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Source text - Spanish EL PROCESO DE FABRICACIÓN EN UN MOLINO PAPELERO
La elaboración del papel era manual, lenta y costosa. La materia prima estaba constituida por trapos viejos, cuerdas, redes, velas de barcos ... cualquier elemento hecho de cáñamo, algodón, lino, es decir, materia vegetal fibrosa. Este material se seleccionaba y clasificaba en la mesa de la guadaña (1), donde se cortaba con la ayuda de las guadañas (2) o del marrazo (3).
Una vez finalizada esta operación, se introducía en el sacudidor de trapos (4) donde, mediante un movimiento rotatorio, se eliminaban la broza, el polvo ....
Seguidamente se procedía a la fermentación en fosas (5) donde los trapos cortados se dejaban con agua durante tres o cuatro semanas. El paso siguiente era triturarlos en las pilas de morteros de madera (6), accionados hidráulicamente. Estos morteros recibían nombres diferentes según el tipo de clavos que tenían en el extremo inferior: los de trapo, con clavos de corte vivo; los de repiste, con clavos planos con estrías; y los de refino, sin clavos.
El resultado de este proceso era una pasta fina que se mezclaba con una gran cantidad de agua en un recipiente llamado tina (7). Este era el lugar donde el artesano papelero, el laurente (8), elaboraba las hojas de papel. El instrumento para hacer papel recibía el nombre de forma (9) o molde, y se componía de una tela metálica fijada sobre un marco de madera que determinaba la medida de la hoja. La filigrana o marca de agua, el dibujo que se puede ver en la hoja de papel cuando se mira a contraluz, se conseguía cosiendo este mismo dibujo con un alambre a la tela metálica.
Cuando el laurente sumergía la forma dentro de la tina, el agua se escurría a través de la tela metálica y las fibras de lo que habían sido los trapos se entrelazaban hasta formar un material nuevo, el papel. En el paso siguiente, el laurente pasaba la forma al ponedor (10), quien, con una presión suave sobre un sayal o bayeta de lana, colocaba la hoja sobre ésta. Ambos repetían el proceso hasta obtener la posta (250 hojas).
La prensa (11), con el torno (12) que multiplicaba la fuerza, servía para que tres o cuatro hombres sacasen en parte el exceso de agua de la posta. La producción de un molino con una tina era de 18 postas diarias (aproximadamente 4500 hojas).
Después de ser prensadas, el levador (13) levaba las hojas de papel (separadas de las bayetas) y se tendían en los miradores (14) con la ayuda del espito, un instrumento de madera en forma de “T”, de diferentes medidas según el tipo de papel.
A continuación, las hojas tenían que pasar una primera tría. Entonces se ponían a hervir carnazas de animales en agua (15) y las hojas se encolaban en el baño de gelatina conseguida. La principal finalidad de este baño era hacer que el papel fuera apto para la escritura. La distribución uniforme de la cola se conseguía con una segunda prensada (17) y después el papel se volvía a tender (18).
El mazo satinador (19), accionado mediante una rueda hidráulica, de uso común en Cataluña, golpeaba el papel y le daba la textura definitiva, fina sin ser brillante.
Translation - English THE MANUFACTURING PROCESS IN A PAPER MILL
The elaboration of paper was a slow, costly and labour intensive manual process. The raw material consisted of old rags, rope, nets and ship’s sails or any bits and pieces that had been made of hemp, cotton or flax; in short, any fibrous vegetable based material. This material was selected and classified at the sorting table (1), where it was cut up with the help of scythes (2) or axes (3).
Once this operation was finished, the rags were placed in the dust remover (4) where, thanks to centrifugal force, any remaining grime and dust were eliminated. The next process involved fermenting the rag in troughs (5) where the strips of rag were soaked in water and left to rot for three or four weeks. Next, the rotting rags needed to be pulverised in the pulp mortars (6), whose wooden mallets were operated hydraulically. These mortars were named in accordance with the number of teeth they had on their ends: there were the rag mortars, with sharp teeth with a cutting edge, maceration mortars, with flat headed teeth with grooves, and refining mortars without teeth.
The result of this process was a fine pulp that was then mixed with a great quantity of water in a recipient known as a vat (7). This was the place where the master paper maker: the vatman (8), would make the individual sheets of paper. The instrument used for this purpose was known as the former (9) or mold, and comprised a fine metal mesh fitted over a wooden frame that determined the size of the sheet. The watermark, the impregnated image you can see if you hold a piece of paper up to the light, was achieved by sewing the image onto this mesh using fine wire.
When the paper maker submerged the mold into the vat, the water drained through the mesh, and the fibres that had once been rags interleaved to form a new material - paper. The next stage involved the paper maker handing the mold on to the coucher (10), who, with gentle pressure transferred the sheet onto a coarse woollen cloth or baize. This process would then be repeated until a post (a pile comprising 250 sheets) had been produced.
The press (11), with its crank (12) that multiplied the force applied, was operated by three of four men and was used to squeeze off most of the excess moisture from the post. The average production of a mill using one of these vats was some 18 posts a day (approximately 4,500 sheets).
After having been pressed, the layman (13) lifted off the sheets of paper, separating them from the sheets of baize and had them hung to dry in the drying rooms or miradors (14) with the help of a “T” shaped instrument known as a papermaker’s cross, which came in different sizes, depending on the type of paper involved.
Then the paper passed through its first inspection prior to being sized. For this sizing process, animal bones and off-cuts were boiled in water (15) and the sheets of paper were bathed in the resulting gelatin. The reason for this was that paper that was to be written on needed a stable surface that would not simply absorb the ink, like blotting paper. The uniform distribution of this sizing across the individual sheets was achieved by a second pressing (17) after which the sheets were hung up to dry again (18).
