The Group was formed under the name of Randall Woolcott Services Limited in 1982 by the amalgamation of M. H. Randall and Partners (established 1958), a professional translation service, and Woolcott and Company (established 1961), specialists in technical, patent and trademark information searching. Since then the Group has consolidated its position worldwide through natural growth and a series of strategic acquisitions including: J.A. Brodrick and Company, the UK 's longest established patent searching company - 1988. Lawyers' and Merchants' Translation Bureau (LMTB), a New York based translation company mainly serving the patent and legal professions - 1992. Translation and Language Consultants (International) Limited, (TLC), a Paris based company specialising in telecommunications material - 1998. Translation and Localisation specialists Polyglot International, incorporating an office in Tokyo , and Polymedia GmbH based in Berlin - 1998. Edgeworth King, a London based patent/information searching company - 2000. Ad-Ex Translations, a London based specialist medical and pharmaceutical translation company - 2002. Eclipse Translations Limited, a Northumberland based translation company specialising in the Technical and Defence sectors - 2005. Other milestones in the Group's history include receiving the Queen's Award for International Trade three times - in 1987, 1994 and again in 2004. Additionally, its Translation and Information Divisions became ISO 9000 accredited in 1992 - the first translation and information companies to be awarded Quality Accreditation. In 2003 the Group's parent company - RWS Holdings plc - was listed on the Alternative Investment Market. Today the Group employs over 350 staff and has operating companies in the UK , USA , Japan and Germany , with sales offices in France and Switzerland. To view the Group structure click here.