How it works – sheet metal nesting in five steps

1

Select parts

Import DXF files or whole folders and enter quantities.

Import one or more DXF files, or drag files and folders into the window
Enter quantities with − / + buttons or arrow keys
Import problems are listed and the part is highlighted with a preview
Each part remembers its job (folder) for later reports

Part list with quantities, rotation and mirroring for parts imported from DXF

2

Edit parts

Set rotation, mirroring and priority – for one part or many at once.

Rotation from “no rotation” to 1° steps, a custom step or a list of angles
Mirroring and priority Low / Standard / High directly in the row
Tick several parts and change them at once in the bulk bar
Material and thickness so parts only go on matching sheets

Editing several ticked parts at once with the bulk bar and the part properties panel

3

Sheets and gaps

Choose sheet formats and remnants from stock, set gap and margin.

Standard sheet sizes with one click, any custom size
Remnants of any shape imported from DXF
Available quantity and priority for every sheet
Gap between parts and sheet margin with an instant estimate of sheets needed

Sheet stock with quantities and priorities, gap and margin settings and sheet preview

4

Nesting

Start automatic nesting and fine-tune the result by hand.

Fast heuristic or optimization within a time limit
Part-in-part, pairing of shapes and automatic mirroring
Live progress; stop at any time and keep the best layout
Manual moves, rotation, locking and collision checking

Automatic true-shape nesting of sheet metal parts on a sheet with utilization and remnant line

5

Export

Export DXF for the machine, print the report, store remnants.

Batch DXF export of the selected sheets, CypCut profile
Shop-floor report for printing or PDF and CSV for Excel
Estimated cutting time and price
Save remnants to stock and the project for later changes

Export of sheets to DXF and CypCut, shop-floor report and remnants to stock

What happens inside the nesting step

A short look under the hood for technologists.

Real shapes

For each pair of parts and orientations the program computes a No-Fit Polygon – the exact area where one part may not be placed next to the other. Placement therefore follows the real outline including holes.

Construction and optimization

A fast heuristic places parts bottom-left on the sheet. The optimization then tries other orders and orientations of the parts and keeps a layout only if it uses fewer sheets or less sheet length.

Safe result

Arcs are approximated so that a part is never smaller than in the drawing, and the final layout is checked for collisions, gaps and margins on the real geometry before export.

What is nesting? →

Try SRSA NEST on your own drawings

Download the program, import DXF files from your production and compare sheet utilization with your current workflow.

Download for Windows Book a demo