If you haven’t organized an interpreting job before, it might be a little tricky to know what you need to hire in terms of equipment. In Bogotá and the rest of Colombia, we get such a variety of jobs that sometimes we hire out different types of equipment for use in a single day. Below is a basic guide to interpreting equipment so that, depending on your event, you can identify what you need to hire.

Interpreting booth

An interpreting booth is the most commonly used equipment for events requiring interpretation. It has space for two interpreters to sit side by side and a glass window so that they can see who is speaking at the event. It is accompanied by a console, wireless microphones and however many headsets are required. The booth and other equipment are installed and monitored during the event by a technician, who is there to rapidly resolve any technical issues that might arise. The following types of events require an interpreting booth:

• Large-scale (between 10 and 1,000 attendees)
• Indoors
• Usually one location (maximum two) during the day
• Held in a relatively large meeting room, hotel or auditorium.
• Meeting, conference, workshop or other formal-type event.

Portable equipment

Portable interpreting equipment consists of a transmitter (small microphone) and headsets (wired headphones with receivers that fit in a person’s pocket or can be clipped on their waistband). Portable equipment is used for events with the following characteristics:

• Small scale (between 1 and 20 people)
• Outdoors
• Indoors in very small spaces that won’t fit a booth
• Multiple locations
• Field visits, cultural events, outdoor meetings, car trips and other informal activities

It’s also possible to use both types of equipment for a single event, depending on what is going to happen. The most important thing is to ensure that everybody is comfortable, the interpreters can do their job effectively and that communication flows between those involved in the event.

ONG Traducciones hires interpreting equipment in Bogotá and the rest of Colombia, with more information available by clicking here. We also offer interpreting for small and large events and you can find out more information about this service here.