I found all the STE rules to be highly beneficial for my work and certainly look forward to start applying Simplified English rules by using the ASD-STE100 specification. The two-day workshop conducted by Shumin has taught me how to use the STE rules correctly and apply them in the appropriate context. Everything has been explained very clearly.
Tina Kosman Safety Engineer, De Boer Machines
Shumin gave a good introduction to Simplified Technical English. Instead of writing long sentences that are difficult to read, I prefer the STE rule of presenting long sentences in a list that makes it much easier to understand the work that is required to be completed. The STE exercises were pretty engaging, and this is particularly so for day 2 of the rewriting workshop that gave the team a lot of insight into our documentation. Trainees also had the opportunity to replace many unapproved standard English words with STE ones that helped us better appreciate the application of STE rules in a real-world context. This is a training that I have rated 10/10 for.
Thuraya Al Mehrzi Production Engineer, NIMR Automotive
The Simplified Technical English workshop has been most informative and clear. The list of approved and non-approved technical helped me a lot in my work. Most of the classroom exercises were well-paced as Shumin has a very structured approach to discussing these exercises in a suitable order. She speaks with a very clear voice that facilitates understanding.
Gieljan Smits Product Designer & Engineer, Maats Pipeline Equipment
Frans gave our group of three teams training in Simplified Technical English. He was engaging as a speaker and really made the 2-day training enjoyable and worthwhile. I didn't think we all could use the new ways of writing and thinking that he was teaching, but everyone got on board right away. We continue to use the skills that Frans taught us, with the same type of enthusiasm he brought to the group during training. This was probably the best training I've had at Check Point, in either technical or professional subjects. Top Qualities: Personable, Expert, Creative
Rochelle Fisher Team Leader, Check Point Software Technologies
The introduction to STE gave me a more detailed idea about the STE concept. STE favours simple and short sentences to give the audience a clear idea of how information develops. It was also good to know that some verbs that ar evry commonly used in Schindler vocabulary are not acccepted in STE. Instead, shorter, simpler verbs can be good enough. To add, rules and tips provided during the training has been very helpful for my work. The exercises were practical and useful and I wish we had more time to go into more detail. Everything had been clearly explained and Shumin was very specific. I would most likely recommend this course to technical authors.
Corporate Technical Writer, Schindler Group
TAI hired Frans to work with our experienced team and help them to improve their ASD-STE100 Simplified Technical English skills. Frans helped us to identify areas for improvement both in our own documents and in those supplied by our customers and partners. At the end of the training, we all had learned simple yet effective methods to improve the quality, readability and compliance of our writing. Most importantly, we learned how to scrutinize text for commonly made mistakes and how to balance compliance with optimum readability. We enjoyed working with Frans, who has a pleasant personality and an open mind. I am happy to recommend him to any company that wants to improve its documentation, be it for compliance reasons or to facilitate translation. Top Qualities: Great Results, Expert, Good Value
Halil Kan, Logistics Specialist, Turkish Aerospace Industries TAI/TUSAS
Shumin did a very good job of explaining how the compliance in a language standard like STE varies from one industry to another, and is nothing like the law that enforces strict rules based on deterrence. Rather, it is a user-friendly standard that writers can turn to in times of need for consistency and standardising. My favourite STE rule is simply to use only approved technical words with the correct meaning and part of speech assigned.
Noldi Odermatt, Geschäftsführer / Partner Aceon AG
Personally, it became clearer to me that STE is a language that one can learn to pick up. This includes the standard vocabulary and customised dictionary that is built for every company or product. In other words, STE is a ‘way of life’ in the field of technical writing and documentation. The ASD-STE100 exercises covered a wide spectrum of topics from choosing between approved and non-approved words to recreating documentation in STE. Shumin expertly guided us from classroom learning mode to real-life practical application of STE rules. The materials that she presented were informative and very convincing. Top Qualities: Practical, Convincing, Informative
Martin Broekhuis Technical Editor, Webasto
The training on Simplified Technical English is a completely unique experience received so far for me. I found it to be extremely helpful for documentation writers. Section 3 of the STE Specification which deals with verbs and section 4 on how to sentence construction in STE were useful from a personal perspective. The course exercises were interactive and had a practical side to them. They help us compare our current standard of writing to an improved version in STE. I highly recommend this training to my colleagues also in the other divisions and offices.
Krishna Kishore Vedantam Product Design Specialist, Schindler
The course was intellectually challenging and stimulating. "Less is more" as an STE principle is something that I quite like :). For a beginner, there is quite a lot of material to process, and study in a short time. On the plus side, Shumin presented the material intelligibly and gave sufficient number of examples during her lectures. Her presentations were very well-prepared, and I enjoyed her classes. 🙂
TCLoc Master's Student Technical Communication and Localization
