Translate a Specification Document into Simplified Chinese

What changes when a specification goes into Chinese

A specification is mostly figures, references and short requirements. In Simplified Chinese several conventions shift, and these are where misunderstandings with a supplier start.

• Decimal separator: Chinese uses a point. If your source comes from a decimal-comma language, "0,05 mm" must become 0.05 mm; a stray comma in a tolerance table can be read as a thousands separator.
• Full-width punctuation: running text uses ，。：；（）, while codes, formulas and part numbers keep Latin punctuation: REQ-FCT-012, M8×1.25.
• No plural: Chinese has a single form. "The sensor(s)" simply becomes 传感器. If quantity matters, state it as a figure in the source: "two sensors" gives 两个传感器.
• Dates: "01/03/2025" means different days to different readers; Chinese writes 2025年3月1日. Using 2025-03-01 in the source removes any doubt.
• No spaces between words: lines break between characters, which changes how narrow cells wrap.

Requirement verbs and the document title

The weight of a requirement rests on one verb. Chinese normative drafting separates 应 (obligation, "shall"), 宜 (recommendation, "should") and 可 (permission, "may"). If your source mixes "shall", "must" and "is required to" for the same level, or uses "will" loosely, the translation may reflect that drift. Align these verbs before uploading: a Chinese supplier reads 应 and 宜 as two distinct levels of commitment.

The title has no single equivalent either. A functional or requirements specification is usually 需求规格说明书 or 功能需求规格书; a technical specification is 技术规格书. Internal acronyms ("SRS", "PRD", "CCTP") mean little in China: spell them out once in the source.

Cited standards (ISO 9001, IEC 60529, IP67) stay as they are. Manuce translates your text; it does not swap a European or international standard for a supposedly equivalent Chinese GB standard, which is an engineering decision.

What Manuce delivers, and what it does not

The document goes to Dédale, Manuce's technical specialist engine. Accepted formats: Word, PDF, PowerPoint, Excel, plain text, Markdown, HTML, RTF and CSV. The file comes back in its original format, layout included: requirement numbering, tables, headers and footers stay where they were. A specification of around 6,000 words (about 20 pages) counts as a standard document, delivered within minutes and kept in your client area.

Chinese uses two to three times fewer characters, but each one is wider, so the space taken barely changes and tables keep roughly their footprint.

What Manuce does not do:

• it cannot read a scanned PDF (an image with no selectable text);
• it does not produce sworn or certified translations: if an authority or a tender requires one, you will need an accredited translator;
• it does not check the technical consistency of your requirements;
• Simplified Chinese is not Traditional Chinese: for a supplier in Taiwan or Hong Kong, choose Traditional Chinese, handled as a separate language.

Preparing the file

1. Start from the source: a Word or Excel file translates more cleanly than an exported PDF, and a text-based PDF is far better than a scan.
2. Write quantities as figures and units as symbols (mm, N·m, °C) so they pass through unambiguously.
3. Align requirement verbs and give each requirement an ID (EX-045) the supplier can quote back in their response.
4. Accept or reject tracked changes so only one version of the text remains.
5. Mind the font: Latin fonts such as Calibri or Arial have no Chinese characters, so the software substitutes another on opening. If the result looks wrong, apply a font that covers Chinese, such as Microsoft YaHei, SimSun or Noto Sans CJK.

Checking the translation

For the free sample, pick a representative paragraph: a requirement with a tolerance, a unit and a cross-reference. You will see straight away how "± 0.1 mm" and "see section 4.2" are handled; the latter normally becomes 见第4.2节.

On delivery, check first:

• the numeric values in tables, one by one for critical tolerances;
• requirement IDs, part numbers and brand names, which must match the source exactly;
• consistent use of 应 and 宜 from one section to the next;
• narrow cells and page breaks, since line wrapping changes;
• Latin punctuation inside formulas and codes.

If a technical term must stay in English or in your source language, check it in the sample, then in the delivered file. Finally, having a Chinese-reading colleague review the document, or asking the supplier to restate two or three key requirements, remains the surest way to confirm they have understood what you expect.

In practice

1. Export your specification as Word, Excel or text-based PDF, with requirement verbs aligned.
2. Upload it, select Simplified Chinese and review the quote based on the exact word count.
3. Read the free sample on a paragraph with a tolerance and a cross-reference.
4. Pay, then download the translated file in its original format.
5. Check figures, IDs and font before sending it to your supplier.