Discover Benelux |  Mini Theme |  Specialist Translators

Translating precision TEXT: BETTINA GUIRKINGER  |  PHOTOS: SFX TRANSLATED

SFX Translated is a small but very ambitious company born in 2009 in Liège, Belgium after its founder FrançoisXavier Pâque jumped into the opening market opportunities at the time. Today, with a young and dynamic team, the company offers a wide range of services, from translations in over a hundred languages to proofreading, subtitling and sworn translations for legal texts. The strength of the business lies in its core value at the heart of every translation: precision. “We value precision from the words we translate to where we put our commas. A  significant  number  of  our  clients  come from law firms where an inaccurate translation can have enormous consequences,” says Pâque. In order to achieve a delivery of high quality, the company relies on the services of freelancers  hired  from  all  over  the  world. “We are extremely strict about the people we select to work with us. The language they translate must be their mother tongue or they must have the highest level of expertise  in  it.”  It  is  only  after  a  rigorous

process that a selected few can rise to the standard of SFX. “Not only do they have to be  experts  in  their  language,  they  also need  to  possess  a  diploma  in  the  area where they are translating. For example, if we need a text in microbiology to be translated, we will look for someone qualified in biology,  medicine  or  another  closely  related  area  where  they  would  be  able  to understand the technical wording. This allows us to massively reduce the margin for error.”

Available  on  a  24/7  basis,  the  company aims  to  expand  and  open  new  offices  in Brussels and Luxembourg to increase its client  pool  and  keep  offering  their  best services, with the highest precision.  www.sfx.be

More than anything, what sets the Belgian company apart is the focus on the people they work with so that every translation is customised. Pâque emphasizes that “we take the time to sit down with the client and establish a relationship, which will allow us to best meet their needs. We start from the principle that what they ask can be done.” And it is only after a meticulous recruitment process that they decide which translator is most apt for the job. “We receive a wide range of requests, and although the most recurrent ones have been in the legal industry, we also get asked for subtitling or interpretation which we are always happy to take care of.”

Issue 12 |  December 2014 |  73