Translator’s mistake in operations is not just a slipup or incorrectly translated term. Sometimes consequences may include accidents and even fatalities of people.
Vlad Belousov, member of the Union of translators of Russia, author of text-books and training courses for oil and gas translators and interpreters.
What can an error of technical translator result in? Somebody would think that customers may make a remark, laugh or just not notice it. In reality, translator’s errors in the oil and gas industry may result in an incident, accident or even human fatalities, particularly if such errors remained unnoticed.
Not long ago I watched a reel about consequences of translator’s errors in politics. I liked one quotation very much: “A translator can be compared with a complaisant waiter: it is easy not to notice him until he spills soup on your knees”.
In the beginning of 1990-s many translators were employed in the oil and gas industry, but did not know equipment, processes or terminology at all. Therefore translators were either linguists, who in the process of work had to learn processes and terminology, or petroleum engineers who had to urgently improve their broken English.
Now the situation has changed. In order to start working in an oil company as a translator, you need either have work experience, and preferably in the field, or know processes, equipment and terminology. But in any case you will be tested for knowledge of terminology. In most cases oil companies strive to find a ready product in the market and prefer not to invest money into training of employees.
Such approach of oil companies to employment of translators can be understood. Errors of inexperienced translators, particularly in the field, may cost much, both in terms of financial losses, and risks to human life. I can provide several funny and also hazardous examples from practical work in the field.
We had a translator at our drilling site who was up in years and had very poor understanding of what crew members were doing at the drilling rig floor. He always carried a very big dictionary under his arm. In case of urgent or emergency commands, for example, about well blowout or an item falling from the mast, he first of all checked unknown words in the dictionary, and only then translated them. Such situation could be funny if it was not so sad and hazardous. Indeed, if a translator cannot promptly warn people about a hazard, it can cost somebody’s life.
In the process of work at the drilling site we often received programs of works translated by incompetent translators which contained the following translation howlers:
BOP drill – it means “practical exercise for closing wellhead preventers”, but it was translated as “drilling through preventer”;
Nipple up the wellhead – it means “install the wellhead”, but it was translated as “install a nipple on the wellhead”;
Hook up the compressor to the wellhead – it means “connect (hammer up) the compressor line to the wellhead”, but it was translated as “suspend the compressor above the well” (in this case compressor means a truck-mounted unit).
And what can happen if a crew will start to follow such instructions not thinking them over? That means loss of working time, breakage of equipment, accidents and injuries.
Once I was asked to assist a new translator, that is just to be present in the process of his work and correct his mistakes if required. Then I encountered the following situations:
V-door means an inclined surface on which pipes are dropped from the drilling rig floor to the catwalk. It is called so because it looks like letter V. The translator did not know that word, but he was afraid to ask for its meaning.
Tool-pusher: “Now please explain to the driller what we are planning to do. In order to make it possible to install catwalk either in front of the rig or on the side, we need to cut the floor on the side in order to install the V-door for Driller’s convenience”.
Translator: “In order for us to have an opportunity to install catwalk either in front of the rig or on its side, we need to cut part of the floor on the side, so that we could install the door for driller’s convenience”.
Driller: “What should I need the door for? Do you want me to accidentally fall from the height of over two meters? What idiot will use that door if there are no stairs?”
Another case:
Tool-pusher: “Please tell the Driller that the crew should chain the blocks to the derrick”.
Translator: “The crew should change all blocks on the derrick”.
The driller, who not long ago had got a slap on the wrist from his manager for arguing with the tool-pusher, now was ready to perform any stupid order. He gloomily looked at the rig mast, probably trying to define in his mind, which of all swear words known to him is the best to describe the tool-pusher, and finally, apparently having found the proper word, gloomily nodded and went to perform such absurd assignment. I had to stop him and explain, that the assignment was to attach traveling block to the derrick with chain.
Causes or sources of translator’s errors in most cases are associated with the following factors.
Incompetence of the translator.Much has been already said about it. There is no point to hope for miracle and go to the field if you know nothing about the oil and gas industry, or if your knowledge was not systematic at special training courses for translators.
Unknown terminology. Hopes that you will learn everything on site, or look in the dictionary are unreal. Terminology must be learnt CONSCIOUSLY, understanding what it is and how it is called, looks and what it is used for. An attempt to determine meaning of terms by dictionary selecting a correct word from two dozens of suggested options is like a lottery.
Lack of industry dictionary.If he did not attend industry-specific training, the translator cannot choose correct meaning of the word in a dictionary. As a minimum, in such situation you need to find the term definition, and only then define its translation. In ideal case it is much better to use an illustrated bilingual glossary in order to not only read the definition, but also see how that “something” looks like. However it is applicable for translators, and in the process of interpretation, particularly in the field, there are no such tools at hand, and you can rely only on already accumulated knowledge, if you have such knowledge at all.
Translator’s IQ. Some years ago I came for employment interview to a major oil and gas company. A manager told me that they wanted to test my qualification, but as by that time I had rather big work experience in the oil and gas industry, as he said, they did not find a specialist of my competence level to test me. And therefore they decided to check my IQ. I do not know how correct it is, but taking into account translator’s work, particularly in the field, it is obvious that he must think and make decisions quickly.
All that I have told you today is also an issue of translator’s responsibility for his work and for other people, and that inevitably implies high competence and professionalism.
