A recent survey by the Department of Finance and Personnel has found that Small and Medium sized Businesses (commonly referred to as SMEs) account for 31.8% of NI exports.

The findings have improved confidence amongst Small Businesses in Northern Ireland, who have traditionally viewed exporting as a long, daunting and painful process.

One of the main stumbling blocks experienced by Small Businesses looking to export its products or services is the language barrier that exists in many key export markets. This can lead to difficulty in communicating with key contacts in the country your business wants to export to.

Communication with key contacts is imperative when looking into export markets and this is where local language services firm, Flex Language Services, can help.

Flex Language Services were acquired by the Ortus group in July 2011 and offer Interpreting and Translation services in over 60 world languages, with all 250 interpreters and translators being fully qualified, security checked and insured.

Local Surfacing and Plant Hire Company, McManus Brothers, used Flex Language Services to win public sector contracts in Europe. McManus Brothers Co-Founder, Eugene McManus, commented: “McManus Brothers worked with Flex Language Services' translators to help us expand our operations into Europe. We are currently working on the national development plan for Poland and expect these contracts to be on-going over the next number of years.

“With the help of Flex Language Services, we were able to negotiate a contract in which we supply manpower, plant and equipment as well as expertise in the field of road-surfacing and associated services.”