Color  

In this guest post, author Daniel Harris examines the fine techniques of color matching that are used in nearly every product manufactured today.  With plastic parts and metal parts requiring seamless design integration in final assembly, color matching is essential to industrial design and manufacturing.

W e’ve all thrown up our hands in frustration with a cry of “close enough!” Sometimes it really is close enough like when you substitute Greek yogurt for sour cream or just use duct tape when that last screw is missing.

But when it comes to production even the smallest mistake can potentially cost millions of dollars. Mistakes with color can easily happen, especially if parts are being manufactured in different plants. Everyone perceives color differently based on mood, age, health, and a host of other factors. When it comes to production, here are some of the biggest factors when it comes to choosing and matching color.

• Light Source: Light changes the most underneath different lighting which is too be expected since color is simply a reflection and absorption of light waves. Different lighting has different spectrums and materials will latterly reflect the changes by being a different color. Imagine you’re designing a sports jersey for a large college or professional football team. The fabric looks great in your studio, but underneath the halogen lights something is off. Products need be tested underneath an agreed upon light source for consistent results.  

• Different Materials: Car manufacturers deal with this all the time. The soft grey on the hard plastic dash needs to be the same soft grey as the plush faux leather seats, but the two materials reflect light differently. This means a different solution is needed for each material to get the same result.

• Different Surfaces: Even though you may have the same material, the material can have different surface textures and finishes. A rough texture will not look as bright as a smooth texture just like gloss will appear much brighter than matte.