When a linguist went into labor and we were sent incorrectly formatted files, we had to think fast to get everything done. In the end we were able to assign remaining work to a back up translator and work together as a team. We had 4-5 people working on the files at one time to ensure that everything was QA'd correctly and delivered on time.
Client Background
Flying J is a fully integrated petroleum company engaged in the exploration, production, refining, transportation, wholesaling and retail marketing of petroleum products. Employing 15,000 people nationwide, the company also owns and operates travel plazas, convenience stores, restaurants, motels and truck service centers. In addition, Flying J's related companies offer a variety of services including, insurance, financial services, communication services, load and equipment facilitation services, truck fleet sales and other interstate travel services.
Project Description
U.S. Translation Company translated Flying J's Buffet Manual and Food Preparation Manual. The manuals were large with a word count of over 43,000 words.
Languages
U.S. Translation Company worked with English and Spanish for this project
Timeline
The manuals were translated in a space of four weeks.
Report
The language translation specialist sent the files well in advance in order to have the project delivered according to the required deadline, but halfway through the translation services process, the linguist went into early labor and was unable to continue the process.
U.S. Translation Company requires that every translator have an equally qualified proofreader and back-up in case of this type of event. The file was quickly turned over to the back-up translator and the process resumed. Because translation services are done in Trados, the file was completed while keeping consistency with the first section. Everything was on schedule, however, because of the large file size (due to numerous images), the translator chose to split the document and upload the broken sections to the FTP.
With the breaking of the files came conversions in the document. Our DTP staff was now under a tight deadline to re-assemble the broken file, add back the images, headers, footers and styles to meet the given time frame.
The DTP specialists worked diligently and put in a few extra hours to get the file put in final format thus meeting the deadline. Having the back-up translator policy and the use of Trados allowed us to seamlessly move the project from one linguist to the next without losing valuable time.
Although the project was due by the end of the business day and the deadline was tight, we were able to get it done and turn it over to the client.
