Language Service Providers
Language Service Providers (LSP) operate in a unique way from many other service companies, and while ISO 9001, ISO 27001 and other popular standards can be important to LSPs, specific ISO Standards for Translation have also been developed to meet the need for high-quality in the industry.
ISO 9001 for Language Service Providers
Using ISO 9001 as the basis for your management system gives you a structured framework on which to build other standards.
While ISO 9001 is not a mandatory requirement for LSPs, many find it a good first step in quality management or they achieve ISO 9001 Certification to meet a client requirement.
ISO 27001 for Language Service Providers
With the nature of the translation industry moving more towards technology, cloud systems and a globally distributed workforce, ISO 27001 for information security management is becoming more relevant for LSPs.
The standard can be applied to all types of organization as it takes a risk based approach.
ISO 14001 for Language Service Providers
Many Language Service Providers have a minimum environmental impact, however ISO 14001 for environmental management can still be useful in managing the energy and travel aspects of your organization.
ISO 17100 Requirements for Translation Services
ISO 17100 has been developed specifically for translation services to ensure the quality of translation outputs.
The standard defines competency requirements for translators, revisers, reviewers and project managers, as well as processes during pre-production, production and post-production.
ISO 17100 is a recognized standard in the translation industry with more and more clients requesting their projects meet the standard.
ISO 18587 Post-Editing of Machine Translation Output
With the use of machine translation tools set to increase, ISO 18587 has been created to meet the specific post-editing requirements of Machine Translation (MT) to ensure the quality of the output content.
As ISO 17100 above, ISO 18587 also defines competency requirements for those performing roles in the translation process, including having knowledge of translation tools and common errors that may occur in the output.
There are also detailed requirements covering full post-editing of machine translated content.
ISO 18841 Interpreting Services
ISO 18841 is an international standard providing the basic requirements for interpreting services, with additional recommendations for best practices.
The standard includes the definition of basic interpreting principles, basic conditions governing interpreting assignments and the competencies & qualifications of interpreters, as well as three informative annexes.
ISO 20228 Legal Interpreting Services
ISO 20228 is the international standard defining the requirements for Legal Interpreting Services.
The ISO 20228 standard documents the basic principles of legal interpreting, and the competencies & qualification requirements for interpreters. In addition, there are four annexes providing best practices.
ISO Certification for Language Services Providers
While popular standards such as ISO 9001, ISO 14001 & ISO 27001 have an accredited certification scheme, ISO 17100 and ISO 18587 currently do not.
So when choosing a certification body for these standards, it’s important to consider the industry expertise of the auditor and the reputation of the organization issuing the Certificate.
The Association of Translation Companies (ATC) has developed a bespoke ISO Certification Service dedicated to the unique needs of Language Service Providers.
By focusing the scheme on LSPs and using auditors with specific knowledge of the industry, and the requirements of ISO 17100 and ISO 18587, the ATC ISO Certification Service can add real value to your management system.
ATC is dedicated to supporting the Language Services industry and intends to provide a cost effective ISO Certification service. Companies do not need to be a member of the ATC in order to gain ISO Certification through the service.