Layout Adaptation & DTP Print ready in your original layout, in every language.
Your translation is done, but the layout is where the real work begins: German runs longer than English, Arabic reads right to left, a font is missing a single accent. If you can't read the language, you won't spot it. With layout adaptation, native-speaker DTP specialists place your translation directly into the original file, InDesign for example, and hand it back to you print ready. Request a free quote.
4x ISO certifiedTranslation partner for companies with high standards
- What it is: Placing your translation into the layout file (desktop publishing, DTP), so it looks like the original and is ready to print.
- Who it's for: Anyone with designed, multilingual documents, from marketing to technical documentation to packaging.
- What we adapt: Text length, typefaces and fonts, reading and writing direction, special characters, images containing text, and your corporate design.
- The difference: Specialist translation delivers the text. Layout adaptation makes sure it sits in the design and is ready to print.
The layout is where the work really starts
Why a finished translation can still break the design
Languages need different amounts of space. 100 words of English can easily become 30% more in German, Romance languages expand by a similar margin, while Chinese and Japanese often come out shorter. The moment translated text flows back from the translation tool into the layout, suddenly nothing fits: text overflows, gaps appear, line breaks land in the wrong place, an accent goes missing. Layout adaptation is one of tolingo's text services, where we work with your finished material without changing the language.
What goes wrong when text is dropped in
The designer doesn't speak the language, and the software doesn't help.
- Text overflows the box or gets cut off
- Special characters and accents go missing
- Wrong word breaks, missing paragraphs
- Right-to-left still reads left-to-right
What the adaptation gets right
Native-speaker DTP specialists set the text exactly as it will be printed.
- Text sits in the box, cleanly broken
- Complete characters, in the right font
- Reading and writing direction set correctly
- Your corporate design stays true to the original
What native-speaker DTP specialists watch for
Six places where language and design meet
Layout adaptation is more than copying text into a box. It brings the translation into the design so it reads like the original:
Expansion and contraction come with every language. We adjust boxes, spacing and, where needed, font size, so the longer or shorter text sits cleanly.
Not every font knows every character. We check that all the glyphs are there and choose the right typeface for each writing system.
Arabic and Hebrew run right to left, which mirrors the whole layout. Chinese and Japanese need different line spacing. We set all of this correctly.
Accents, non-breaking spaces in French, language-specific quotation marks: small details that make the difference in print.
Captions, infographics and text embedded in images are carried over too, so the graphics are right in the target language as well.
Colours, spacing and style stay on-brand across every language version. Your audience sees you the way you want to be seen, in every language.
From your original file to a print-ready language version
Three steps, no copies in between
Your original file
Your open layout file, InDesign or IDML for example, PDF or Word, with the target languages. You tell us whether you'd like us to handle the translation too.
Native speakers, in the original file
Native-speaker DTP specialists place the translation directly in the file and adjust length, typeface, direction and spacing. Multiple languages run in parallel.
Print-ready file
Your file in the original layout, ready to use. On request as a print-ready PDF (PDF/X, for example) or as a packaged InDesign file with fonts and links.
Ready for print or web In the design of the original, in every language. On request, a galley proof correction checks the finished proof once more before it goes to print.
What we work in, and where it pays off
Software, file formats and typical materials
We work on your file in the software it came from, from Microsoft Word to complex layout programmes. Can't find your format in the list? We can very likely still handle it.
Marketing: Brochures, flyers, magazines, catalogues.
Technology & medicine: Manuals, instruction manuals, package inserts, data sheets.
Digital: Presentations and web PDFs for online publication.
Where layout adaptation fits into your project
What makes sense before, alongside and after
Layout adaptation is usually the last step in a translation project. Translation comes before it, and a final check often comes after. These services work together:
The text that goes into the layout. A clean translation to ISO 17100 is the foundation we then set into the design.
The final check of the finished proof before print. We set the layout, then galley proof correction checks it word for word.
The language check of the text before it goes into the layout. Useful when the content should go through a style and accuracy check before typesetting.
The overview of all text services, from editing and proofreading through post-editing and copywriting to galley proof correction.
Frequently asked questions about layout adaptation
DTP, software, materials, delivery, related services
What is layout adaptation?
With layout adaptation, we set your translation into the layout file so it looks like the original and is ready to print. That's desktop publishing (DTP), applied to translated documents. Our specialists place the text precisely, adjust length, typeface and spacing, and account for the particularities of each writing system.
What's the difference between layout adaptation and DTP?
Desktop publishing (DTP) is the method: producing a print-ready or publication-ready file in a design programme. Layout adaptation is that method applied to your translation: we match the translated file to the layout of the original. In practice, at tolingo the two terms mean the same thing.
Why does my translation need layout adaptation?
Because language changes the way text sits on the page. German and French texts run longer than English, Chinese comes out shorter, and Arabic and Hebrew read right to left. Then there are special characters that go missing in the wrong font. Without adaptation, text overflows, leaves gaps or breaks in the wrong place. Layout adaptation catches this before it shows up in print.
Do you translate too, or only adapt the layout?
Both are possible. You can give us the specialist translation and the layout adaptation together, and you'll get the finished file under one roof. Or you bring your own translation, and we only handle setting it into the layout. Layout adaptation also combines well with machine translation, editing and proofreading, and glossary creation.
Which software and file formats do you support?
Among others, we work with Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop and Acrobat, as well as FrameMaker, QuarkXPress, CorelDraw, Keynote, PowerPoint and Word. We always work on your file in the software it came from. If your format isn't on the list, get in touch. We can very likely still handle it.
What do I get back at the end?
Your file in the original layout, professionally set in the target language and ready to use. On request as a print-ready PDF (in the PDF/X standard, for example), as a packaged InDesign file with fonts and links, or as a web-optimised PDF for online publication.
How is layout adaptation different from galley proof correction?
With layout adaptation, we set the text into the design and adjust it. Galley proof correction is purely a check of the already-typeset proof before print. We build the layout, then galley proof correction checks it. The two steps often follow one another.
What does layout adaptation cost?
The price depends on the number of pages, the number of target languages, the complexity of the layout and the file format. That's why we put together a project-based quote. Send us the original file and your target languages, and we'll confirm scope, format and turnaround.
Text services
Looking for the right service for your text?
Layout adaptation, galley proof correction, editing & proofreading and post-editing sit side by side. The overview shows which service fits which task.
The translation is set, the design stays untouched.
Send us your original file and your target languages. We'll set your translation into the layout and hand it back to you print ready, in the design of the original.
Native-speaker DTP specialists · InDesign & more · print ready · 220+ languages