CNC Nesting Software for Shaped Parts, Straight from Your Design

Flatma is nesting software for CNC routers that lays out the parts of your 3D furniture project on sheets by their real outline. Curved and shaped parts nest by contour instead of by bounding box, small parts drop into the cut-outs of large ones, and every gap leaves room for the cutter. Each sheet exports as a DXF file, with no sizes to retype.

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True shape nestingDXF for every sheetOnline, no installation

Flatma cutting window with parts laid out on a melamine board sheet, material use and cut length

Rectangular Cutting Plans Waste a CNC Router

A panel saw optimizer treats every part as a rectangle, because a saw cuts straight through the sheet. A CNC router works differently: the cutter travels around each part on its own. Arched tops, curved shelves and panels with cut-outs can sit close together, and a small part can be cut from the window of a large one. Doing that in separate nesting software means copying sizes and outlines out of your design by hand, then nesting everything again after each design change. The result is extra sheets, wrong sizes and hours lost before the machine even starts.

Stack of particle board and MDF sheets of different sizes waiting to be nested and cut

Sheet cutting map with numbered parts, the size of each part and a material summary

How True Shape Nesting Works in Flatma

Choose CNC router as the machine in the Documents window, and the layout is worked out from the outlines of your parts. It updates by itself after every change to the model, so the sheets always match what you designed.

Shaped parts nest by their contour, not by their bounding rectangle
Small parts fill the cut-outs and windows of larger parts
The gap between parts equals the tool diameter you set
A separate margin keeps parts away from the sheet edge
Plain parts may turn 90°; parts with a grain decor keep the grain as in 3D
Several part orders are tried: fewest sheets first, then the most free space on the last sheet
Free space gathers in a strip at the sheet edge, and identical sheets are counted together

A summary line above the maps shows how many sheets and parts each material takes and how much of the stock the parts use, with a line of its own for every sheet.

Read about cutting maps →

Panel saw cutting map with through cuts, a parts specification and drilling drawings from one project

CNC Router or Panel Saw: Your Choice per Project

The Machine list in the Documents window switches the layout between the two. Parts, part numbers and sizes stay the same; only the cutting plan changes.

CNC router: nesting, where the cutter goes around each part and parts are laid out by outline
Panel saw: guillotine cutting, where every cut runs right through the piece, as on a sliding table saw
Saw settings: kerf, edge trim, and whether the first cuts run along or across the sheet
Router settings: tool diameter and margin from the sheet edge
Shared settings: usable offcut size and cutting parts smaller by their edge band
Settings are saved with the project, and the browser remembers them for your next one

Cutting rectangular cabinet parts on a panel saw? Our cut list optimizer article covers saw layouts, cut lists and kerf in detail.

Cut list optimizer for panel saws →

From 3D Model to CNC Nesting in Four Steps

Design once, then let the studio prepare the sheets for your router.

Step 01

Design the Project

Build the furniture by hand, from the catalog or with the AI designer, or open an existing project. Curved edges, cut-outs and grooves are operations on the part itself.

Step 02

Pick the CNC Router

Click Documents in the studio header and choose CNC router in the Machine list. Under Settings, enter the tool diameter and the margin from the sheet edge.

Step 03

Check the Sheets

Every sheet material is listed with its sheet count. Each part on the map carries its number, the same one used in the specification and on the drawings.

Step 04

Download the DXF Files

Download, then CNC files (DXF), gives one ZIP with a file for every sheet, a file for every part and a README listing the layers.

Wireframe view of a cabinet in the Flatma studio, the model the nested parts come from

Where the Shapes Come From

You never redraw a contour for nesting: the part already has one. Whatever you do to a part in the studio shows up on the cutting map and in the DXF.

Panel outlines by points: arcs, arched tops, rounded corners
Through cut-outs: windows, handle slots, round holes of any size
Milling: grooves, rebates, pockets and chamfers on any side of a part
Sheets bent along lines are nested as flat patterns with their bend lines
Each part lies on the sheet with its more machined face up
Stretch the product and its outlines and cut-outs stretch too; the layout follows

Nesting by outline is for sheet parts: particle board, MDF, plywood and other boards. Profiles and timber are laid out along the length of the bar.

Part drawings with holes and edge banding; the same machining goes into the DXF on separate layers

DXF Nesting Files for Every Sheet and Every Part

Files for the machine come as one archive, built from the same model as the cutting maps. Part numbers in the files match the specification, the maps and the part labels.

A DXF for every sheet, with numbered parts in their places, as on the map
A DXF for every part, with the number of copies to cut in the file name
Each kind of work on its own layer: outer contour, cut-outs, holes by diameter and depth, pockets, chamfers, bend lines
Drawn 1:1 in millimetres, with arcs kept as arcs and holes as circles
Work on the back face of a panel gets its own file for that side
With edge banding subtracted, banded sides come out short by the band thickness and the machining lands right after banding
A README lists layers, sheets and parts, plus work a flat file cannot show, such as holes in panel edges

Flatma is not a CAM system. Toolpaths, feeds and the machine program come from your CAM software, where you give each DXF layer its tool.

What is in the DXF archive →

Separate Nesting Software vs Nesting from the Design

What changes when the sheet layout is built from the same model as your drawings.

Design and nesting apart

Flatma

Part sizes and outlines

Exported or retyped from the design

✓ Taken from the 3D model

Design changes

Export and nest again

✓ Maps and files update by themselves

Part numbers

Different in each program

✓ The same on maps, drawings, specification and labels

Drawings and specification

Prepared separately

✓ From the same project

Where it runs

Where the program is installed

✓ In a web browser

Machine program (G-code)

Made in CAM software

Also CAM: Flatma provides layered DXF

Who Uses Flatma for CNC Nesting

Anyone who cuts sheet goods on a CNC router or prepares files for one.

Cabinet Shops with a Router

Design the cabinet and get the sheet layout and DXF files for your own machine in the same place.

Furniture Manufacturers

One set of part numbers on maps, drawings and labels keeps parts straight on the shop floor.

Furniture Designers

Hand the workshop cutting maps and DXF files of sheets and parts along with the 3D model.

Plywood and MDF Makers

Shaped shelving, kids furniture and decorative panels nest by their own outline.

Laser, Plasma and Water-Jet

Part DXF files at 1:1 in millimetres suit these cutters as well as routers.

Hobby CNC Owners

See how many sheets to buy before you start, then send the DXF to your CAM software.

Frequently Asked Questions about CNC Nesting

What is nesting software?

Nesting software arranges parts on sheets so they take as few sheets as possible. For a CNC router, parts are nested by their real outline rather than as rectangles, with a gap left for the cutter.

What is true shape nesting?

True shape nesting places each part by its actual contour, so curved and irregular parts can sit close together and small parts can go inside the cut-outs of larger ones. Flatma does this automatically in CNC router mode; such a layout cannot be rearranged by hand.

How is CNC nesting different from a panel saw cut list?

A panel saw cuts straight through the sheet, so every part is laid out as a rectangle. A router goes around each part separately. Flatma has both: pick the machine in the Documents window, and see our cut list optimizer article for saw work.

Does nesting respect grain direction?

Yes. A part with a grain decor lies with the grain running as in the 3D model and is never turned across it. Plain parts may be turned 90° to save sheets.

Does Flatma generate G-code?

No. Flatma is design software, not CAM: it exports DXF files of sheets and parts with each kind of machining on its own layer. Your CAM software makes the toolpaths and the machine program.

Is it free, and do I need to install anything?

Flatma runs in your web browser. Cutting maps and DXF export are on every plan, including Free; on Free, projects are saved by publishing them, so you publish the project before downloading.