Use your offcuts first
Every workshop has a rack of good pieces from earlier jobs. Cutspan plans them in before a single new sheet, so the board count you order against is what you actually need to buy.
How it works
List the rack
Add offcuts for each board by length, width and quantity, or pick a size from your board library.
Offcuts first
Parts are placed on the offcuts before any new sheet is started.
Buy the rest
The result says how many sheets come off the rack and how many to buy.
In the example above
Eight shelves and four tall sides need four boards. Two of them are the offcuts already in the workshop, so only two new sheets are bought. Change the list or the rack and calculate again to see your own numbers.
What the result tells you
Off the rack
Which sheets in the plan are offcuts, marked on the layout.
To buy
The number of new sheets still needed for each material.
Left over
The largest usable piece left on every sheet, and the usable offcuts in total.
Tips for a useful rack
Measure, do not guessEnter the real usable size of each piece after squaring a damaged edge. An offcut that is 5 mm shorter than you wrote is a part cut short.
Trim settings apply to rack pieces as well as to new sheets. Keep offcuts of the same board and decor on that board in the list: a white MFC offcut cannot stand in for a woodgrain one.
Questions
Do offcuts cost anything to use?
No. The offcut rack is part of the free optimiser.
Are offcuts used for every material?
Each board has its own rack; pieces are only used for parts on that board.
Can I keep the new offcuts?
Each sheet shows its largest usable piece left; add the ones you keep to the rack next time.
Plan your cut list now
Free, in the browser, with no account. Layouts, edging totals and machine files from one list.