Scriptware Translations expands ISO certification

The localization industry too has seen processes get more complex, with legal requirements increasing in scope and number. A streamlined, consistent workflow is essential not only to deliver clients with high-quality translations, but also to stay compliant with regulatory frameworks. This is why Scriptware has held a ISO 17100 certification since 2016. Furthermore, as of June 2022 we have expanded this with the ISO 18587 certification. What does this entail?

ISO standards are what is known as ‘process standards’: they offer a framework for organizing company processes. Separate ISO standards have been compiled for numerous industries and types of companies. Additionally, there is a number of general standards that can be applied to every company. These standards are established by the ISO, the International Organization for Standardization, a collaborative body established by national standards organizations worldwide. Companies can choose whether to obtain certifications for one or more ISO standards. A certificate of compliance will only be granted after a thorough audit by an independent certification body. This audit is then repeated annually to maintain the certification status. 

The ISO standard 17100 was developed especially for translation agencies. This standard covers all relevant processes: the commercial aspect (from quote to complaint resolution), the production phase (from pre-production to delivery), resource management, IT processes, etc. The standard contains a significant number of requirements. To cite some examples: translators and reviewers need to be demonstrably qualified, an adequate version management system needs to be implemented and solid security measures are required for client information. Taken together, all these requirements are designed to practically guarantee that compliant agencies deliver high-quality translations, while observing stated deadlines. An additional benefit for clients operating in industries with strict regulatory frameworks is that these standards offer a large degree of transparency: because everything in a project is logged and archived in a structured manner, it is easy to trace any issues back to their source.  

ISO standard 18587 covers post-editing texts that have been translated with the aid of machine translation tools. The standard covers both the post-editing process itself and the requirements for any post-editors employed in this process. Any texts translated using machine translation and post-edited in accordance with this standard will attain a level of quality that is very close to a human translation, while costs are lower and turn-around times are shorter. This makes machine translation coupled with a post-editing step highly suitable for Help content, product descriptions and technical manuals. Scriptware has embedded the requirements of this standard within the broader context of the company-wide processes prescribed by ISO standard 17100. This means that any measures taken to enforce data security and transparency also apply to our post-editing projects. 

These past years, we have experienced how many benefits the voluntary constraints of an ISO-compliant workflow have to offer. Not only for us, but also for our clients. This is why we are currently focusing our efforts at aligning our processes with ISO standard 9001 as well, which features strict requirements regarding quality management systems. We hope you can read all about these efforts on our website soon!