about us

Company Profile

Established in 1994, we began with general and technical translations for Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish and other popular languages. We quickly added typesetting and multilingual desktop publishing services. In 2000, we expanded to add localization services for software engineering, web pages, Web-based applications and multimedia.

Precision Language Graphics, Inc. is a corporate member of the American Translators Association. It is a women- and minority-owned business certified by the City of Chicago, Cook County and the State of Illinois.

Company Timeline

• 1994 PLG was established in Schaumburg, Illinois
• 1995 PLG opened a China subsidiary -Omni Graphics Technology, Beijing, China
• 1996 Omni Graphics Technology (Beijing) became the approved supplier of Infrastructure Group, Motorola (China) for its translation services
• 1997 PLG opened a California branch -Omni Graphics Technology (US).
• 1998 PLG and Unidocsys jointly developed Elegance Chinese, Japanese and Korean True Type and Postscript fonts
• 2001 Omni Graphics Technology (Beijing) became the approved supplier of Personal Communication Sector, Motorola (China), for its translation and localized software testing services
• 2002 Omni Graphics, U.S. merged with PLG
• 2004 PLG introduced XML based translation memory technology in its multi-language document processing
• 2005 PLG developed novel interface program between various DTP software applications and TM software
• 2007 Moved to a larger location in the heart of Schaumburg's corporate district as the company began to see growth.
• 2008 PLG was selected by Walmart as an approved translation vendor and started providing prod cut label translation services to its packaging agencies and suppliers.
• 2009 PLG was certified by Michael's Craft Stores as preferred translation vendor. PLG translates the stores' product labels into Canadian French for a number of its stores in Canada.
• 2011 Expanded its in-house French and Spanish support by hiring additional French and Spanish-speaking personnel
• 2012 Completed 3 month project of redesigning the company website.

Our Company Mission

The mission of Precision Language & Graphics, Inc. is to provide accessibility to global communication through high quality and cost-effective language services, with the intent of fueling its clients’ profits and global investments. Chicago-based with a global vision, PLG strives to be a leader in offering all-encompassing language solutions for the global marketplace.

Key People of PLG

Eric Zhang, Ph. D

Managing Director, Co-Founder, English-Chinese Translator

Eric has previously worked as an engineer, project manager and business manager at several Fortune 500 companies, including neighboring Motorola. Eric holds a B.S. from Lanzhou Jiaotong University, M.S. from Tsinghua University, and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Northwestern University. With over 20 years of general and technical translation and interpretation experience, Eric has implemented a number of technological advances at PLG, including translation memory technology, a translator resources database and the company’s sales and quotation system. His background in engineering and business management ensures the highest quality in all of our technical Chinese translations. Eric is also our resident math whiz, so if you ever need help on solving an impossible math problem, you know who to reach.

To learn more about Eric's experience in Chinese interpretation services, go to:
http://plg-online.com/chinese_interpretation_services.html

Philippe Willems, Ph.D.

Translation Manager, English-French Translator

Born in Paris and raised in the French Riviera, Philippe earned a Ph.D. in French studies from the University of Colorado at Boulder. He views translation as a discipline combining one’s knowledge of the world and ability to solve theoretical problems—with a measure of aesthetic sensibility. He is a former Associate Professor of French from Northern Illinois University, where he taught translation and a vast array of language/culture courses for 11 years. He brought his love for technology into the classroom by introducing e-learning, dubbing, subtitling, online publishing, and multimedia localization to his students. Today Dr. Philippe is a key member of our team, as he provides well-honed research skills, extensive knowledge of world cultures and history, and a high level of linguistics expertise to our French markets in America and Europe. His nuanced knowledge of translation and global perspective owe much to the fact that he has been colleague, teacher, friend, and neighbor to people from over 70 countries. He shares his time between the US, his native France, and Japan, and is part of a trilingual household.

