Guides

Expert tutorials on cutting optimization, material planning, and waste reduction.

Practical cutting optimization guides for woodworkers and pros: how to build a cut list, reduce wood waste, optimize panel nesting and get more parts from every sheet and board. Step-by-step tutorials, from beginner basics to advanced cutting-stock techniques.

Exploded isometric drawing of a bookshelf, every part with its number and place letter

Exploded View Drawing for Furniture: Cut List to Assembly

Make an exploded view of a cabinet or shelf from your cut list: numbered parts, place letters, build steps, a model check and a printable Build Pack.

A kitchen base cabinet in elevation with its height split into plinth, carcass and worktop, next to the rectangles cut from a sheet

Grain Matching Cabinet Doors and Drawer Fronts

Grain matching cuts a drawer front and the doors under it from one stretch of board, so the figure runs on across the cabinet. Here is how to set it up.

How to Label Furniture Parts for Assembly

Label furniture parts at the saw so assembly goes fast: number and place letter, where the part goes, drilling, work stages and a QR code for the phone.

The same rectangular parts laid out as an edge-to-edge saw plan and as a free CNC layout on one sheet

Panel Saw or CNC Router: One Job, Both Ways

A real furniture job from Kopos Baldai planned as a saw layout and in CNC mode: 3 sheets or 2 at a 9 mm router gap. Plus how often CNC mode saves a sheet.

A cut list table next to the cutting layout it produces

SketchUp Model to Cutting Plan: Import a .skp File

Import a SketchUp .skp file into CutOptim: it reads the parts, finds the front, flags hardware and gives a cutting plan, an assembly view and a model check.

A rafter on a wall plate with its run, rise, line length, plumb cut and bird's mouth seat

Roof Framing Cut List: From Rafters to a Timber Order

A roof framing cut list turns span, pitch and overhangs into every rafter, batten and ridge piece — then into the fewest stock boards to buy.

A cut-plan DXF with the parts, onion-skin and stock layers separated for a CAM import

DXF for CNC and CAM: Layers, Onion Skin and Sheet Origin

Shape CutOptim's DXF once - parts layer, onion-skin layer, sheet origin, tool gap - so your CAM import needs fewer manual steps. Set it up in Settings.

Nesting Panels for a CNC Router: Free vs Saw Layouts

CNC mode packs rectangular panels freely instead of with saw cuts, so more parts can fit on the stock you have. See when it pays off and how to set it up.

Irregular sheet metal parts nested onto a large and a small sheet, with the sheet count, material cost and cut length read off the nest

How to Quote Laser-Cut Sheet Metal Parts

Turn a DXF into a quote: sheets and sheet sizes from a nest, the material cost, and machine time from cut length and pierce count. With a measured example.

What Size Sheet Should You Buy?

Compare standard plywood, MDF and chipboard sheet sizes against your own cut list, and see why the size needing the fewest sheets is not always the cheapest.

Irregular polygon parts nested tightly onto a metal sheet, interlocking to leave little waste

What Is Nesting? True-Shape Cutting Optimization

Nesting packs irregular shapes to cut from the fewest sheets — for laser, plasma, waterjet and more. How true-shape nesting works and who uses it.

A picket fence elevation with posts, rails and pickets, and the same parts nested into stock timber lengths with a small offcut

How to Build a Fence: Posts, Rails & Picket Cut List

Building a fence means cutting posts, rails, and pickets from stock timber. Here's how to plan the cut list, spacing, and post depth with least waste.

Fast vs Balanced Cutting Optimization: When to Switch

Balanced searches hardest for the densest saw-cuttable plan; Fast skips the one costly step to solve large jobs much faster. Here is exactly when to use each.

Minimize Cost vs Minimize Waste: Which Goal to Pick

Minimize waste packs the least material; Minimize cost packs the cheapest bill, even when that means more material. Here is when each goal saves you money.

Two carcasses of the same outside size, one with the top and bottom running through, one with the sides running through

Carcass Construction: Which Panel Runs Through?

In a carcass, one pair of boards runs the full outer size and the other fits between them — the choice that sets every part size on your cut list.

