ISO 18587 · Post-editing of machine translation output
ISO 18587 certification for post-editing of machine translation you can stand behind.
ISO 18587 sets requirements for full, human post-editing of machine translation output and for the competence of post-editors; Sterling's expert and experienced consultants help language service providers put it into daily practice and prepare for independent certification.
- Fixed scope, one proposal: consulting, Effivity software, Sterling Academy access and internal auditor training, as applicable to your standard, in one proposal
- Expert and experienced consultants who map your post-editing workflow, competence records and client agreements into one working system
- The Sterling Promise: 100% on-time completion, 100% success, 8,100+ client engagements. Sterling does not certify; an independent certification body audits and decides
8,100+ client engagements in 60+ countries.
Sterling client experience
What it is
What is ISO 18587?
ISO 18587, Translation services — Post-editing of machine translation output — Requirements, is an ISO requirements standard developed by ISO/TC 37/SC 5. It covers the process of full, human post-editing of machine translation output and the competences a post-editor needs.
ISO writes it for three audiences at once: translation service providers, their clients and post-editors. It applies only to content that a machine translation system has already processed, so it sits beside ISO 17100, the requirements standard for translation services as a whole, rather than replacing it.
Current edition. ISO 18587:2017, the first edition, was published in April 2017 and is the edition in force. ISO lists it as under review: a revised draft, ISO/DIS 18587, retitled for post-editing of non-human translation output, entered its enquiry ballot on 4 September 2026 and will replace the 2017 edition once published.
Who it is for
Who asks for ISO 18587 and why?
Demand usually comes from the buying side of the translation market, where machine output is cheap but its reliability is not taken on trust:
- Enterprise localisation buyers. Procurement teams want proof that raw machine output is checked by competent people before it reaches a customer, a regulator or a court.
- Tenders and framework agreements. Public bodies and large clients may name the standard as a qualifying condition for post-editing lots.
- Providers launching a post-editing service line. A language service provider selling post-editing needs a defined process and evidence of post-editor competence to price and defend it.
- Providers already working to ISO 17100. Adding ISO 18587 extends a certified translation process to machine-assisted work without running a second system.
The value is a repeatable service your clients can audit, not the certificate on its own.
Requirements
What are the main ISO 18587 requirements?
The clause structure of ISO 18587 was not verified for this page, so the list below shows what Sterling's work covers, drawn from the scope ISO publishes; your system is checked against the standard itself during the programme.
- Service scope: which content, language pairs and clients the post-editing service covers
- Post-editing process: the workflow from receipt of machine output to delivery of fully post-edited text
- Post-editor competence: qualifications, skills and records for every post-editor on the service
- Client requirements: what is agreed with the client before work starts and how it reaches the post-editor
- Checks and feedback: review of delivered work and action on client comments and complaints
What does useful ISO 18587 evidence look like?
Project specifications agreed with the client, post-editor competence files, job records showing the post-editing step completed, client feedback with its follow-up, and corrective actions that were closed. They sit in Effivity from the first workshop, so the certification auditor samples live jobs rather than a prepared folder.
Your engagement
How Sterling helps with ISO 18587 certification
ISO 18587 is a requirements standard, so an organisation can seek independent certification against it where a certification body offers it. Sterling does not certify; we build the system with your team and prepare you for the audit.
Scope and gap review
Your current post-editing workflow compared with ISO 18587, with an agreed plan and owners.
Process and documentation
A lean post-editing procedure and records, built with your project managers and linguists.
Effivity ISO & GRC software
Jobs, competence files and feedback in one workspace, included at no additional cost.
Training for everyone
Internal auditor training as applicable to your standard, and preferential Sterling Academy access with complimentary awareness training.
Internal audit and management review
Conducted or facilitated as agreed, with findings closed before the certification body arrives.
Certification readiness
Preparation for the certification audit and support until the decision is made.
Certification decisions remain with the independent certification body.
Often combined with
Standards organisations pair with ISO 18587
- COPC CX StandardCOPC CX Standard certification readiness for contact centres and CX operations: gap assessment, metrics, processes and people, with Sterling's support.
- ISO 17100ISO 17100 certification for translation service providers: processes, translator and reviser competence, client agreements and audit readiness with Sterling.
- ISO 18091ISO 18091 local government guidance put into practice: a citizen-focused ISO 9001 quality system, the diagnostic, SDG progress and certification readiness.
- ISO 18295ISO 18295 certification consulting for in-house and outsourced contact centres: consistent, measurable customer service on every channel, ready for audit.
- ISO 18788 / PSC.1ISO 18788 certification support for private security companies: SOMS implementation, legal and human rights controls, training and audit readiness.
- ISO 20121ISO 20121 certification consulting for events: environmental, social and economic impacts managed from concept to review, ready for an independent audit.
Effivity · ISO and GRC software, included in every engagement
How Effivity helps you fulfil, automate and simplify the requirements of ISO 18587.
