular qualities and terminology preferences. Supposing that a client always sends its materials with a portion of the same text. With a specific TM for that client, we can guarantee that this text is always translated exactly the same way, which may vary for another client according to preferences.

Finally, it’s important to consider whether the client has different areas, divisions and departments within its company.

If the client uses different terminology or structuring between these divisions, a memory can be created for each.

In short, translation memories serve the interests of companies and translators by lowering costs and timeframes and ensuring superior translation quality.  For this reason, always pay attention to these factors when choosing a partner, and remember: a good translation agency will always offer its client quality and cutting-edge technology.

 About Netwire

Founded in 2000, Netwire is a multilingual solution enterprise that provides translation and localization into any language in the world. With robust infrastructure involving state-of-the-art technologies and the best professionals in the field, Netwire ensures high volume processing at high quality standards with quick turnover, precise control and project management, rigorous selection of native translators in every corner of the world, rapid learning of client preferences, secure and real-time data storage, information traceability and on-time delivery of the final material.

This solid foundation underlying Netwire’s services ensures a superior level of quality over other translation agencies on the market. In the past five years alone, the company processed over 110 million words, delivering an average of 400 projects per month. This experience has increasingly sparked the interest of global brands that make up its client portfolio, positioning Netwire as the right company to handle any translation demand. Request an estimate via website or by telephone and guarantee the best solution for your business!