You can almost be certain that you have heard a name before and wondered what it was only to realise that that it is the name of a colour. Well, with so many hues out there, there is a need to have a coding system. So, What is a RAL colour code? This is a European hue matching system which is used to categorise colors for plastics, coatings and paint.
The acronym stands for ‘Reichs-Ausschub fur Lieferbedingungen und Gutesicherung, a German phrase that can loosely translate to the ‘National Commission for Delivery Terms and Quality Assurance’. The name is Germanic because it is provided by the RAL Deutsches Institut fur Gute-sicherung und Kennzeichnung.
There are many colours that are part of this collection, but the main ones are RAL Classic, Design, Effect, Plastics P1, and Plastics P2. The coding is done to help customers choose the right shade simply by using the code. Read on below to get an overview of this colour system.
The earliest collection is the classic code system. This can be traced to as early as 1927. Before this time, buyers and manufacturers had to exchange samples of the colours available to get the right tint. Hence, the ‘Reichs-Ausschub fur Lieferbedingungen und Gutesicherung organisation came up with a coding system for 40 different shades. Hence, people would now make purchases using codes.
However, more shades kept emerging, requiring the system to be revised in 1961. This expanded the collection to 213 shades that are still in use even today. However, during the 1960s, the codes were supplemented by names so as to avoid confusion where the digits could have been transposed.
Another collection is the Design code. In 1993, the organisation introduced another matching system. This came after the realisation certain industries were not ideally covered by the earlier system. This additional coding system consists of shades that are totally different from the classic system. It comprises of 1,625 colors that are used by designers, advertisers, and architects.
Before long, another list had to be included. This brought along the Effect code. While this list included 420 solid colors, the most notable being 70 metallic shades. This was the first system that included waterborne paint systems. However, the list does not include heavy metals such as chromates, cadmium and lead.
Another category is the plastics collection. This contains RAL Plastics P1, which has 100 shades and Plastics P2, which contains 200 shades. The multifunctional plates manufactured using polypropylene made is possible to translate the paint coding system for plastics.
Now that you know what RAL colour codes are, you should also be aware of their real-life applications. The one thing you should be on the know about is that computer screens are not able to display these shades. Hence, it is advisable that you get a sample in case you want to make a purchase. There are colour fan decks that can be used for comparison to get the exact matching. It is also advisable that you get a reseller that provides the K7 and K5 guides.