Color Manual VOLUME 1 OCTOBER 2017
Table of Contents Color Manual...1 Introduction...3 Color Standards Services...3 Standard Procedures for Color Standards...3 Color Standard Storage and Replacement...4 Lightboxes...4 Light Sources and Tolerances...4 Guidelines for Visual Assessment...4 Color Communication...4 Lead Times for Evaluation Comments...5 Lab Dip Requirements...5 Strike Off Requirements...6 Cacique Trim Requirements...6 Bulk Requirements...6 Lane Bryant Digital Tolerances...6 Spectrophotometer Requirements...7 Spectrophotometer Settings...7 COLOR MANUAL VOLUME 1 OCTOBER 2017 2
Introduction Vision is our primary source for all our experiences and color plays a major part in stimulating our awareness. Not only are the technical aspects of the color approval process important, it is critical to maintain the integrity and the aesthetic of the color standards we are striving to achieve. Your commitment to this process will help us to elevate our color quality and consistency across all product categories. This manual contains clear guidelines and standard operating procedures for technical and visual color evaluation and has been developed to provide a common point of reference for color evaluation. Contact Information: Betsy Allen Amy Smith Color Manager, Lane Bryant CAD/Color Manager, Cacique T: 614-463-4829 T: 614-463-4538 E: betsy.allen@lanebryant.com E: amy.smith@lanebryant.com Shaun Bentley Colorist, Cacique T: 614-463-5629 E: shaun.bentley@lanebryant.com Color Standards Services In order to maintain the aesthetics of the color palettes created by Trend & Design, Lane Bryant/Cacique standards are selected from reproducible color standards from the following color services. You will need to register and create an account before purchasing color standards. Please note the following contact information for each: 1. Color Solutions International = www.colorsolutionsinternational.com 2. Precisiontex = www.precisiontex.com 3. Pantone = pantoneorders@pantone.com The majority of our color standards are 100% cotton and minorities are 100% nylon or polyester. Substituting our color standards from another source or using paper standards is not acceptable. If the spectral data is available with purchase of your standard, it must be imported into the spectrophotometer as the master electronic standard. Official color standards should never be physically read in unless there is a challenge to the validity of the.qtx readings. For any fabrics (such as heather, plied or coated fabric) where spectral data is not available, only the physical standard will be used for visual evaluation. Standard Procedures for Color Standards 1. All color standards must be ordered by you from the correct color service 2. You must purchase both the color standard and the spectral data QTX file Lane Bryant is unable to send any color standards COLOR MANUAL VOLUME 1 OCTOBER 2017 3
3. Technical assistance is available through Pantone and CSI through Dystar, Huntsman and Clariant 4. Once the seasonal color palette is received, sensitive colors must be called out to the Color Office within 7 working days from receipt of standard Color Standard Storage and Replacement 1. Standards should be stored in a dark cabinet to avoid fading due to light exposure 2. Color standards should be replaced immediately if they become damaged or discolored 3. Any high use color standards, including Black and White, should be replaced yearly due to discoloration over time 4. Standards should never be cut and shared among offices. If a standard is cut, it is no longer valid Lightboxes Visual assessments should be performed using a Gretag MacBeth Spectralight III Lightbox or a Spectralight QC. The lightboxes must be in a darkened room with controlled lighting that can be turned off during evaluations. When reviewing: 1. The cabinet surface should be free of all other submits or paperwork 2. The standard and the sample must be aligned to one another with their edges touching 3. The sample must be aligned in the correct fabric direction and folded until opaque 4. The sample should be observed at an angle of 45 degrees while the observer should view at a 90 degree angle relative to the fabric surface. Light Sources and Tolerances Lane Bryant s primary and secondary light sources must be used for all spectral and visual color evaluations: 1. Primary = U30 2. Secondary = D65 Guidelines for Visual Assessment 1. Lane Bryant evaluates color under two light sources. a. The primary light source is U30 b. The secondary light source is D65 2. When evaluating White submits, always review under Ultra-Violet (UV) lighting to ensure there are enough optical brightening agents visible to meet the requirement of our standard. 3. All color decision makers should have their vision tested using the Farnsworth Munsell 100 Hue Test on a yearly basis. A superior score is required on this test to review color. Color Communication Effective color communication is an important part of color control. Without standardization, describing visual differences can be confusing. Therefore, Lane Bryant will describe color in terms of internationally accepted terms: Lightness (L*), Chroma (C*) and Hue (H*) 1. Lightness (L*) represents the dimension of lightness or darkness for a color. Lightness is referred to as Value. 2. Chroma (C*) represents the degree of purity or neutrality. As hue is added, the color becomes brighter, more intense. The medium of the colorant (dye, pigment) affects the purity of the color; therefore, Chroma defines the color range attainable in a particular medium. COLOR MANUAL VOLUME 1 OCTOBER 2017 4
