Diction wins Norwegian translation contract worth NOK 8 million with the Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (HVL).

Going forward, Diction will be the translation agency responsible for translating, proofreading and transcribing texts for the 1,800 members of staff at the Western Norway University of Applied Sciences. The contract is worth NOK 8 million and began in the first half of 2024, running for a duration of four years.

Translating scientific texts in an international environment
The Western Norway University of Applied Sciences is active in both national and international academic environments, and so has a large number of scientific texts – from research papers and doctoral theses to dissertations and research materials – that need to be translated from Norwegian (both Bokmål and Nynorsk) into English and vice versa. In addition to Norwegian and English, Diction will also provide translation services for Spanish, French and German. Prior to the awarding of the contract, Diction and three other language-service providers were evaluated for their quality, competencies and experience – and Diction was assessed as being the most suitable language-service provider for the job.

Commenting on the tender, Diction CEO Martin Boberg says: “We are very glad that the Western Norway University of Applied Sciences trusts that Diction’s expertise will be able to benefit staff at HVL and raise the bar for their international communications to an even higher professional level. We have put together a core team of translators who are among some of our most experienced linguists when it comes to academic articles in and out of Norwegian, both Bokmål and Nynorsk, into English. We began our work with HVL in April 2024, and it is already clear to see that the university not only takes a professional approach to how they handle their texts, but they are passionate about detail at an extraordinarily high level, and that makes them an ideal match for us and our approach to translation. This great start has left us very optimistic for the remainder of our collaboration.”

A decisive step for Diction towards a greater presence on the Norwegian market
This framework agreement represents a decisive step forward for Diction on its journey to become a permanent fixture on the Norwegian language-services market. Diction has been active in Norway since 2016, and over the years it has built up a client portfolio with particular emphasis on the education and research sector. As a result of this, Diction has provided services to several Norwegian universities, including the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), the University of Oslo, the University of Bergen and Nord University.

According to Martin Boberg, the education and research sector will be a key focus area for Diction going forward. As he puts it himself: “It’s no secret that one of Diction’s focus areas has been assisting universities in the Nordic Region. This is a client group that will still have needs for language services far into the future, in contrast to other sectors. What’s more, Diction itself emerged from a university environment in its beginnings – and this has meant that, today, we not only assist educational institutions in Norway and Denmark, but in Sweden and Finland as well, and we are also in dialogue with several institutions in Iceland. For us at Diction, it is only natural to remain in the education sector as this is where our language-service business got its start in the first place.”

About the Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (HVL)
The Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (HVL) was founded on 1 January 2017 as the result of a merger between formerly independent colleges in Bergen, Sogn and Fjordane and Stord/Haugesund. The university offers professional programmes within the health and social sciences, education arts and sports, and technology, environmental and social sciences. HVL has around 17,000 students at present, in addition to 1,800 members of staff across five campuses: Haugesund, Stord, Bergen, Sogndal and Førde.

Further information:
CEO, Martin Boberg, Diction, Tel: +45 22272868, e-mail: [email protected]