Rush and express DTP turnaround options for translation projects. Same-day delivery, priority handling, and transparent rush fee structure.
A rush or express project is any job with a turnaround requirement shorter than our standard production timeline for that file type and language combination. Standard turnaround for DTP projects is typically 24 to 48 hours per language variant after translated text is received, depending on file complexity and page count. Any deadline that compresses this window qualifies for rush handling.
We classify rush projects into three tiers based on urgency. Priority projects have a deadline 25 to 50 percent shorter than standard — for example, a 20-page InDesign brochure in four languages needed within 24 hours instead of the standard 48. These are accommodated by reprioritizing the production queue and assigning dedicated operators. Express projects require delivery within the same business day, typically 4 to 8 hours from receipt of translated files. These require immediate resource allocation and parallel processing across multiple operators when file structure allows it. Emergency projects need delivery within 1 to 3 hours — these are rare but we handle them for established clients when the scope is manageable (typically under 10 pages, single language).
The key factors that determine whether we can accept a rush request are: file format and complexity, number of target languages, current production queue load, and time zone alignment. A 5-page PowerPoint in two languages is almost always achievable same-day. A 200-page FrameMaker book in 15 languages on an 8-hour deadline is not realistic regardless of rush fees. During preflight or quoting, we will always be transparent about what is achievable and what is not — we would rather decline a deadline we cannot meet than deliver substandard work.
Rush requests are most common from our LSP partners during end-of-quarter pushes, product launch windows, and regulatory filing deadlines. We recommend flagging potential rush needs as early as possible, even before translated files are ready, so we can pre-allocate capacity.
Rush fees are calculated as a percentage surcharge on top of the standard DTP rate for the project, based on the urgency tier and the degree of schedule compression required. The fee structure is transparent and applied consistently across all clients and partners.
Priority tier (25–50% schedule compression): 25% surcharge on the DTP component. This covers the cost of queue reprioritization and dedicated operator assignment. For a project that would normally be quoted at $500 for DTP, the rush surcharge adds $125 for a total of $625.
Express tier (same-day delivery, 4–8 hours): 50% surcharge on the DTP component. This reflects the need for immediate resource allocation, potential overtime, and parallel processing. The same $500 project becomes $750.
Emergency tier (1–3 hour delivery): 75–100% surcharge, quoted on a case-by-case basis. Emergency work often requires pulling operators from other active projects, which creates cascading schedule adjustments. We only accept emergency work when we are confident we can deliver without compromising quality.
Important clarifications: Rush fees apply only to the DTP and layout component of the project, not to translation costs (which are managed by the LSP partner). The surcharge is calculated on the per-language DTP cost, so a 4-language rush project applies the surcharge independently to each language variant. Weekend and holiday work carries the express tier surcharge at minimum, regardless of the actual deadline, because it requires operators to work outside normal shifts.
For high-volume partners with ongoing rush patterns, we offer pre-negotiated rush rates as part of annual rate agreements. This gives PMs predictable pricing for client quotes without needing to request individual rush quotes each time. If your team regularly handles urgent projects, ask us about a standing rush rate arrangement.
We always confirm the total cost including rush fees before starting work. There are no surprise charges — the quoted rush price is the final price.
Standard turnaround times vary by file format, page count, number of target languages, and layout complexity. The timelines below assume translated text has been received and is ready for layout — DTP turnaround begins when we receive the translated content, not when the original project is submitted.
Simple projects (1–10 pages, clean source files): 4–8 hours per language for PowerPoint, Word, or straightforward InDesign layouts with minimal graphics. These files have predictable text flow, standard fonts, and limited manual adjustment requirements.
Medium projects (10–50 pages, moderate complexity): 1–2 business days per language for InDesign brochures, Illustrator marketing materials, or FrameMaker chapters. Text expansion, image repositioning, and style sheet adjustments are the primary time drivers at this tier.
Complex projects (50+ pages or technical content): 2–5 business days per language for FrameMaker books, MadCap Flare projects, multi-chapter InDesign documents, or files with heavy use of anchored objects, cross-references, and conditional text. These require systematic processing and thorough QA.
eLearning projects: 2–3 business days per language for Articulate Storyline or Rise courses, depending on slide count, interactive element complexity, and whether audio synchronization is required.
