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Most translation services in Shanghai and elsewhere in China have followed the global trend in translation technique and use translation automation technology to a greater or lesser extent but is this a smart choice? Is a reliance on translation automation downgrading translation quality?

Automation is nothing new. Virtually every human activity in the twenty-first century makes use of some kind of automation and little of this is controversial. When it comes to translation automation the aim is to make use of any technology that becomes available that can speed up translation, achieve more effective consistency and help to process greater volumes of work without reducing the final product.

There is no single translation automation technology. It consists of a number of different tools available to any company that provides document translation services. No serious NAATI translator would contemplate using translation automation to replace human translation entirely, but it can be very useful in dealing with repetitive and monotonous content. This sort of automation cuts down translation times considerably and saves the client money.

Glossaries and style guides have become an accepted and very useful tool for companies that have a lot of translation work to be done and build up a strong working relationship between themselves and their translation service provider. These automated tools help to store a memory of text that has already been translated many times before and helps to maintain consistent terminology as well as speed up translation times.

In addition to the sort of automation technology that is specifically related to translation, there is also a lot of routine and mundane work that the average translator does which can be left to automation. This includes things like receiving emails, communicating with clients and ensuring documents for translation are received online.

So in response to the original question whether translation automation is a smart choice the answer is that wherever the technology helps to improve the translator’s work output, improve consistency and reduce the workload it is definitely a smart choice.