Project text
Export, translate, and write back TIA Portal multilingual project text; block comments, variable comments, block titles, and network titles handled consistently.
Capability 03 · Project Text Localization
The machine is exporting, but the screens still speak Chinese
The machine is exporting, but the screens still speak Chinese
Localization isn't translating words — it's re-laying-out the interface
The most common rework on export equipment isn't mechanical — it's text: alarms written in pinyin abbreviations, Russian words overflowing button frames, German compound words squeezing one line into three, Arabic running right-to-left. Localization builds a whole maintainable text system — terminology first, then translation, then screen-by-screen verification.
¥6+/entry (≈US$0.8+)≥500 entries; incl. terminology database & checks
6 languagesChinese · English · Russian · Spanish · Arabic · Hindi
Terminology firstLock 100–200 core terms before touching the text
Screen-by-screen reviewNot just the text table — screenshot acceptance after write-back
Why ordinary translation can't do this: TIA project text is structured data, mixing variable comments, alarm messages, screen control properties, help text, and units. A typical translator receiving the exported Excel doesn't know which column will appear on a 3-cm-wide button, or whether "Antrieb nicht bereit" should be "drive not ready" or "VFD not ready" in Chinese — that depends on what's actually installed on the machine. The translator has to be able to read electrical drawings, and that single requirement filters out most vendors.
Delivery scope
Alarm messages
Rewritten in a three-part form — category, cause, suggested action — with unified numbering rules and severity wording.
HMI screen text
Interface text for buttons, labels, trends, recipes, and login roles; layout rearranged per target language to avoid overflow and truncation.
Documents & labels
Operator manuals, maintenance manuals, nameplates and warning labels, and accompanying documents; terminology kept consistent with the screens.
Terminology database
Six-language glossary (Chinese / English / Russian / Spanish / Arabic / Hindi) with forbidden terms and synonym-merge rules; future text is translated against it.
Consistency checks
Scripted comparison against the terminology database, checking for missing or duplicated translations, and verifying units and number formats (decimal comma / thousands separator).
The six-step process
- Text inventory. Export all project text and count by type: how many alarms, how many screen strings, how many comments. The quote is based on these numbers, not on "roughly."
- Terminology sign-off. Extract 100–200 high-frequency core terms (equipment names, action names, state names, alarm roots) and confirm them one by one with your process lead. This step takes two days and saves two weeks of rework later.
- Translate & rewrite. Alarm messages are not literal translations — they're rewritten into the target language's operator phrasing as "what happened / why / what to do," with length kept within what the screen can display.
- Write-back & layout. Write back into the project and check each screen: whether button text overflows, labels wrap, trend legends get squeezed, or RTL languages mirror correctly.
- Screenshot acceptance. Produce target-language screenshots of each screen, side by side with the original in a comparison table, finalized after your confirmation.
- Delivery & maintenance rules. Deliver the terminology database, the text comparison table, and a one-page rule on "how to translate future additions"; subsequent increments are priced per entry.
Pricing (excl. tax)
Text volume is based on the exported entry count; a string reused across multiple screens is counted once.
| Tier | Scope | Reference price |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | 500–1,000 entries, single language | ¥6+/entry (≈US$0.8+) |
| Standard | 1,000–3,000 entries, single language, incl. screen review | ¥5+/entry (≈US$0.7+) |
| Bulk | >3,000 entries, single language | ¥4+/entry (≈US$0.6+) |
| Terminology database (initial build) | 100–200 core terms, six languages | ¥4,000 one-time (≈US$600) |
| Incremental maintenance | Future additions, settled in batches | ¥8+/entry (≈US$1.1+) |
The real cost of length adaptation: the same sentence — 8 characters in Chinese — typically needs 1.3× the characters in Russian and up to 1.6× for German compound words. A button sized for Chinese will almost certainly overflow when switched to another language. That's why layout adjustment is built into our quote, rather than handing you an Excel file and leaving you to fix the screens yourself.
Frequently asked questions
Can you translate only the alarm messages?
Yes. Alarm messages are the easiest piece to do standalone and the quickest to show results: rewritten as "symptom / cause / action" with numbering rules added, so operators can understand them on the spot.
We use Mitsubishi / Omron, not Siemens.
Same process applies. The import/export formats differ for GX Works, Sysmac Studio, and CX-One, but the workflow is identical: inventory, define terminology, translate, write back, screenshot review.
Is the translation machine-generated or human?
The terminology database and first drafts are accelerated with tools, but the final copy is reviewed by a human, entry by entry. In industrial text, one wrong preposition can cause a misoperation, so we don't deliver machine-only output here.