For multilingual projects, we process languages in parallel when operator availability allows. A 30-page InDesign brochure in 8 languages does not take 8 times the single-language turnaround — with parallel processing, it typically takes 1.5 to 2 times the single-language estimate.
These timelines include one round of internal QA. Client review cycles and correction rounds are additional. We recommend building at least one business day of buffer into project plans for the client review and correction cycle.
During quoting, we provide a specific delivery date and time for each language variant based on the actual files, not generic estimates. If the quoted timeline does not meet your needs, ask about our rush options — we can almost always compress the schedule with appropriate rush handling.
Yes, we accept weekend and holiday projects for established clients and partners. Our ability to deliver outside standard business hours is one of the advantages of operating across time zones and maintaining a flexible operator roster.
Weekend availability: We maintain on-call capacity for Saturday and Sunday work. Weekend projects are scheduled in advance when possible — if you know by Thursday that a Friday delivery will slip into the weekend, notifying us early significantly improves our ability to staff appropriately. Walk-in weekend requests are handled on a best-effort basis depending on operator availability.
Holiday coverage: We observe a limited number of holidays per year and publish our holiday calendar to partners in January. For critical deadlines that fall on our holidays, we arrange coverage in advance. Because our team spans multiple regions, a holiday in one location does not necessarily mean zero coverage — we can often route work to available operators in other time zones.
Time zone advantages: Our production team operates from Eastern European time (EET/EEST, UTC+2/+3), which means our business day overlaps with both European morning schedules and US East Coast afternoons. For US-based clients, this creates a natural overnight processing window — files submitted at end of US business day can be processed during our morning and delivered before the US team returns. Many of our LSP partners leverage this time zone offset for effective follow-the-sun production.
All weekend and holiday work is billed at the express tier minimum (50% surcharge) regardless of the actual deadline, reflecting the premium of out-of-hours staffing. For partners with regular weekend volume, we can negotiate standing weekend rates as part of an annual agreement.
To request weekend or holiday coverage, email your project manager or submit through the standard project intake channel with "WEEKEND" or "HOLIDAY" in the subject line so it triggers our priority routing.
No — rush turnaround does not reduce our quality standards. Every project, regardless of urgency tier, goes through the same QA process before delivery. What changes in a rush scenario is resource allocation and workflow sequencing, not the quality bar.
Here is how we maintain quality under compressed timelines:
Parallel processing: For multi-page documents, we split the file across two or more operators working simultaneously on different sections. Each operator handles a complete section (not alternating pages), which maintains layout consistency within sections. A senior operator then performs a unification pass to ensure cross-section consistency in spacing, style application, and visual flow.
Dedicated operators: Rush projects are assigned to our most experienced operators who can work faster without cutting corners. These operators have deep familiarity with common file structures, standard client templates, and recurring project types. An operator who has formatted 50 Corteva brochures in InDesign will process the 51st significantly faster than someone seeing the template for the first time.
Automated pre-checks: We use preflight scripts and InDesign/FrameMaker preflight profiles to catch common issues (missing fonts, overset text, broken links, color space mismatches) before manual QA begins. This reduces the manual QA burden without replacing it.
Focused QA: Our QA checklist is the same for rush and standard projects — text completeness, layout accuracy, font rendering, image placement, pagination, and output format verification. For rush projects, the QA operator is pre-briefed on the specific risk areas for that file type and language combination, allowing them to prioritize the most likely failure points without skipping any checks.
The one area where rush timelines can create real quality risk is client review cycles. In a standard project, the client has 1–2 days to review proofs and request corrections. In a rush scenario, this review window may be compressed to hours or eliminated entirely. We always recommend that clients at least perform a spot-check of critical pages, even on the tightest deadlines. If a project is delivered without client review and corrections are needed later, we handle the correction round at no additional charge as long as the corrections are submitted within 5 business days.
Our quality commitment is simple: if we cannot deliver a rush project to our standard quality level within the requested timeline, we will say so upfront rather than deliver work that does not meet our standards.
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