dtp studio oldenburg · RAL CLASSIC colours

The RAL CLASSIC colours

Who doesn't know RAL 5014 Pigeon Blue, Light Grey, Corn Yellow or Flame Red? Whether in the building market or the painting company, with the architect or in the textile industry: The 194 colours according to the standard RAL CLASSIC (840-HR or 841-GL) have become household names.

How did that happen?

RAL colours > RAL CLASSIC

Here you can reach our software section

RAL C2 CLASSIC COLOUR DATA
The low cost solution with RGB/CMYK colour values for the classic RAL colours. For all those who are working with RAL colours.

RAL DIGITAL
The big package for the integration of RAL CLASSIC and RAL DESIGN colours in your design applications.

DIGITAL COLOUR ATLAS
The tool for colour comparisons of all kind: Includes the RAL and approx. 30 other colour systems, printed and printable atlases, and so on.

RAL CLASSIC colour play
Here you can find a little colour play to the RAL CLASSIC colours.

RAL 1000 Grünbeige	RAL 2000 Gelborange	RAL 3000 Feuerrot	RAL 4010 Telemagenta	RAL 5014 Taubenblau	RAL 5017 Verkehrsblau
RAL 6011 Resedagrün	RAL 4001 Red Lilac	RAL 7000 Fehgrau	RAL 7035 Lichtgrau	RAL 8017 Schokoladenbraun	RAL 9017 Verkehrsschwarz

Examples of the classic RAL colours.

History of the RAL Colour Collection

In 1927 RAL took over a colour chart for lacquer and paints by order of the state and industry. By creating a unification of delivery conditions, RAL intended to help the lacquer and pigment industries in the efficient development of their production, and to create harmony in the use of colours throughout the world.

In the following decades, RAL colours became so widely accepted that they can now be said to represent the colour tone standard in Germany and many other countries. For the master painter, the building market, vehicle lacquering operations, architectural offices, furniture or machine manufacturers – every place where lacquer, house paints, and other related items are present, RAL colour numbers and designations are being used.

Soon the 40 colours from 1927 were not sufficient. New colour tones were added to the system, most importantly those from large agencies and state enterprises. In this way Magenta Red, which for several years has adorned the telephone booths and publications of the Deutsche Telekom (German Telecommunication), accompanied by three new shades of grey, which together are the newest additions to RAL colours to date.

Thirty of the forty tones from 1927 are still contained in the colour charts which are distributed by RAL today. In the mean time, RAL has decided on 194 colour tones and given them four digit designations, in which the first digit specifies the classification of a colour region.

RAL Colour Regions according to Designations

The Region...	begins at..	ends at..	Colours
1xxx Yellow	RAL 1000 Green Beige	RAL 1034 Pastel Yellow	27
2xxx Orange	RAL 2000 Yellow Orange	RAL 2012 Salmon oOrange	12
3xxx Red	RAL 3000 Flame Red	RAL 3031 Orient Red	22
4xxx Violet	RAL 4001 Red Lilac	RAL 4010 Telemagenta	10
5xxx Blue	RAL 5000 Violet Blue	RAL 5024 Pastel Blue	23
6xxx Green	RAL 6000 Patina Green	RAL 6034 Pastel Turquoise	32
7xxx Grey	RAL 7000 Squirrel Grey	RAL 7047 Telegrey 4	37
8xxx Brown	RAL 8000 Green Brown	RAL 8028 Terra Brown	19
9xxx White/Black	RAL 9001 Cream	RAL 9018 Papyrus White	12

Here you can find a complete list of RAL DESIGNations in german, english, and french. (Please klick on the link "Farbnamen")

In 1961 helpful designations for colours were introduced to avoid the perpetuation of colour number errors and to deliver an intuitive representation of the colours. The public had long since come up with their own designations, for example, "Flame Red" for the colour tone RAL 3000.

The problem with a verbal description is the lack of clarity. The question then becomes how a specific colour tone should look: for example is "Lemon Yellow" a cool blue-yellow, green-yellow like unripe fruit, or deep yellow like a ripe lemon?

Colour Charts and Registers

The base register collections are obtainable in semi matte (RAL 840-HR) and in glossy style (RAL 841-GL). Different types of swatch fans make a fast and precise overview possible. The precision of the RAL colour models are verified through the process of spectral analysis.

Der RAL-K7 Farbfächer

Colour charts for the classic RAL colours are available in multiple forms.
Click here for the actual list of variants and for the online order form.

Within the last decade a certain variety of colours arose in response to the needs of clients (e.g., Lufthansa, German Postal Service and the German Armed Forces), but a certain degree of inequality also arose. For example while many pastel colours were lacking, other colour regions (e.g. dark green tones) were over abundantly represented. In the following years there was a great demand for a new colour system, and RAL has successfully met this demand with the development of the RAL DESIGN System of colours.