Products and services can only be marketed successfully if they have been adapted to the local and cultural conditions of the target country, that is, if they have been localised. Although English is recognised today as the international language of business, many companies make a serious mistake in assuming that they can simply sell an English version of their product in foreign markets. It is important to remember that less than a quarter of the world's population is truly fluent in this language and differences in levels of ability should not be underestimated.

Localisation is an extremely work-intensive process, and SAM Engineering is constantly looking for new ways to use information technology to reduce cost and time.

Although the localisation process has changed dramatically over the last 15 years, the assertion that "localisation is more than just translation" is truer than ever. This is particularly evident in the management of software localisation projects in which translation must be seen as an integral component of the localisation project.

"Pure translation" is only one, albeit important, part of a larger and more complex process. This includes content, cultural aspects and conventions, such as adaptation to country-specific norms, symbols, graphics, colours, units of measurement, units of size, abbreviations, product labels, key combinations, names etc., as well as technical aspects, such as adapting the software to specific platforms. When localising products, adjustments must be made to content, visual, technical and functional aspects, in order to give the user a country-specific impression. The product will then be more readily accepted and sales figures will improve.

In its localisation projects, SAM Engineering makes extensive use of Software Localisation and Translation Memory tools to meet the challenges of minimising time and cost and maximising quality to the benefit of its customers. SAM Engineering's localization engineers are always prepared to work with other tools that might be required by the customer's application or used in their engineering and development cycles.