Celebrating 80 years
NCS was founded in 1945 with the objective of creating a universal language for colour communication, based on how we perceive colour. To celebrate 80 years of NCS Colour, we decided to talk to our customers to hear how they work with NCS and the System. These inspiring stories shed light on the importance of colour and the role it plays – not only in design, but throughout the entire value chain of each business.
At IKEA, colour has always been one of the drivers of aesthetic strategy, the decisions of colour palettes and products are hence the key in the organisation.
For a coatings company like Alcro colour is the bread and butter of the organisation and a vital part of both internal and external communication.
In manufacturing each component play a vital part, implementing a clear system to managing colours though the production line is therefore vital.
“There are a lot of different ways of communicating colour, but NCS is the only sort of systematic way of working with it"
– Jerry Svensson, Global Range Identity Leader, IKEA
Colour is at the heart of everything Schotten & Hansen does. It’s essential for making the right choices and plays a vital role across design, manufacturing, and sales.
Working with colour is rewarding but has long been a manual task. Tarkett is realising the benefits of bringing design digital through NCS+.
Colour make or break a space, finding the right combinations and a systematic approach to the creative process is key for the end result.
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Colour revival in Trend Retrospective
Trends in colour continuously evolve, with certain palettes making a return over time. Now, as part of our anniversary, we are revisiting our archives to bring back past colour collections.
Since 2011, NCS has helped designers, brands and creatives stay ahead by providing an annual colour forecast together with international CMF experts. Thanks to the colour language of NCS, every shade is precisely identified and archived. Explore the four distinct colour directions from each year in NCS Trend Restrospective, now available in NCS+.
Story of NCS Colour
NCS Colour was founded in 1945, and by 1979 the System was developed: forever changing the way we see and communicate colour, bridging the gap between colour science and human perception.