While the Code Council has offered selected titles of its codes in Spanish in the past, these new translations represent its most significant Spanish-language offering to date. "This really is one of our biggest efforts in translating the codes to Spanish and will make it easier to utilize and implement the codes, which helps to improve overall public safety," says Sylvana Ricciarini, ICC director of international operations.

Ricciarini states, "There are a number of reasons why the Code Council has decided to offer so many of its I-Codes in Spanish." One of the biggest reasons has to do with the large number of Spanish-speaking construction workers in the United States.

"These translations will support members of the construction industry who are more comfortable understanding technical information in Spanish," Ricciarini points out.

Translating the codes also means that other countries besides the United States will be able to benefit from them. Since Code Council's codes are designed to provide users with hazardous-resistant guidelines, they are ideal for much of South America, which is vulnerable to natural hazards such as seismic risk.

Ricciarini says offering the 2003 I-Codes in Spanish is particularly ideal for the international market. "One of the advantages of making the 2003 version available in Spanish is that it can help developing countries facilitate their understanding of the latest advances in building code requirements and incorporate some of these requirements into their current codes where feasible, which will help facilitate overall public safety in those countries. For developing countries, it can be a major challenge to incorporate the more stringent minimum requirements of the newer codes."

The Code Council has plans to update these translations and other selected documents in the future. The organization also expects to begin the translation of the 2006 I-Codes, which were released early last year.

First offered by the Code Council in December 2006, the Spanish-language 2003 International Codes are already popular, and the organization expects demand for them to increase as word of their availability spreads. The Code Council is also now being approached by local jurisdictions interested in having them translate their local codes into Spanish. In addition, the Code Council is contemplating translating its codes into other languages, depending on demand.

While the translations are clearly answering a previously unmet need, they are the result of a long and arduous process. Ricciarini estimates that the translation team takes four to six months to translate each of the codes. Much of that time is spent on quality control to ensure that the technical information provided in the English and Spanish versions is consistent.

However, the Code Council believes the effort is well worth the work. "We're looking forward to sharing this information with the Spanish-speaking community in the U.S. and also helping other countries to establish their own building code systems in order to improve overall public safety," Ricciarini says.