Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Is Nest&Cut restricted to any particular cutting technology?

Nest&Cut works perfectly for various types of profile cutting technologies: laser, flame, plasma, water-jet cutting, 2D milling or routing, knife cutting, etc. 

Is Nest&Cut restricted to any particular industry sector?

Nest&Cut online automatic nesting can be widely used in various industries such as sheet metal working, textile manufacturing, packaging & printing, foam manufacturing, woodworking, synthetic & composite material manufacturing... and anyother ones where there is a need for nesting and optimization.

What post-processors does Nest&Cut support?

For all sectors Nest&Cut provides DXF and PDF output. We also provide NC code output for Amada, Bystronic, Ermaksa, Esab, Flow, Hypertherm, LVD, Messer, Omax, Prim, Promach, Silber, Vanad machines and much more through generic code (such as GCode, CypCut, LinuxCNC ESSI).

Who should use Nest&Cut?

Nest&Cut can be used by:

• Industrial end users (sub-contractors or manufacturers) who want to cut their nesting layouts on their machines.
• For manufacturers and orders givers who need help for estimating their raw material consumption.
• Cutting machine builders or resellers who want to build a competitive product offering by partnering with Nest&Cut and have their customers benefiting from its advanced features, easy to use and its attractive pricing build.

Do you offer discounts for students, educational institutions, or non-profits?

Yes, we offer substantial discounts for students, high schools or universities, as well as for Fablab or any non-profit organization. Contact us to get this discount!

For what kind of shapes is Nest&Cut suitable for?

• Nest&Cut is suitable for 2D true shape nesting and profile cutting. Nest&Cut supports non rectangular sheet formats.
• More advanced or specific features such as common cutting, multi-head cutting.
• Currently, Nest&Cut does not support guillotine cutting and 3D blocks nesting. These features could be added in the future. For such cases, Alma provides almaCube, an on-premise software application dedicated to 3D parallelepipedic block nesting and 2D rectangular nesting. To learn more please visit the page almaCube.
• If you are looking for some specific features in our online nesting application, please write to us at contact@nestandcut.com.
• If you are a software developer looking for 2D or 3D nesting library to integrate into your own software application, please visit powernestlib.com.

When I upload my DXF or DWG file, some of its contents are not converted into parts. What’s wrong?

Most of the time shapes intersect or do not form closed loops. Nest&Cut tries to correct it but sometimes it is too difficult, see below the examples:

• We relink open shapes. However, if the gap is too big it may fail.
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We clean the intersections. However, if they are too complex, it may fail.

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• We can import multiple shapes in one file. Nest&Cut will identify the same shape separately. However, if shapes are superimposed it may fail.
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What is the meaning of the machinings "cut", "mark" and "info" I can associate with my DXF layers?

·      "Cut" contours will be effictively cut by the cutting machine, they define the final shape of the produced part.

·         "Mark" contours will be engraved on the produced part (usually with reduced power), or printed for texts on equiped machines.

·         "Info" contains information for the Nest&Cut user only (nothing will appear on produced part).

Please note that   in order to be imported and nested, a part needs at least one closed contour in "cut" type.

Does Nest&Cut give the best possible results?

Finding the best nesting layout is a difficult mathematical problem for which there is no feasible exact algorithm. However, Nest&Cut strives to deliver an optimized result in a short time thanks to its proprietary cloud-based nesting engine and its strong automatic nesting expertise. Indeed, Nest&Cut is the online automatic nesting software of Alma, a CAD/CAM software company known for its 40-year expertise in the automatic nesting of complex shapes and cutting optimization.

How far does Nest&Cut go today?

• Maximum optimization time: 300 seconds.
• Maximum number of different parts: 1 500.
• Maximum total number of parts: 10 000.
• Data retention: 30 days.

Is it possible to use Nest&Cut with all browsers ?

Nest&Cut runs perfectly with every browsers but Internet Explorer, for at least the 3 most recent versions.

What kind of output does Nest&Cut generate and how to exploit it?

• After optimizing the nesting layouts, Nest&Cut generates cutting trajectories, adds lead-in and lead-outs, and outputs a NC code specifically adapted for cutting machines. We are regularly adding more supported machines, if yours is not supported please tell us at contact@nestandcut.com
• Nest&Cut can also generate an optimized nesting layout in DXF along with parts cutting order which can be used in a CAM software or directly in the cutting machine's controller.
• If you are looking for an applicative CAD/CAM software product that includes more expert nesting features to drive your CNC cutting machines in the field of sheet metal cutting or wood milling, please have a look at our AlmaCAM software and visit almacam.com to find a reseller in your region.

How can I visualize the order of the contours in the DXF generated by Nest&Cut ?

The order of the contours in the DXF generated by Nest&Cut is not good: all internal contours of parts (holes) are cut first, then all external contours. Why is that ?

You can check out our Youtube channel where we provide tutorial videos to teach you how to use Nest&Cut features! Don't hesitate to contact us if you need any particular help!

How can I check the terms of service of Nest&Cut app ?

For the terms of service of Nest&Cut app, please click here.

If the FAQ section below does not answer your questions, please contact our support team via contact@nestandcut.com and we’ll be happy to help out.