Developing an Industrial Microbial Colour System through Textile Printing

Microbial colourants offer a potential alternative to conventional synthetic textile colouration, but industrial adoption also requires systems through which colours can be selected, specified and reproduced. This paper presents the Colorifix Microbial Colour System (CMCS), an emerging architecture developed through practice-led doctoral research embedded within Colorifix, a microbial dyeing biotechnology startup. Using two validated microbial colourants on a selected 100% polyester fabric substrate, the research translates measured colour and application data into linked design-facing and production-facing documentation. The CMCS combines perceptual colour organisation, CIE L*a*b* measurement, substrate-specific physical standards and technical process information, drawing on sources such as Munsell, Pantone, Archroma and historical dye documentation. Its contribution is a microbial-colourant-specific information structure connecting colour appearance to validated application conditions. The paper presents the CMCS as a modular foundation rather than a complete industrial library; it can expand as further colourants, substrates and processes are validated.