RAL colour chart: choose your colour

We are all familiar with color chart Pantone. It is the most used system in interior decoration, but it is not the only one that offers a numbered color guide. In addition to Pantone, Cielab, IRAM and RAL are systems recognized by certain sectors, but not by most of us. Until today!

What is RAL?

RAL is a European color matching system; a numbered color guide designed for application different branches of industry The main ones are the manufacturing and distribution of paints, plastics and coatings.

The German terms Reichs-Ausschuß für Lieferbedingungen, which can be translated into Spanish as 'National Commission for Delivery Conditions and Quality Management', is the origin of the acronym RAL. standard colors RAL German Institute for Quality Assurance and Labelling.

In 1927, the German RAL organization created a collection of 40 colors. The aim was nothing more than to rely on numbers and to define each color through a set of them. In the following years, new paints were added to the collection, which was revised in 1961 and named “RAL 840-HR”. From that moment on, the color system existed 213 colors which is still in force today. However, since the «RAL 840-HR» series only covers matt colours, in the 1980s «RAL 841-GL» saw the light, a series for glossy surfaces limited to 193 colours.

All colours of this RAL Classic table are available in a 4 digit number, the first is the family or main key. 1: Yellows, 2: Oranges, 3: Reds, 4: Purples, 5: Blue, 6: Green, 7: Grey, 8: Brown, 9: Black and White. This is the most famous and widely used system, but it is not the only one. The RAL Design, RAL Effect and RAL Plastics collections offer more colour variations.

RAL collections

• RAL Design: In 1993, RAL invented a new colour combination system adapted to the needs of architects, designers and advertisers. The RAL Design collection had 1688 colours. Unlike previous systems, RAL Design has no name and its numbering follows a scheme based on the CIELAB colour space. Each colour is represented by 7 digits, grouped into threes and 2 pairs, representing hue, brightness and saturation respectively. RAL Classic and RAL Design colours do not overlap.
• RAL Effect: RAL Effect consists of 420 uni colours and 70 metallic colours. It is the first RAL collection based on a water-based paint system without the use of heavy metals such as lead, cadmium or chromate.
• RAL Plastics: RAL Plastics is the standard colour for plastics. The multifunctional panels made of polypropylene ensure the best possible conversion of RAL paint tones into the same tones for plastics. RAL Plastics P1 contains 100 favourite RAL Classic colours, while RAL Plastics P2 shows 200 RAL Design colours as standard for plastics.

Use in interior decoration

The RAL colour range is designed for use in different branches of industry and is not so much for applications in interior design. You are probably wondering what this nuance means and why its use is not transferred to interior design. The main reason for this is that the colour range is so wide. limited to pastel or light tones decoration, interior design, architecture etc. as opposed to other standards intended

The main criteria for the colours of the RAL Classic collection are, “Ana faiz.” Many of its colours are used in warning signs and traffic signals or are dedicated to government institutions and public services; for example: RAL 1004 (Swiss Postal Service), RAL 1021 (Austrian Postal Service), RAL 1032 (German Postal Service).

Does that mean we can't use it? design and interiors? No, it just means that it may not be the best fit for him. And that it may be difficult for an interior design professional to work with and manipulate this color standard, or at least do so with the same frequency or ease as with the Pantone standard.

Did you know about the RAL color system? Did you understand how it works? Have you ever used it? As you can see, the color cards are an explosion of color. The cards you can get are cheap, just like the cards from other systems, if you are not going to use it. In case you need it for a project, you can also buy different Specialist companies or the design studios you work with can provide you with the most appropriate colors to choose and agree on.

Most of us will never use it, but it doesn't hurt to know.

RAL colour chart: choose your colour
The topic was first published on mobeltrend.com.