Photos from the grand opening of our translation services company on Feb. 9, 2012
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Translation Services Company holds Grand Opening
Here’s the video that played during last Thursday’s Grand Opening Event for our translation services company!
Thanks to Sen. Mark Madsen, Bryan Davis of Xango, Miguel Rovira of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, Lew Cramer of the World Trade Center Utah, Lane Beattie of the Salt Lake Chamber, Paul Keyser of Utah Paperbox and everyone else who helped with the video!
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Tagged Salt Lake City, translation company, translation services
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Where is this Wednesday
Where is this Wednesday!:
Rutsjebanen, Dæmonen, and The Star Flyer, are all well-known staples in this “garden,” that gets 4.5 million visitors each year and has been in operation since 1843.
What are these grounds called and in which country is it located?
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Tagged daemonen, rutsjebanen, the Star Flyer, where is this wednesday
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Friday Lunch with a Translation Company Web Guy
It’s Friday!
And that means shrugging the penny-pinching homemade lunch I bring most weekdays and splurge at one of the many fine establishments within a five block radius of our Downtown SLC office.
When I’m not busy being the web guy at a translation services company, I like to eat (trust me it shows) and it’s nice to pull my eyeballs off the screen for an hour or so and explore 
the food offerings in the area – and brother (or sister), the eats are good!
Today I visited Maxwell’s East Coast Eatery for one of their Famous Philly’s.
Maxwell’s is one of those places that should be on any SLC city dweller’s rotation for pizza, sandwiches, pasta, and wings. view menu
They have plenty of seating both at the bar and booths complemented by numerous t.v.’s strategically placed and ready to broadcast the next Jazz game.
One downside is the parking. I had to park across the street in a pay stall. TRAX (Salt Lake’s light rail) runs down Main street right in front of the restaurant so parking might be a bit tricky, especially in the evenings or on the weekend.
Today’s meal came with entertainment as the Occupy Wall Street protestors were in front of the courthouse across the street.
Dinner Theatre Provided by the Occupy Movement
The philly runs about $9.50. It’s not the best cheesesteak I’ve ever had, but it was pretty darn good.
They tout their use of “Amoroso” rolls which I have to admit, pretty much made the sandwich. I’m not sure if it’s a style of roll, or if they import it? But you could put the sole of a shoe on an Amoroso and I’d chomp it down like PacMan.
I got mine with provolone, onions, mushrooms, and peppers, although it’s my understanding the traditional Philly is cheese whiz and that’s about it?
I’m always on the lookout for a good sandwich, slice, gyro, or bowl of noodles (I’ll even had salad if there’s at least ONE meat product in it). If you live/work/play in downtown SLC, drop me a line – gentry@ustranslation.com – with your favorite lunch spots.
Translation Equipment Explained
Basic Flow Chart for Translation Equipment at a Simultaneous Interpretation Event - Click for Larger Image
When technicians or language companies start talking about translation equipment it can get really confusing, really fast.
Here’s a brief outline of what translation/interpretation equipment is and how to use it.
Transmitters: Transmitters broadcast the interpreter’s voice to receivers via and FM radio signal or infrared plates set up in an area where a conference, meeting, convention or event is taking place.
Receivers: Receivers receive information from the transmitters, allowing listeners to hear the live interpretation. Like transmitters, receivers typically work with either FM radio waves or infrared technology.
Note: While both FM and Infrared options allow for multiple languages to be simultaneously interpreted, FM radio waves can be set to various channels and the signal can be sent and received through walls. With Infrared equipment, plates are set up in strategic locations of a room and keep the interpreted material confined to the space the signal is occupying. Infrared waves won’t go through walls so if privacy is paramount, infrared is the best option.
Booths: Interpreters conduct their work from booths. Fully sound proof booths keep interpreters enclosed and avoid distracting audience members. Table top booths won’t keep an interpreters voice confined but still provide an excellent work space especially if the interpreters are set up in an adjacent room or have a barrier separating them from the audience.
Interpreter Control Units: These are a necessary piece of simultaneous interpretation equipment that acts as an interface for the interpreters to both receive the live feed from the speaker and send their interpreted voice to the transmitters so it can be broadcast to the audience. They allow the interpreter to manage information being transmitted, control volume, and toggle between interpreters if there are more than one.
Mic Headsets: These two-way mic headphones allow the interpreter to both hear the live feed from the main speaker through the headphones, while speaking into the mic which is plugged into the interpreter control unit.
Transport Cases: For safely transporting equipment to and from conferences.
For more information on translation equipment including rental, set up, and large event solutions, please visit: www.usinterpretation.com/translation_equipment.php
How to Pick a Translation Company
There are an
estimated three thousand translation companies around the world!
How on earth can you decide which company to hire for your next translation services project?
Here’s a few questions to ask that should make the process a little easier:
1. Does the company hire certified linguists?
There are millions of bilingual people out there. In fact, in many countries it’s the norm to be bilingual, trilingual or more! Being bilingual doesn’t mean their a good fit to provide translation services. Document translation requires education and understanding. Make sure that the translation company you go with only hires linguists certified in their respective languages. ISO and APA certifications are nationally respected and show that a linguist knows what he or she is doing.
2. Is the company certified?
If a translation company has ISO: 9000 and EN15038 certification you know they’re good. It isn’t easy to get these certifications and certificate-holding companies have had their process scrutinized and subject to third-party audits that confirm quality.
