Color systems in the sign craft: RAL and color matching.
How to ensure the sign's colour matches the facade — and the customer's expectation
Color correction and color grading sound the same but are two different phases in post-production: one fixes errors, the other creates a look. The article covers log recording and LUTs, why waveform and vectorscope are better guides than eye alone, and how color spaces like Rec. 709 connect to where the production will be shown.
§What is RAL?
RAL is a colour system originally developed in Germany in 1927 to enable precise and unambiguous communication of colour tones between designer, manufacturer and customer. The modern RAL system comprises 213 different colour shades, each identified by a four-digit number together with the letters "RAL" – for example RAL 9010 (pure white) or RAL 9017 (traffic black).
§Why RAL is used in construction and signage
RAL and NCS colours are typically used on windows, doors, gutters and facade elements, and that's why the RAL code is often already fixed for a building when the sign is to be designed. By asking the customer or architect for the facade's RAL code, you can select a film or paint that matches the facade precisely – instead of guessing from a photograph.
- 01Always ask for a RAL code if the sign should match an existing façade, door, or window.
- 02A colour on a screen can differ from the printed or film-coated result — always use a physical colour swatch or sample when possible.
- 03Some foil producers list their colours with both their own part number and nearest RAL match – use it to compare manufacturers.
- 04Light and weather affect how a colour is perceived outdoors — always assess the final result in daylight.
§NCS as an alternative
Alongside RAL the NCS (Natural Colour System) is also used particularly in Scandinavia to describe colours according to their visual properties such as hue black content and colourfulness. The two systems are often used side by side in the construction industry and it is therefore an advantage to be able to convert between them when a customer or architect provides a colour code in one system.
§The consequence of a wrong colour
A colour deviation on a sign is rarely a catastrophe but it can cost expensive reproduction and a dissatisfied customer if the sign must be redone because it does not match the facade. Precise colour agreement before production — preferably in writing with a RAL or NCS code — is therefore a small investment that saves time and material in the end.