3. Hue (H*) is the shade or cast of a color such as red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet. The degree of change will be stated as a modifier. 1. Slightly 2. Moderately 3. Extremely If a submit needs to be accepted due to technical limitations it will be noted as BCD, which stands for Best Can Do. If a submit needs to be accepted due to timing it will be noted as DTT, which stands for Due to Timing. Any submits accepted due to special circumstances must be reviewed by a Lane Bryant associate for color approval. Lead Times for Evaluation Comments 1. Lab dips and Strike-Off s = 48 hours from date received 2. Bulk = 24 hours from date received Lab Dip Requirements 1. Lab- Dips must be at least 3 x 3 in size and submitted in the correct format. One color per form. 2. Lab dips must be attached to submission form face-up with double stick tape for easy removal 3. All information must be filled out completely and accurately no exceptions. a. This information is vital for receiving on-time color comments b. If forms are not filled out completely and correctly, we will not be able to advise color comments until we receive an updated form 4. Lab dips must be correct fiber, fabrication, and weight as ordered 5. Lab dips must be produced in the same mill/dye facility as bulk will be produced 6. Lab dips should only be sent if they match the original standard in U30, D65 and are within our tolerance guidelines. 7. Mill must submit 3-4 lab dips per round and each dip must be marked sequentially: A/B/C (1 st round), D/E/F (2 nd round), G/H/I (3 rd round) 8. Should the mill receive a request for a color on a fabric that is not executable within our commercially acceptable tolerance level, please alert the color team as soon as possible. Be prepared to send the first round of.qtx files and the physical lab dips for our review. Please include a clear explanation of why the color is unachievable i.e: (color, fabrication, dye formula) *This process will allow us to troubleshoot at the beginning stage of the lab dip process instead of at the end when there is very little or no time to course correct. 9. If a color is rejected, resubmits should be sent within 7 business days from receipt of corrective comments. 10. When reviewing lab-dips that are used in multi-fabrication styles, the main body should be approved first. Coordinating fabrications will need to match or be corrected if dipping precedes main body approval. 11. It is the vendor/partners responsibility to store all color approval keepings in a dark clean environment to avoid discoloration. These records must be available to review if a Lane Bryant associate ever visits your facilities. COLOR MANUAL VOLUME 1 OCTOBER 2017 5
Strike Off Requirements 1. Strike-off must be submitted on the correct submission form (see attached), one print per form 2. All information must be filled out completely and accurately no exceptions. 3. Strike-off must be submitted in the correct print method, fiber, fabrication, weight as requested and in full repeat 4. Strike-off must be produced in the same mill/dye facility as bulk will be produced 5. Each strike-off must be marked sequentially: 1 st round, 2 nd round, 3 rd round 6. Color must achieve our target standard within a commercially acceptable tolerance established by Lane Bryant/Cacique. If color falls outside of our commercial tolerance level, you will be responsible for fixing the color while maintaining delivery 7. Resubmits should be sent within 10 working days from receipt of corrective comments. Cacique Trim Requirements 1. Trims should be submitted as specified by category: -Sleepwear/Swimwear: Please submit to design to review (Major Componentry and laces should be sent to the Color Office) -Foundations: Please submit major componentry to the Color Office. Vendor is responsible for managing minor components. -Seriously Sexy: Please submit major componentry to the Color Office. Vendor is responsible for managing minor components. ***All DTM trims must match the approved main body lab/dip or bulk lot. Bulk Requirements 1. Bulk must be submitted on the correct submission form, one color per form once you have received lab dip or strike-off approval from the Color Office 2. Bulk must be 5 inches by 5 inches in size and attached to submission form face-up with double stick tape for easy removal 3. Bulk must be correct fiber, fabrication, and weight. Bulk must represent the final fabric characteristics that will be presented in the retail store 4. You are responsible for maintaining color consistency between approved lab dip/strike off, color standard and bulk 5. Resubmits should be sent within 7 working days from receipt of corrective comments 6. If rejected, and there is a technical issue or a timing issue, please email the Lane Bryant Color Office directly with a clear explanation of why mill cannot hit the approved lab dip or color standard. 7. If the Lane Bryant teams reject due to the color being outside of our commercial tolerance, mill must fix the color while maintaining delivery 8. Initial bulk must be submitted to Lane Bryant for approval. Any subsequent lots must be managed by the vendor/mill. If there is an issue where subsequent lots are outside of the LB commercial tolerance level, please submit to the Color Office for immediate review. Lane Bryant Digital Tolerances de CMC 0.80 or lower dh 0.50 or lower COLOR MANUAL VOLUME 1 OCTOBER 2017 6
Spectrophotometer Requirements 1. Datacolor 600 series or comparable series 2. Datacolor Tools Plus 2.0 software 3. Datacolor Guardian Tile calibration must be performed monthly to insure the spectral data for all measurements are correct. 4. The spectrophotometer must be calibrated daily 5. The spectrophotometer should be serviced and certified annually by the supplier. 6. The white and green calibration tiles should be clean, free of scratches and stored in the protective case when not in use and the black trap should be free of dust and stored in the protective case when not in use 7. Keep records of all maintenance and service Spectrophotometer Settings 1. Color Difference: CMC (2:1) 2. Specular Component: Included 3. UV Component: 100% UV (filter off) 4. Illuminants: Primary = UL3000 / Secondary = D65 5. Observer: 10 Degree 6. Aperture: LAV *Lab dip size must be adequate to accommodate the LAV, especially for the sheer fabrics to be folded 2 times. 7. Measurements: 2 flashes, 4 readings rotate In order to ensure the lab dip size is large enough to measure on the spectrophotometer using the LAV aperture, the mill must submit dips that are no smaller than 6x6. *For sheer fabrications the fabric will need to be folded twice which requires a larger lab dip of at least 8x8. a. For any measurement, make sure the sample is not protruding into the sphere of the spectrophotometer b. Remove any obstructing items from all samples to be measured as they will cause false measurements leading to inaccurate data c. Check alignment by flipping down the aperture port d. The face of the fabric must always be measured e. Sample must be flat and not under tension (especially for knits) f. The sample must completely cover the aperture port. COLOR MANUAL VOLUME 1 OCTOBER 2017 7
Design/Color Betsy Allen COLOR MANUAL VOLUME 1 OCTOBER 2017 8