Technical Information

The following article is sourced from X-Rite ColorLabs, authored by Tim Mouw.

We often struggle with how to achieve accurate colors. It is precisely because of this that we find ourselves constantly juggling trial and error, rework, and material waste—processes that not only undermine our efficiency but also tarnish our reputation.

Why is color management so challenging? The waste from costs and rework is truly frustrating...

Today, I'll introduce one by one the seven major reasons why color control plans fail—so everyone can conduct self-assessments and make improvements.

1. Subjective Influence of Personnel

How can we achieve accurate and effective color communication? People are easily influenced by subjectivity, which can lead to communication errors and misunderstandings.

Unless you spend several hours repeatedly experimenting and tweaking, it’s nearly impossible to achieve colors that are even slightly lighter, more reddish, or leaning toward blue. However, once the customer clearly specifies that they want DL* 1, DC* 1, and DH* 1, aren’t you now fully confident in producing the exact hues they desire? That’s why color digitization has become an urgent necessity!

2. Digital color management is more than just a colorimeter.

A calibrated spectrophotometer is a crucial color-digitalization tool, but it’s only the first step in implementing color control. We also need color management software to analyze, track, and communicate colors, as well as calibrated standard light boxes for quality control.

Esko SpectraLight QC Light Box

EskoColor iQC Quality Control Software

Only when used together can these three tools meet the needs for visual and instrumental evaluation and certification.

3. Visual inspection of the light source cannot be overlooked

Investing in a light source box may seem like a way to save money, but in the long run, it could end up costing you more. Natural daylight is constantly changing, so if you want to use it as standard lighting, you’d have to rely on sunlight from the Northern Hemisphere—specifically between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. But what if it’s a cloudy day?

The benefit of a calibrated light box (such as the Judge QC) is that it provides a light source conforming to CIE standard illuminant values, which can be used to calculate chromaticity values in color management software. Because all conditions meet the standards, you can make decisions with confidence and easily assess whether colors are accurate.

Esko Judge QC Standard Light Booth

4. Your eyes may deceive you

Although the human eye is remarkable, it also comes with numerous limitations. If a quality control inspector has poor color vision, the light box may struggle to help them make accurate color decisions. The FM100 Hue Test is a user-friendly assessment tool and an efficient method for evaluating an individual’s ability to distinguish colors. As a global standard, this test has been adopted by governments and industries for over 60 years, enabling precise evaluation and classification of color perception abilities.

5. Have the tolerance models been chosen correctly?

Many companies still rely on older tolerance models—and even these outdated models often fall short. Color differences measured in spherical formats (such as the early Hunter Delta E and DeltaE*) are static and, when it comes to visual assessment, aren’t suitable for certain color spaces. Did you know that humans find it harder to detect darker color variations than lighter ones? While these older models can precisely define and name colors, they fail to account for the dynamic characteristics of modern color spaces.

Over the past 50 years, extensive research has been conducted on color measurement and tone control to help both brand owners and suppliers reach consensus on whether quality standards are met. Meanwhile, as technology continues to advance, tolerance methods have also been steadily improving. To date, the elliptical method has proven to be particularly effective, with DEcmc, DE94, and DE2000 all significantly outperforming others in terms of visual accuracy.

6. The Language of Color

Art designers use Munsell's L*C*h° language, as they’re concerned with lightness, chroma, and hue—but these concepts become irrelevant if we’re adjusting the color of a specific product batch in the lab. After all, we can’t simply grab a jar labeled “chroma” and add it directly to the product batch. Instead, the L*a*b* color space makes sense for us, since it precisely indicates how much red, green, yellow, or blue needs to be blended in to achieve the desired color.

Fortunately, all you need to know is the distinction between designers and scientists, since color management software can handle the conversion from L*C*h° to L*a*b* for you.

The image above illustrates two color specification methods. The first is L*a*b*, and the second is L*C*H*.

7. Are all tools under the same conditions?

Once you’ve invested in a color management system that includes color measurement equipment, software, and a light booth, it’s crucial to ensure they all use the same settings. For instance, if the spectrophotometer and software are configured to measure using L*a*b*, but your customer sets theirs to calculate using L*C*h°, or if your software is set to D65 while the light booth is calibrated to F2 (CWF), you won’t be able to make informed color decisions. When creating and managing colors, always compare under identical conditions.

Esko Ci7800 Desktop Spectrophotometer

 

Summary

Avoid the 7 major pitfalls of color management to ensure consistent product colors—your solution lies in "data-driven + standardization." Replace subjective assessments with instruments like colorimeters. Only through systematic control can you achieve accurate color reproduction across the entire process, from design to production, while reducing costs and enhancing your brand’s credibility.