Colour coding of textile slings

According to the European standard, polyester slings are assigned specific colours to quickly and easily identify their working load limit (WLL). The table below shows the maximum WLL and the corresponding colour coding:

• 1-ton sling
• 2-tons sling
• 3-tons sling
• 4-tons sling
• 5-tons sling
• 6-tons sling
• 8-tons sling
• 10-tons sling and above

Besides colour coding, there are other ways to indicate the WLL of a polyester lifting sling. The most reliable method is through the sling's label.

Polyester slings must have a blue label sewn on, displaying statutory markings and related information.

A part of this label with duplicate information is stitched under the cover overlap for reference purposes. The visible part of the label contains essential data such as manufacturer ID, year of manufacture, material, Effective Working Length (EWL), serial number, European standard number, and the maximum Work Load Limit (WLL).

Another method of indicating the WLL, which is not included in the EN 1492 standard, is through the number of black stripes on the webbing material of the sling. In the picture of round slings in various colours, you can observe one or more continuous black stripes on the webbing material, with each stripe representing one ton of the sling's WLL. Slings with a WLL of 12 tons and above do not have black stripes.

In the load tables, you can find both the colour code and the load limit in tons (WLL) for different slings.

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