Without color, where would a product design be? Color has forever shaped the look of design in product, whether it be the pop of citrus brights, clear and gentle "spa" shades, classic navy, youthful primaries, or subtle tones of white. Thousands of us in the apparel and textile fields have spent countless amounts of time getting color right, so that product on the selling floor projects the right message to boost consumer sales: fashion forward, flattering to wear, washes well, and coordinates with other products. Why does something so fundamentally basic to our product development process continue to be so challenging?

In the world of design, we like to say it is because color is color it is not black and white. Every miniscule shade of color can mean something different to the eye of the creator and the beholder. While the industry continues to battle the complexities of manufacturing product with color consistency, there are equal challenges facing the creation of a color. Gone are the days when designers solely depend on large tubs of paint to save a mixed color and distribute a "standard" to mills and dye houses. Today's designers rely on the efficiencies of CAD/CAM systems to create and communicate their product ideas, yet working digitally can further complicate color issues.

The topic of color communication is of particular interest to CITDA, the Computer Integrated Textile Design Association. CITDA was formed in 1992 to bring together designers, stylists, system operators, mill specialists, managers, executives and vendors to share ideas and information on the emerging CAD/CAM industry. Members of the association represent a unique mix of people from industries as diverse as apparel, home fashions, automotive and transportation materials, wallcoverings, carpets, floorcoverings, software development and hardware design. CITDA began by providing information to an industry desperate for knowledge about digital design/production processes, and has grown to offer multiple conferences and events surrounding the evolution of this technology.

CITDA's first effort at standardization began in 1994, when the association adopted a common file format (TIFF 6.0) that would enable CAD systems to communicate images with each other, regardless of software or operating system. Before that time, CAD systems were mostly closed systems, meaning they could only read and write their own proprietary file formats. A designer might work on a certain CAD system with specific design functionality, and have to send files to a mill that was uses a different, production-ready system. The lack of ability to share images was counter to the efficiencies of CAD/CAM, and the decision to make TIFF 6.0 a standard file format helped eliminate the problem and further promote use of the technology.

Users of CAD/CAM are faced with the same closed system obstacle once more, yet this time it is with color. Many vendors have developed their own version of color management that enables reasonable color consistency from initial color swatch, to monitor, to digital printer, and to mill or dye house, when maintained within a specific vendor's choice of devices, drivers, and profiles. Communication breaks down, however, when a color needs to be sent from the system of one vendor to the system of another. Since two separate vendors may not be using the same color measurement devices, monitor types, color formats, printer profiles, printer drivers, and even printers, there is no telling what a color will look like when passed from one system to another.

In the early days of CAD, design and technical departments were likely to employ systems from only one vendor and color management was easier. Today, CAD studios utilize a mix of systems from different vendors in order to match the best technology to the right task. For instance, design for prints might be created on one system, wovens on another, storyboards and presentations on another system, and digital fabric preparation on yet another system. Often the same colors for a design or product grouping have to be utilized on all of these systems, causing colors to be re-matched over and over, and efficiency to be lost. If you add this to the already arduous task of keeping up with market demands for the right "color of the moment", its no wonder designers get frustrated!!

So, how is CITDA hoping to help? In September 1999 CITDA formed a Color Committee to address the concerns of digital color communication by looking at all areas of the supply chain process and the technology that supports these areas. According to CITDA Chairperson Craig Crawford, "We are looking for a standard that does for color what TIFF 6.0 did for images. There is a strong need for standardization of how color is measured, communicated, manipulated, and executed in our industry, and we made every effort to recruit a cross section of people from all aspects of the industry for the color committee." The committee includes technology developers, educators, color consultants, manufacturers, designers, mill specialists, and managers

The committee has found that a standard for color may not be as clean-cut as the TIFF 6.0 file standard, and may need to include a series of recommended protocols in order to achieve accurate color communication between systems. To address the many areas of concern for devices and processes related to color, CITDA has broken the larger committee into sub-committees. Areas of focus for the sub-committees include: viewing standards, color measurement devices, color monitors and displays, digital printer profiling systems, and common substrates. The committees will look at color formats, such as RGB, CMYK, XYZ, and CIE L*a*b*, to determine a consistent and accurate standard for communicating color between different CAD systems.

So as not to reinvent the wheel on specifications that have already been created, the committee will research copyrights and patents for existing color interchange formats. The group will seek to incorporate some of the work completed by the ICC, which is the International Color Consortium. Consisting of over 75 companies from the desktop publishing industry and formed to address the issue of standardization, the group produced the ICC Profile Format Specification in 1994. This format helped establish predictable color calibration between monitors and printers, when profiles follow the recommended specification. The work of the ICC provides an great source of information for the CITDA Color Committee, and an excellent role model for standardization in the textile and apparel industries.

Testing will be a major focus in determining a standard. CITDA plans to partner with educational institutions, research facilities, and member corporations who have offered their facilities for testing suggested standards and processes. In addition, the group plans to involve its member CAD vendors in the testing process, so that a universal, device independent color communication format may be identified that suppliers may incorporate into their current color management systems.

While the committee may establish a protocol that is acceptable to device and software manufacturers, it is important for a color communication standard to support every-day color workflow procedures as well. The committee formed a process implementation sub-committee to play devil's advocate to recommended standards, so that they are practical in both time and cost to a production and/or design setting. In addition, the subcommittee will address the viability of sending electronic color standards to mills and dye houses, and whether or not this option can eventually replace physical standards.

CITDA believes that color communication will not improve by standardization alone. The group has begun an initiative to educate the industry on issues related to color, so that knowledge and practice support digital communication. According to Victoria Revene, principal of Pie in the Sky Color Services and color committee member, "A critical and often overlooked aspect of achieving color consistency is understanding the demands, challenges and practices of our business partners. Each participant in the color development and approval process, including Design and Manufacturing teams, can successfully attain this ambition through cross-departmental and industry education." During the search for a standard, CITDA will broaden its education outreach through a series of seminars, workshops and published articles to keep members tapped into information at all times.

In March 2000, CITDA gave a presentation at the AATCC Color Science Symposium and received excellent feedback from AATCC members about the need for color communication standards in the textile industry. Since CITDA and AATCC both have an overall goal to improve the process of delivering merchandise to the consumer, overlaps in color initiatives by each organization were identified. CITDA believes there are potential synergies in the two associations working together.

The search for color communication standardization is expected to take anywhere from three to five years and will involve many players from all aspects of the industry. The committee seeks to involve those with experience in color communication who can offer insight and research into the obstacles that make this issue so complex, and who will help identify a suitable common ground for standardization. CITDA hopes that its Color Committee, combined with the efforts of AATCC and others, will help overcome this issue so that all who participate in the supply chain process, from design to manufacturing, may benefit from improved efficiencies in color communication.

This article was originally published in Textile Chemist and Colorist & American Dyestuff Reporter, Vol. 32, No. 6, June 2000. Katy Chapman is a consultant working as director of CITDA. She can be reached by phone at 718-488-8904 or email at katy@citda.org.