One row of a cut-to-size order broken into quantity, both dimensions, material, edging and grain

How to Order Cut-to-Size Panels Without Rework

A cut-to-size order is a specification, not a shopping list: every row states quantity, both dimensions, material, edging and grain direction.

Two glass sheet layouts compared: one needing a cut that stops mid-sheet, one using only edge-to-edge breaks

How to Cut Glass Sheets with Minimum Waste

Cutting glass with minimum waste means laying out every piece so each break runs edge to edge, because glass is scored and snapped rather than sawn.

Four pieces of furniture in elevation, each labelled with the one dimension that governs it

Standard Furniture Dimensions: How Big Should It Be?

Standard furniture dimensions come from three constraints — the body that uses the piece, the material it is built from, and the space it has to fit.

How Cutting Optimization Actually Works — Methods Compared

Guillotine vs free nesting, greedy heuristics through exact methods, and what yield, cut lines and saw passes really measure — plus what CutOptim runs today.

Three steel stock bars packed with cut segments and small end drops, showing 91% bar utilization

Metal Cutting Optimization: Bar, Tube, Rebar & Profile

Metal cutting optimization arranges bars, tubes, and profiles across standard stock lengths to cut with the least offcut waste. Here's how it works.

A stock panel filled with tightly packed parts showing an 83% material yield readout

What Is Material Yield (Sheet Utilization)?

Material yield is the share of a stock sheet that becomes finished parts, not scrap. Learn how to calculate sheet utilization and improve it.

Visual comparison of 1D bar cutting along a single axis and 2D panel nesting on a flat sheet

1D vs 2D Cutting Optimization: Differences & Algorithms

Understand the key differences between one-dimensional and two-dimensional cutting optimization, when to use each, and the algorithms behind them.

Collage of screenshots from popular free cut list optimization tools compared side by side

Best Free Cut List Software in 2026: Top Tools Compared

Compare the best free cut list and cutting optimization software in 2026: features, free-tier limits, and which tool fits your workshop or factory.

Side-by-side comparison of a spreadsheet cut list and a visual cut optimization diagram

Cut List Optimizer vs Excel: Why Spreadsheets Fall Short

Compare dedicated cut list optimizers with Excel spreadsheets for material planning. Learn where spreadsheets fail and when you need real optimization.

Friendly infographic showing the basic steps of cutting optimization from input parts to optimized layout

Cutting Optimization for Beginners: A Getting-Started Guide

New to cutting optimization? This beginner-friendly guide walks you through core concepts, terminology, and your first optimized cut plan step by step.

Two panel layouts side by side showing guillotine cuts with edge-to-edge lines and free-cut nesting with irregular placement

Guillotine vs Free-Cut Nesting: Choosing the Right Strategy

Deep dive into guillotine and free-cut nesting strategies for sheet material. Learn the constraints, trade-offs, and which approach fits your machinery.

Screen showing a cut plan being exported to a CNC file format with a router machine in the background

How to Export a Cut Plan to CNC: Formats, Workflow, and Tips

Learn how to export your optimized cut plan to CNC machines. Covers common file formats like DXF and G-code, post-processor setup, and workflow tips.

Woodworker reviewing a printed cut list next to lumber pieces on a workbench

How to Make a Cut List (Free Template) — Step-by-Step Guide

Step-by-step guide to an accurate cut list (or cutting list) for woodworking, plus a free cut list template you can import straight into the optimizer.

Comparison of a wasteful cutting layout versus an optimized layout with minimal offcuts

How to Reduce Wood Waste: 7 Strategies for Your Workshop

Discover practical strategies to reduce wood waste in your workshop, from smarter cut planning and offcut management to using optimization software.

Diagram illustrating the cutting stock problem with raw material being divided into smaller required pieces

What Is the Cutting Stock Problem? A Plain-Language Guide

Learn what the cutting stock problem is, why it matters for manufacturing, and how modern algorithms solve it to minimize material waste and cost.

What Is Kerf Allowance and Why It Matters for Accurate Cuts

Kerf allowance is the wood the saw blade removes with every cut. Move the interactive kerf slider and see how much a job with 20 cuts per sheet loses.