The importance of good translation

01-10-2011

Michael V. Sneddon and Heide Ruplinger

For the uninitiated, finding translators sounds easy. Often, inexperienced company executives just entering the international market talk about translating as if it is simple. In fact, it is much more than that.

Few things can cause a company’s international expansion to falter faster than an inaccurate or confusing translation. Eventually, however, all successful international executives come to appreciate and rely on precise and effective translations to convey their brand, maximise their operations and preserve their intellectual property.

While all translations done for a business will have some impact, the translations with the highest stakes cover patent translations. Being a patent translator requires much more than just a bilingual business background. Just as writing a patent requires specific expertise, translating one requires the same expertise with the additional skill of native fluency in the target language.

All patent translators must have not only an understanding of the accepted format and structure of a patent but also of its specific technical field. A company greatly increases its risk of being involved in costly litigation and potentially losing its intellectual property protection when it uses a translator without patent and relevant subject expertise.


Translation, patent, technology

WIPR