A customer will either send or bring a sample of the required colour into our distribution centre in Chessington, Surrey. The sample may or may not be on the same item as they want the paint for but they
do need to tell us what the end product will be e.g a car, a concrete floor, metalwork, a wooden staircase etc.

We place the sample under the spectrometer which analyses the colour. A spectrometer is a
scientific instrument used to separate and measurespectral (colour) components of a physical object; this is sophisticated equipment, our entry level machines cost over £5000.

Once the colour from the sample has been analysed a paint code is generated to match against colour chips and charts which we compare against the sample for customer approval.

The colour codes are entered into a ‘data box’ in our paint mixing room which provides a list of tinters which are the ingredients in our paint recipe. The tin is placed on the scales and the tinters are added in a unique and specific order and in the correct amounts or weights (usually grams) before mixing. This is a careful and by-hand process unlike the machines you might see in B&Q and takes years of training and practise to get it just right. 

For non-automotive or industrial coatings we also add binders to the recipe depending on the type of material or application needed. The type of binder is specific to the material it will be applied to.