To learn more about Philippe's experience in French interpretation services, go to:
http://www.plg-online.com/french_translation_serv.html

Justin Suevel

Business Manager

Justin is a graduate from the University of Illinois, with a Bachelor’s degree in German and Commercial Studies as well as a Certificate in Translation. He spent his junior year studying abroad in Vienna, Austria where he greatly improved his language skills as well as his knowledge of many European cultures. Justin contributes many useful skills and attributes to the PLG team including, translation theory and practice, knowledge of European cultures and languages, attention to detail, client relations, sales, a great sense of humor, and his natural good looks. Some of his hobbies include reading, soccer, football, video games, hiking, and long walks on the beach.

To learn more about Justin's experience in German interpretation services, go to:
http://www.plg-online.com/german_translation_serv.html

Diego Lévano

Account Manager, English-Spanish Translator

Diego was born in Lima, Perú, and has a Bachelor’s Degree in Information Technology Engineering. He is a native speaker of Spanish and fluent in English. During his time working as a Google Development Specialist he leveraged his expertise in both languages to translated manuals, reports and other files from English to Spanish. It was here that he refined his knowledge of translation, and ultimately decided to make a career within the translation industry. He has brought his cultural and language experiences to PLG to better serve our Spanish capabilities while also utilizing his extensive computer and programming knowledge to assist in our technical projects including subtitling, video and audio editing, and website localization. As part of our in-house Project Management team Diego is able to provide instant support to our clients in Spanish, and makes an excellent addition to our team in terms of both language and technical backgrounds. Some of his hobbies include playing guitar and drums, soccer, swimming, traveling and videogames.

To learn more about Diego's experience in Spanish interpretation services, go to:
http://www.plg-online.com/spanish_translation_serv.html

Helen Shi

Senior DTP Specialist, founder

Helen is the founder of PLG, which she began in 1994. She attended university in China, where she received a BS in Electrical Engineering. Helen is one of our DTP specialists and key graphic designers and in her nearly 20 years at PLG, has become proficient in just about all desktop publishing software applications, including Adobe Illustrator, InDesign, QuarkXPress and other widely used design packages. She has been a crucial figure in developing PLG’s in-house multilingual typesetting capabilities. In her free time, Helen loves to bake and will often bring cookies to the office for everyone to enjoy.

Joanna Wong

Customer Service and Quality Assurance

Joanna has been with PLG since 1997 and is a native speaker of Mandarin Chinese and Cantonese. She has brought her cultural and language experiences to PLG to better serve our Asian-language capabilities. As the supervisor of the Project and Translation Management team, she has been our window to a network of freelance translation professionals both abroad and the United States. She is also our Quality Assurance specialist and works closely with our translators and in-house team to avoid translation errors and omissions. In her free time, Joanna likes to garden and use her vegetables to make gourmet Asian dishes.

Our Translator Partners

Throughout PLG’s history, PLG has developed an expansive network of freelance translation professionals. Every day, our list continues to grow as our customers continue to demand translations for languages in emerging markets in Europe, South America and Asia. Our translator partners cover the world’s major continents and more than 60 languages, which is what makes PLG a global company. Often, our translators will send us photos of their life in their home countries, such as a photo of a snowy German village or a New Year’s celebration in Tokyo, Japan that makes the relationship more personal in such a professional oriented industry.

Global resources –Joint Venture in Beijing, China

In order to deal with fluctuating demand, shorten the turnaround time and find opportunities to lower costs, PLG has partnered with a translation/DTP firm in Beijing, China. This firm has 35 in-house designers and a number of experienced translators. The Beijing operation works closely with PLG’s office in Schaumburg, IL, and has become an increasingly important contributor in helping PLG to accommodate its clients’ tight schedules and high volume requests. As PLG continues to expand, our Beijing resource continues to serve as an important asset.

Clients

Our clients are our greatest asset, no matter how big or small. Whether you are a fortune 500 company or a small individual business owner, we provide the same high quality of service. Below are some of our clients for whom we have have translated in the past.