Posted: 14th March 2024
RAL is a colour standard widely used in Europe, particularly in architecture, design and industry. It stands for Reichs-Ausschuß für Lieferbedingungen und Gütesicherung, which translates to “State Commission for Delivery Terms and Quality Assurance” in English.
RAL colours are defined by a four-digit number, with each number representing a specific hue. This standardisation ensures consistency and ease of communication across various industries and colour applications. RAL colours are used for paints, coatings, plastics, and other materials, providing a universal reference for colour selection and matching.
The RAL colour number system consists of a four-digit code that uniquely identifies each colour. Here’s how it works:
The first digit categorises colours into broad groups or families. For example:
1xxx: Yellow and beige tones
2xxx: Orange tones
3xxx: Red tones
4xxx: Violet and purple tones
5xxx: Blue tones
6xxx: Green tones
7xxx: Grey tones
8xxx: Brown tones
9xxx: White and black tones
These digits refine the colour within the broad category defined by the first digit. Each combination of the second and third digits represents a specific shade within that category.
Fourth Digit: The fourth digit is usually a 0 and is used for future expansion. It doesn’t affect the colour definition.
For example, RAL 1001 is a beige tone, while RAL 3003 is a red tone. The first digit (1 and 3, respectively) indicates the colour family, whereas the second and third digits specify the particular shade within that family.
There RAL organisation has its own online colour chart at
https://www.ral-farben.de/en/all-ral-colours, alternatively you can just type in a RAL number into your search engine e.g RAL7016 and it will show you a picture of what that colour looks like.
The most common colours for white aluminium windows and doors is RAL9001, for black aluminium windows it’s RAL9005 and for grey aluminium windows RAL7016 is the most common.
The beauty of the RAL system is that you can choose the exact colour you want and be confident that the windows will be made to exactly that colour.
Mercury’s aluminium windows and doors are available in all RAL colour options for project personalisation. Our customer service team will be happy to talk through the options with you.
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From sash windows to aluminium bifold doors, our high-quality products are engineered and manufactured right here in Britain. We work with fellow UK-operated companies, Spectus Window Systems, Smart Systems, and Jack Aluminium Systems, to deliver only the very best to our trade, commercial and residential customers.
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