maquila

English translation: in-bond manufacture / contract manufacture

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
Spanish term or phrase:maquila
English translation:in-bond manufacture / contract manufacture
Entered by: Joshua Parker

01:17 Dec 14, 2017
Spanish to English translations [PRO]
Bus/Financial - Insurance
Spanish term or phrase: maquila
"Esta póliza cubre embarques de compras, ventas, entre filiales, de maquila y devoluciones de los bienes objetos de este Seguro."

The sentence is exactly as written above. My problem is understanding the word "maquila" - I understand the concept of maquila/maquiladora (which doesn't really have a translation), but I'm not sure what exactly it's doing in that sentence.
Joshua Parker
Mexico
Local time: 02:15
in-bond manufacture / contract manufacture
Explanation:
There is indeed a translation; I answered more or less the same question the other day here:
https://www.proz.com/kudoz/spanish_to_english/medical_pharma...

"Maquila" can either refer to the plant/factory or to the process itself.
Again, the idea is that goods are exported, usually from the US or Canada to Mexico under NAFTA, "in bond", meaning that no customs duties or taxes are paid as long as they are not being consumed in Mexico, and then, once manufactured, are sent back to the country of origin.
You can't really use "assembled" because the goods may not always be of the kind you can assemble. For example, pharmaceuticals can be manufactured this way, using the raw materials, but you wouldn't call it "assembly".
It's easy to see why it appears in this sentence because it's referring to goods in transit.

If you don't like "in-bond manufacture", which is the more precise term, you can use "offshore manufacture" or "contract manufacture" instead, although the people or companies likely to use this kind of insurance policy will surely understand the term. If they don't, this policy provision probably doesn't apply to them, so either way, I don't think it would hurt to use it.

Here's another previous entry by Henry Hinds, correctly chosen in my opinion. I think "maquila" would be okay for informal usage, i.e., spoken language in the border region, but I'm not sure it would elsewhere, so I think it's essential to translate it.
https://www.proz.com/kudoz/spanish_to_english/business_comme...


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Note added at 15 hrs (2017-12-14 16:30:16 GMT)
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For me, the difficult part of your text is the ambiguity in "compras, ventas, entre filiales, de maquila y devoluciones", but your translation might look something like this:

"This policy covers shipments of purchases and sales, between affiliates, for in-bond manufacturing and returns of the goods insured hereunder"
Selected response from:

Robert Carter
Mexico
Local time: 03:15
Grading comment
Thanks Robert. For the record, I went with "This policy covers shipments of purchases and sales made, between subsidiaries, for in-bond manufacturing and returns of goods covered by this insurance." ¡Feliz Navidad!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +1assembly
David Hollywood
5leave it in Spanish
philgoddard
4in-bond manufacture / contract manufacture
Robert Carter


  

Answers


1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
assembly


Explanation:
In Mexico, a maquiladora (Spanish pronunciation: [makilaˈðoɾa]) or maquila (IPA: [maˈkila])[1] is a manufacturing operation, where factories import certain material and equipment on a duty-free and tariff-free basis for assembly, processing, or manufacturing and then export the assembled, processed and/or manufactured products, sometimes back to the raw materials' country of origin.

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Note added at 1 hr (2017-12-14 03:17:36 GMT)
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this is definitely the concept in English

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Note added at 2 hrs (2017-12-14 03:18:57 GMT)
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it does have a translation and this is it

David Hollywood
Local time: 06:15
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 121

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  neilmac: "Assembly facility/plant/operation..."
5 hrs
  -> thanks Neil

neutral  philgoddard: Your explanation is useful, but "maquila" is not simply "assembly".
12 hrs
  -> agree and maybe with "operation"
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14 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
leave it in Spanish


Explanation:
As you say, it's a specifically Mexican concept with no direct translation. You should leave it in Spanish, followed by an explanation in brackets, such as "importing and assembling duty-free components for export".

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Note added at 14 hrs (2017-12-14 15:55:42 GMT)
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You and I should have checked the glossary. This has been asked many times before. One good paraphrase suggested by a couple of people is "in-bond assembly", but I still think you should leave it in Spanish, because most people won't immediately understand what "in-bond" means. My more detailed explanation is better, in my opinion.

philgoddard
United States
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 132
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14 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
in-bond manufacture / contract manufacture


Explanation:
There is indeed a translation; I answered more or less the same question the other day here:
https://www.proz.com/kudoz/spanish_to_english/medical_pharma...

"Maquila" can either refer to the plant/factory or to the process itself.
Again, the idea is that goods are exported, usually from the US or Canada to Mexico under NAFTA, "in bond", meaning that no customs duties or taxes are paid as long as they are not being consumed in Mexico, and then, once manufactured, are sent back to the country of origin.
You can't really use "assembled" because the goods may not always be of the kind you can assemble. For example, pharmaceuticals can be manufactured this way, using the raw materials, but you wouldn't call it "assembly".
It's easy to see why it appears in this sentence because it's referring to goods in transit.

If you don't like "in-bond manufacture", which is the more precise term, you can use "offshore manufacture" or "contract manufacture" instead, although the people or companies likely to use this kind of insurance policy will surely understand the term. If they don't, this policy provision probably doesn't apply to them, so either way, I don't think it would hurt to use it.

Here's another previous entry by Henry Hinds, correctly chosen in my opinion. I think "maquila" would be okay for informal usage, i.e., spoken language in the border region, but I'm not sure it would elsewhere, so I think it's essential to translate it.
https://www.proz.com/kudoz/spanish_to_english/business_comme...


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 15 hrs (2017-12-14 16:30:16 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

For me, the difficult part of your text is the ambiguity in "compras, ventas, entre filiales, de maquila y devoluciones", but your translation might look something like this:

"This policy covers shipments of purchases and sales, between affiliates, for in-bond manufacturing and returns of the goods insured hereunder"

Robert Carter
Mexico
Local time: 03:15
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 36
Grading comment
Thanks Robert. For the record, I went with "This policy covers shipments of purchases and sales made, between subsidiaries, for in-bond manufacturing and returns of goods covered by this insurance." ¡Feliz Navidad!
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you, I really appreciate it. I was just about to say I was still finding it difficult to fit it into the text; as you say, the problem here is definitely the ambiguity in the source. But yes, I think "for (in-bond manufacturing)" is the best way to go. Thank you, again.


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  philgoddard: As I mentioned, readers won't know what "in-bond" means. It needs a proper explanation.
3 hrs
  -> Thanks, Phil. Yes, and as I mentioned, they will if that's their business. The point is, why leave it in Spanish?
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