Technical translation keeps us pretty busy at Alpha Omega Translations.
French is the leading language for technical translation. Canada is America’s #1 global trading partner for machinery and many other U.S. products. The province of Quebec requires every product sold there to have French labels and instructions.
France is another important export market for U.S. products, with a similar rule requiring translation of all instructional and safety information. Products shipped into any country of the European Union must have translated instructions. French-speaking countries in Africa are also large clients for translation services.
German is also high in the technical translation world due to Germany’s high productivity in the machinery, and automobile industry. Translation of patents is in high demand.
Demand impacts supply
Before committing to delivery dates, check with us about turnaround time. With so much technical translation ongoing, your translation into French or German, may take a bit longer than, say, Latvian. That’s due to the simple law of supply and demand. There’s a limited supply of talented, experienced French translators while there’s always demand for their services. The lesson here is to plan in advance.
The Role of the 
Technical translator
The role of the technical translator is to not only be a transmitter of information, but also to be a constructor of procedural discourse and knowledge through meaning, particularly because often, the technical translator may also take on the role of the technical writer Research has demonstrated that technical communicators do, in fact, create new meaning as opposed to simply repackaging old information. They often create new terminology in the target language. This emphasizes the important role that technical translators play in making meaning, whether they are doing technical translation in their native language.
Much like professionals in the field of technical communication, the technical translator must have a cross-curricular and multifaceted background. In addition to grasping theoretical and linguistic orientations for the actual translation process, an understanding of other subjects, such as cognitive psychology, usability engineering, and technical communication, is necessary for a successful technical translator. Additionally, most technical translators work within a specialized field such as medical or legal technical translation, which highlights the importance of an interdisciplinary background. Technical translation requires a solid knowledge base of technological skills. Finally, the technical translators should also become familiar with the field of professional translation through training.
For an overview of our translation expertise, visit our technical translation service page.