3. What are the company’s specializations?
Every field of work has its own language to go with it, if the company you hire understands your field the final product will be that much better.
4. How much does it really cost? After taking into account quality, obtain quotes from some of the top translation agencies and see which quotes are the best. Compare apples to apples and ask about management fees, translation memory cost, etc. A reputable company will be upfront and honest about what projects will cost, expected turnaround time, and translation memory.
5. Can I get along with them? This might take a little research. Go online, sites like ProZ.com and Translators Cafe have comment sections that will paint a picture of what that company is like to work with from the perspective of the linguist. If you have a constant need for translation services then it’s well worth it to make sure you get along with company representatives and choose a company you can stick with.
5 most common types of documents we translate
U.S. translation has been providing translation services for 15 years. Whil
e we translate nearly any type of document, the 5 most common documents we translate are:
1- Heavy Equipment Manuals: From Airplanes to bulldozers, these are number one in terms of sheer size. The largest equipment manual we’ve translated was 1800 pages! Companies requesting these types of translations must have their documents translated by a certified agency that can guarantee accuracy because the safety liability for assembly and operating instructions can be extremely high.
2- Certificates: People need certified translations on all kinds of personal documents for drivers licenses, marriage certificates, immigration, you name it. Each of our translations is accompanied by letter of certification that’s stamped by our in-house notary. These letters must be presented with the translated document or state and federal entities will not accept the translated version.
3- Legal Documents: Law firms working on cases where information is in another language must have those documents translated by a certified translation agency before they can be used in a case. Firms also use translation companies in the exploration process to go through hundreds, sometimes thousands of pages of text to find specific information that will help with their cases.
4- Marketing Materials: When companies want to break into international markets not only must they have ads, pamphlets, websites, and commercials translated, they have to make sure they localize all the material to be culturally sensitive and appropriate. These translations must be performed by an in-country professional that is well-versed in the commercial climate of that country and region.
5- Medical Documents: These translations require a professional linguist certified in medical translations who is fluent in not only the source and target languages, but in medical terminology as well. Documents can range from treatment diagnosis to insurance forms making this type of translation extremely important in terms of accuracy and precision.
For more info on document translation services, visit www.ustranslation.com/translation-services
The Ups and Downs of the Elevator Business
Niki stopped by the new building last week and saw more progress being made on the the elevator installation at the south end of the building.
Not sure what this green thing does, but I’m pretty confident that it’s important.
Short video with one of the crew explaining what’s going on now
Translation services, interpretation services, and professional linguists from U.S. Translation Company
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Letting in the Breeze – Window Installation at the Keyser Building
Last week was exciting at the new digs:
One much anticipated renovation taking place was replacing the old windows throughout the building.
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| Old vs. New |
Gone are the non-opening, ultra-mirrored windows that looked like a pair of bad aviator shades.
Workers pulled out the old panes and frames replacing them with energy efficient models that were extensively insulated and fitted.
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| Elevator Work |
Another wonderful feature of the new windows…THEY OPEN! A feature that’s not only luxurious, but also provides the circulation and natural heating and cooling of the building that is crucial to keeping with architect Warren Lloyd’s environmentally responsible design.
The elevator shaft has been sheetrocked and as of last week the cabling was being installed. All of the elevator components have been delivered and crews are working to finish the cables before assembling the rest of the pieces.
A team was also on the roof working to clean and finish an area that may one day be used for BBQ’s and entertaining during the summer months. Using ladders to get up there now, an access stair is being put in on the northwest corner of the third floor.
Framing has been completed on the third floor and is underway on the second. Several walls are slated to be glass including the large fishbowl conference room in the southwest corner of the space.
Electricians were also there last week installing boxes, drilling holes in the concrete for data cables and power wires.
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| Third Floor |
Once the walls are built, the roof is finished, the electrical and data has been installed and all the other details are complete, The final phase of the will be to stain and polish the concrete floors!
Translation services, interpretation services, and professional linguists from U.S. Translation Company
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Steel and Concrete: How to install an Elevator
Nearly every floor was abuzz with activity during last weeks stop in at the Keyser Building.
Concrete was being hauled in wheelbarrows from the north side’s back door down the freight elevator to the basment and was poured into molds around the base of the elevator.
One of the foreman told me they originally had been pouring at the front door (south side) of the building but city officials came by and made them move it to the back. I’m sure that was a big bummer for the crew because it forced them to push 100+ pounds of concrete across the length of the building (which felt like a sauna with the summer heat).
One floor up they were cutting steel beams for what I’m assuming was the elevator shaft frame. Watching the guy cut through 600 lbs of steel with the blow torch made me wonder what it would feel like to hold that much power in your hand…and how long it would take me to burn off all my fingers.
The top floor is almost completely framed and several samples for flooring have been laid in the southwest corner.
I had no idea how many options there were for concrete flooring: polish, stain, polish and stain, epoxy, etc.
USTC Project managers should be happy they can see Energy Solutions Arena from the office as we typically staff interpretation services and equipment for some of the biggest events in the state at that venue.
The proximity should help cut travel time from 45 minutes driving, to five minutes walking – Hallelujah!
Translation services, interpretation services, and professional linguists from U.S. Translation Company
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