Visual appeal is one of the most crucial factors that determine the kind of response that a particular product will elicit from a customer. While it is true even in face-to-face inspections, the increasing number of customers utilizing online opportunities to look at products has increased the prominent role that visual appeal plays in influencing customers to make decisions. One of the prime determinants of visual appeal is the color of a particular product. The quality, consistency and vibrancy of the color can paint a vivid picture of the product in the mind of the customer. This is why manufacturers, particularly in the coatings industry, go to great lengths to ensure that the industrial colors that are used to coat various products are of high-quality and are consistently applied. Both organic pigments and synthetic pigments are used in the paints and coatings industry. While organic pigments are preferred for their natural and safe properties, they are often too expensive to be used on a large scale in industries. Instead, synthetic pigments are used in large-scale production. Not only are they less expensive than the organic pigments, they can also be made available in almost any shade, especially in pure color tones, and gives dazzling visual effects. There are various devices used to measure color effectively. We will discuss a few of them here – colorimeters, spectrophotometers, color matching cabinets, and portable color measurement devices.
COLORIMETERS
Colorimeters are devices that sense light and are generally used to measure the absorbance and transmittance of light as it moves through a sample of liquid. There are two types of colorimeters – color densitometers which measure the density of primary colors and color photometers which measure color transmission and reflection. The range of capabilities of a colorimeter is much less than that of a spectrophotometer which is why it is not preferred much nowadays.
SPECTROPHOTOMETERS
Color Spectrophotometers are devices that have been designed for full spectrum color measurement via physical sample analysis. Compared to colorimeters, spectrophotometers provide a much higher level of flexibility and versatility. This is because spectrophotometers offer multiple illuminant combinations and can operate in multiple geometric arrangements providing a more accurate measurement.
COLOR MATCHING CABINETS
In the paints and coatings industry, it is very important to maintain color consistency and quality. In such industries, color matching cabinets are a highly recommended device as it provides a standardized environment for evaluation and visual assessment of color. Sometimes, test samples that look like they match with each other under a particular light will not match under other light sources. This phenomenon is referred to as metamerism. A color matching cabinet can provide a quick and accurate color matching solution, weighing in the color from different light sources.
PORTABLE COLOR MEASUREMENT DEVICES
Lightweight and portable, these devices work with color sensors and provide fast and accurate results for color quality control management to the end users. Being versatile and easy to operate, they provide an affordable alternative for accurate and stable testing of colors.