The sheets would then be passed individually under the smoothing mallet (19), driven by the water wheel. This mallet was commonly used in Catalan paper making and would beat the surface into its definitive texture, fine but still quite matt.
Catalan to English: Works in Cellulose Fibre
Source text - Catalan LES OBRES EN FIBRA DE CEL•LULOSA
Obres sobre mullat. La forma inicial més elemental es fer l'obra sobre una superfície rígida forrada amb plàstic i, per tant, no absorbent de l'aigua necessària per manipular la fibra de cel•lulosa. Les diverses formes obtingudes a part són aplicades sobre l'obra amb el mínim possible d'aigua. L'obra no s'ha d'assecar durant els dies que duri (cal tapar-la amb un plàstic, preferiblement amb una gasa o sedàs tèxtil entremig per prevenir adherències). L'evacuació de l'aigua sobrant durant el treball és molt defectuosa.
Una forma més elaborada i més lògica és fer l'obra sobre un sedàs, sigui metàl•lic o tèxtil, amb evacuació lliure de l'aigua per sota, sempre que el sedàs sigui prou rígid per mantenir-se suspès a l'aire o estigui situat sobre un entramat metàl•lic. Una altra possibilitat és col•locar un material absorbent (una capa d'esponja plàstica prima o papers assecants) entre el sedàs i una superfície plana impermeable. La caiguda lliure de l'aigua per sota del sedàs, en contra del que pugui semblar, és més lenta i problemàtica que en la segona possibilitat. En els dos casos és igualment necessari mantenir molla l'obra fins al final. Al meu entendre, el fet d'assecar-se l'obra o part d'aquesta, durant la seva gestació, trenca la seva mateixa continuïtat. Tornar a mullar-la seria aparentment la solució, i no obstant això els filtrats de fibra de cel•lulosa, un cop secs, no es tornen a esponjar i recuperar l'estat inicial. La pèrdua de l'element, diguem-ne físic, que és l'aigua -el fil conductor de l'obra elaborada amb fibra de cel•lulosa- crec que trenca el mateix esperit de l'obra.
En aquests treballs sobre mullat, a causa de la tensió superficial de l'aigua, queda retinguda la fibra de cel•lulosa contra les trames o fils dels diversos instruments o sedassos, en el moment de l'aplicació a l'obra, sense excepció. En canvi la projecció de fibra de cel•lulosa a pistola o per vessament és especialment útil en les obres sota l'aigua.
Translation - English WORKS IN CELLULOSE FIBRE
Working with wet material. The basic way of working is to make the work on a rigid surface covered with a plastic mesh that will not absorb water. This is necessary in order to be able to manipulate the cellulose fibre. The diverse forms obtained in this way are applied over the work with an absolute minimum of water. The work should not be allowed to dry out during the days that it is being worked on (it is necessary to cover it with a plastic sheet, preferably with a gauze, or textile mesh, in between to prevent adherence). The draining of excess water during the work presents many problems.
A more elaborate and logical approach is to make the work over a metal, or cloth, mesh, which allows the excess water to easily drain off underneath. The mesh should always be rigid enough to enable it to be held in the air, or else stretched over a frame. Another possibility is to place an absorbent material (a thin layer of plastic sponge or blotting paper) between the mesh and the flat impermeable surface. Contrary to what one might think, the free flow of water beneath the mesh is slower and can present more problems than using this second option.
Using both methods it is essential to keep the work wet until it is finished. To my way of thinking, allowing the work to completely, or partially, dry out, breaks its continuity. Wetting the work again would seem to be the solution; however, once they are dry, filtrates of cellulose fibre do not become spongy again or recover their initial state. The loss of the physical element, represented by the water, is the loss of the guiding hand of the work and I believe that it destroys its spirit.
Thanks to the surface tension of the water, when working with wet material, cellulose fibre can stick to the weft or to the wires of the tools or meshes when applying the material to the work. Shooting cellulose fibre onto the work using a pressurised jet or pistol is especially useful in work suspended under water.
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Other - Institute of Linguists, London
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Years of experience: 34. Registered at ProZ.com: Oct 1999. Became a member: Feb 2002.
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Bio
I have recently retired as an Associate Lecturer in English and Translation (Catalan to English) at the UAB (Autonomous University of Barcelona) (1999 to 2019).
I also served as the Catalan to English and English to Catalan Moderator for www.proz.com from 1999 to 2009.
In my thirty two years of professional experience for clients ranging from agencies to multinational companies, I have covered the following territory and more:
*Book length Literary translations including:
"The Iceberg Time Fold" (S.F. Novel) by Miguel Gámez (2015) (From Spanish)
"A Winter in Majorca" by George Sand (from French)
*Book length Sociology texts
(Including: a book on the "Future of Andorra" and another on "The Andorran Economy in the 21st Century" (From Catalan)
* Book length tourist guides to Barcelona, Morocco, The French Riviera, etc.
(Example: "Fotomercé 2006", "A Guide to Passeig de Gràcia" (2015) (from Catalan)
*Book Length Histories:
"A History of Barcelona 1714 to Today" and
"A History of Urbanism in Barcelona (Both from Catalan in 2014) Marge Books Ltd.
A wide range of general articles, business and academic reports, art criticism, etc. Also: numerous technical manuals, (instruction manuals for machinery and plant assembly - Mecalux, Kaiser, etc.) Hand-made paper related articles and exhibition programmes (Capellades Paper Museum); catalogues, in-flight magazines, company “in-house” magazines for several Spanish based multinationals; instruction leaflets, Business letters, contracts and related material etc. (1989 to date).
Plus: Singable versions (in English) of Spanish and Catalan songs for local rock bands.
Expertise 