Material Management, Nesting and Waste
How to get the most from a sheet of material: nesting and tessellating parts to leave the smallest offcuts, marking out from a datum point with templates and jigs, allowing for the cut, and cutting waste to save money.
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Free interactive practice on the decisions the assessment actually asks you to justify.
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Getting the most from a sheet
Material costs money, so a good designer plans how to cut it with as little waste as possible. That means fitting the parts together cleverly on the stock, marking them out accurately, and allowing for the width of the cut. This module works through nesting, marking out, and why cutting waste is worth the effort.
Material words to know
Learn these before you lay parts on a sheet.
Good nesting against poor nesting
How you lay the parts out decides how much you waste.
Pack tight, mark from a datum, count
In the exam, treat waste as money. Nest the parts so they tessellate, packing them together with the smallest gaps, and leave only what the cutting method and any joint allowance really need. Mark out from a single datum point so small errors do not build up, and use templates or jigs to repeat a shape accurately. To count how many parts a sheet gives, multiply the number that fit across by the number that fit down.
Match the term
- material management
- nesting
- marking out
- datum point
- planning material use to cut waste
- fitting parts closely on the stock to save material
- drawing the shapes on before cutting
- a fixed point all measurements start from
Match the method
- a template
- a jig
- tessellation
- a joint allowance
- is drawn round to repeat a shape
- holds parts to cut or drill them the same each time
- is shapes fitting together with no gaps
- is extra material left for joining pieces
Why nest parts closely?
Why do designers nest parts closely together on a sheet of material?
- To waste as little material as possible
- To make each part bigger
- To use up more sheets
- To slow the cutting down
True about material management
Select the TWO true statements about managing materials.
- Nesting parts tightly reduces waste material
- A jig helps repeat the same cut accurately
- Spreading parts far apart saves material
- A datum point is a type of waste offcut
Count the nested parts
When the parts are nested, a sheet holds 5 parts across and 4 parts down. Multiply the number across by the number down to find how many parts the whole sheet gives. What is the answer?
Order the process
Put the steps of managing material in order, earliest first.
- Plan how to nest the parts on the sheet
- Mark out the shapes from a datum point
- Cut the parts, allowing for the cut width
- Keep the offcuts to reduce waste
Complete the rules
Planning material use so little is wasted is material _____. Fitting parts closely on the stock is called _____. Drawing the shapes before cutting is _____ out. A fixed point that measurements start from is a _____ point.
Spot what cuts waste
Tap the TWO things that reduce material waste.
- nesting the parts tightly together
- using a template to place parts neatly
- leaving big gaps between the parts
- cutting each part in a random place
Judge the case
Read each case and choose the best answer.
- A maker arranges the parts so they fit together with almost no gaps. What is this called?
- A worker uses a jig to drill the same hole in the same place on every part. Why?
- Why is reducing waste material important to a business?
Explain material management
Explain how a designer manages materials to reduce waste.
- Explain what nesting and tessellation are
- Explain how marking out and templates or jigs help
- Explain why reducing waste matters