⚡The Challenge: Tight Deadline and Complex Content
In the translation industry, competition among vendors is fierce. For some clients, price cuts aren’t the main concern—it’s about meeting a pressing deadline.
Our client, a medical device OEM manufacturer, approached us with an urgent task. They had received updated supplier agreements from a long-term customer, which included:
- Generic terms
- Non-disclosure terms
- Inventory rules
- Payment terms
- Penalties for breaches
- Other minor, but necessary changes
⚡The total document consisted of 32 pages and over 12,000 words. The client needed to discuss these changes with their customer via a teleconference in just 24 hours.⚡
The Problem: How to Translate 12,000 Words in 24 Hours?
The documents were filled with complex legal terms, and a full translation would typically take a professional legal translator at least four working days. The short time frame made it impossible to deliver a full translation without sacrificing quality.
The Dilemma: Agencies Can’t Meet the Deadline Without Rushing
Some translation agencies would split the work among several translators to meet the deadline, but this approach often leads to inconsistent translations without proper proofreading. And, as expected, agencies would charge rush fees—often three times the usual rate.
However, our client didn’t have the budget to pay these rush fees, and 24 hours was simply too short to translate everything.
The Solution: Gist Translation to Cut Down Scope
We understood the urgency and the client’s constraints, so we suggested an alternative approach: gist translation.
Rather than translating the entire document, we would:
- Focus only on the most critical sections that the client needed to review.
- Highlight any questionable terms: harsh terms, terms prone to future disputes, or those that could result in potential losses.
- Translate only the important pieces of information that needed immediate attention.
This approach allowed us to reduce the workload while ensuring the key details were accurately translated.
The Result: Fast Turnaround and a Happy Client
Our legal translator, a professional with over 13 years of experience at a law firm in Shanghai, took just 4 hours to complete the work. She identified all the critical terms, provided side notes, and delivered a professional translation with a focus on the most important issues.
The client was delighted with the fast turnaround and the quality of the work. The side notes and suggestions helped them effectively negotiate during their teleconference.
They commented, “Well worth it!”
Need Similar Assistance?
Do you have a similar project with urgent translation needs? Whether it’s in the medical device, legal, or intellectual property field, we can help with Chinese legal documents or other agreements that require quick review and translation.
Let us know how we can assist you!
