The term "Transperanto" is derived from the words transport, transparency and esperanto.
Transperanto has been developed by Cefic (European Chemical Industry Council) in co-operation with ECTA, European Chemical Transport Association
Transperanto is a toolbox, containing key safety related words and phrases, translated in 26 European languages.
Transperanto does not aim at providing a full encyclopedy of technical transport jargon but focuses on communication between drivers and site personnel. Truck drivers from all over Europe are entering plants and other storage sites of Chemical Companies for loading and discharging products. Effective communication between the site personnel and the truck drivers is essential for efficient operations, for site security and for ensuring the safety of the involved persons, the installation and the transport equipment.
Improved communications and enhanced language skills are also essential elements for a successful "Behaviour Based Safety" programme, as they help ensuring common understanding and focus on important Safety, Health and Environmental requirements.
Hence it is essential that truck drivers and site personnel have a minimum of common language to communicate whilst the driver is gaining access to the site and/or whilst being on the site. Therefore, "Transperanto" was developed as a tool to provide the most frequently used terminology about general safety and security, gate house checks, loading/unloading operations, and emergency situations.
It is therefore recommended that each driver has access to this tool and familiarizes himself with this vocabulary in the key-languages commonly known at the chemical manufacturing sites he/she is visiting.
Likewise, it is recommended that personnel working at gate houses, or in dispatch and loading/unloading operations at chemical plants and storage sites, are familiar with this vocabulary as well, in at least 2 or 3 of the most used languages.
Transperanto offers two possibilities :
The user selects two languages from the provided "drop down" list, typically his mothertongue and another language he wants to study. Then the user selects a topic and the system displays the associated words and phrases in both languages.
Some of the words/phrases are illustrated with a pictogram, to facilitate the understanding, and to link the meaning to possible symbols that are used on documents, instructions, placards or plant posters.
All words and phrases are categorized in groups or topics and are marked with a code. It is the objective to keep these phrases and codes standardized, such that they may eventually be "burned in our memories" as standard codes, and become an international commonly referred code.
The user can print the results of the selection of languages and topic at any moment, using the internet print facility, or alternatively define a download into a pdf format, of a set of phrases, translated in up to three languages, shown side by side.