Every Sterling ISO 18587 engagement includes Effivity, the ISO and GRC automation platform built by the Sterling group and used in 50+ countries. Your consultant configures the workspace within the agreed scope, so documents, risks, audits, nonconformities, complaints, supplier evaluations, training records and management review live in one place, the system runs in daily work and the certification auditor reviews a live system rather than a binder. Sterling consulting clients get their Effivity subscription included with the engagement, at no additional cost.
Context, scope and interested parties
The scope statement, the internal and external issues and the interested parties are kept in one register and reviewed on a schedule, so the context stays current as the business changes instead of being rewritten before each audit.
Policy, roles and objectives
The policy, the responsibilities and the objectives with their measures, owners and dates live where the people who own them work; progress is reported from the system, not from a separate spreadsheet.
Risks and opportunities
A risk and opportunity register with owners, actions and review dates; treatments tracked to closure and brought to management review automatically.
Competence, awareness and documented information
Training and competence records for every person, linked to Sterling Academy; documents with versions, approvals and distribution, so the current version is the only one in use.
Customer requirements, suppliers and delivery
Requirement reviews, supplier evaluation, service delivery, checks and release, each with its record created as the work is done.
Monitoring, internal audit and management review
Audit programmes, findings and follow-up; customer satisfaction and KPIs on live dashboards; a management review that records its inputs, decisions and actions.
Nonconformity, complaints and corrective action
Raised, investigated and closed with root cause and the evidence that the action worked; recurring issues visible to management before they become a finding.
Your own processes, forms and reports
Forms, fields, workflows and reports adapted to how you work, without code; legal and customer requirements tracked to the processes they affect.
What this means at the audit
The certification auditor asks for the internal audit programme, the last management review, the open nonconformities, the training records and the supplier evaluations. In Effivity each of those is a screen, with dates, owners and evidence attached, not a folder somebody has to assemble the week before the audit. After certification, Sustain™ runs in the same workspace, so surveillance audits find a system that never stopped.
In your engagement
- Subscription included with the engagement, at no additional cost
- Configured by your Sterling consultant within the agreed scope
- Your documents, records and registers migrated, not retyped
- Admin and user training for your team
- Modules for QMS, EMS, OHSMS, ISMS and more when you integrate other standards
Sterling Academy · ISO 18587 e-learning
Train every employee on ISO 18587, not just the system owner.
Sterling Academy delivers e-learning for the whole workforce and for the people who run the system: video lessons with practice checkpoints, a final exam and a numbered Certificate of Completion for each learner, verifiable online. Sterling consulting clients benefit from preferential course access and special pricing through their Sterling consultant, including complimentary awareness training for their people as part of the engagement.
- Awareness training for every employee, with the evidence of competence your system needs
- Practitioner courses for process owners and the person who leads the system
- Internal auditor training for the people who will audit the system, as applicable to your standard, as part of the engagement
- Learner progress by department and a training status report for the certification auditor
- New hires trained as they arrive, so evidence is current at every surveillance audit
- A Sterling consultant reachable when a learner needs one
Keep exploring
Explore more about ISO 18587
Why Sterling
Why choose Sterling for ISO 18587?
Language service providers work across time zones with freelance post-editors, varied clients and tight turnarounds. Sterling builds one post-editing system that holds together across that network, with clear ownership in each team.
Management systems in 60+ countries since 2003
8,100+ client engagements in 60+ countries, with one engagement team accountable across every country you operate in.
All-inclusive proposal
Consulting, Effivity, training and Academy access in one proposal, with certification-body fees identified separately. No surprises, ever.
A system your people can use
Less documentation and maximum effectiveness: documents, training and software connected to day-to-day operations, so your people adopt the system rather than tolerate it.
Expert and experienced consultants
Consultants who have advised on management systems across sectors and countries since 2003, and who build your ISO 18587 system properly the first time, so the certification audit confirms what already works.
The Sterling Promise
What our ISO 18587 certification success guarantee means
We stay with you until your agreed ISO 18587 certification outcome is achieved, supporting implementation, preparation and the resolution of assessment findings. Clear explanations, practical delivery, included software and employee learning turn the investment into lasting capability rather than a certificate on a wall.
The engagement identifies the standard, scope, outcome and responsibilities. Your organisation supplies accurate information and puts the agreed controls into use. The independent certification body assesses conformity and retains its certification decision. Our commitment concerns the agreed certification support, not a promise of every future tender award or error-free delivery.
FAQs
Frequently asked questions about ISO 18587
Is ISO 18587 the same as ISO 17100?
No. ISO 17100 sets requirements for translation services in general, while ISO 18587 covers full, human post-editing of machine translation output. Providers offering both services can run them in one management system with shared records, audits and review.
Will the ISO 18587 revision affect an existing certificate?
It may, once the revised standard is published. ISO/DIS 18587 was still at ballot stage at the end of September 2026, so the 2017 edition remains the one to implement now; your certification body will confirm how it handles the change.
Does Sterling issue the ISO 18587 certificate?
No. Sterling provides consulting and hands-on support. An independent certification body audits your service and makes the certification decision.
Talk to a consultant
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