When Frontier Medical Group needed the Instructions for Use (IFU) and User Manual for one of its medical device products to be translated into 19 languages to a challenging deadline, we organised a rolling delivery programme. This allowed its design team to begin formatting completed languages while translation continued on the remaining files.
At a glance
- Two medical device documents
- 19 languages
- 38 translated files
- Translation and independent Revision
- Translations supplied on a rolling basis
- Full delivery completed within the agreed deadline
About Frontier Medical Group
Frontier Medical Group develops pressure-area care products used in healthcare settings around the world. Its product range includes Repose®, the Toto® Lateral Turning System and Dermisplus® Prevent.
Business Language Services has supported Frontier with multilingual product documentation across several projects. That existing relationship meant we were already familiar with its products, terminology and preferred way of working when an urgent new requirement arose.
The challenge
Frontier needed the Instructions for Use (IFU) and User Manual for one of its medical device products to be translated into 19 languages as part of a significant international project. This involved producing 38 translated files to a challenging deadline. The project schedule also needed to allow time for Frontier to incorporate the translations into the multilingual artwork and complete its internal checks. Delivering all 19 language versions together at the end would have reduced the time available for formatting, so the translation and design work needed to progress in parallel.
How we approached it
Work began as soon as the project was confirmed. A dedicated Senior Project Manager coordinated the translators and revisers, managed queries and planned the deliveries around Frontier’s design schedule. Because we had translated related product materials for Frontier before, we could draw on previously approved content to maintain consistency. Repeated text was identified and reused where appropriate, avoiding unnecessary translation work and cost. To support progress and keep the project on schedule, we supplied the translations on a rolling basis. This allowed Frontier’s designer to begin formatting completed languages while Translation and Revision continued on the remaining files.
Each translation was supplied in a bilingual table, with the English source text alongside the translated content. This made it easier for the designer to find, check and transfer the correct text into the artwork. During the project, Frontier confirmed that the format was “working perfectly”. Regular progress updates showed which languages had been completed, which were still underway and when the next batch would arrive. Signed verification certificates were also supplied with the finished translations.
The outcome
All 38 translated files were delivered within the agreed timeframe. The rolling delivery schedule allowed Frontier’s designer to start work sooner than would have been possible with a single final delivery. The bilingual layout also reduced the practical work involved in handling 19 language versions under a tight deadline. Every translation followed the agreed quality process, with Translation by one professional linguist followed by independent Revision by a second.
Chris Dainton, Sustaining Engineering Manager at Frontier, commented:
“Thanks once again for turning this around so quickly. Please express our thanks to the translators and the rest of the team too.”
The project succeeded because the translation process was built around Frontier’s wider production requirements. Familiarity with its documentation helped us move quickly, and completed files reached the designer as soon as they were ready.
Need multilingual documentation on a tight deadline?
We help medical and technical organisations translate product documentation accurately, consistently and in formats that work for their internal design and approval processes.
Contact Business Language Services to discuss your next multilingual project.
