Standard sheet material sizes in the UK

These are the sizes built into the optimiser. The millimetre value is the one to plan with; the feet-and-inches value shows how close the metric sheet is to its trade name.

Sheet area for comparison: 8x4 is 2.98 m², 10x4 is 3.72 m², 9x5 is 4.19 m², 10x5 is 4.65 m² and a 2800 × 2070 Egger board is 5.80 m². An Egger board holds almost twice the area of an 8x4, so the same cut list can need very different board counts.

Egger melamine-faced chipboard (MFC) is manufactured at 2800 × 2070 mm, with a long version at 4100 × 2070 mm. It is sometimes written into cut lists as an 8x4 out of habit. The result is a layout for a sheet that does not exist: the board count is wrong, and so are the part positions and any machine file generated from them.

When you import a CSV whose material name contains both “Egger” and “MFC”, Cutspan gives it the 2800 × 2070 factory sheet. A board you add by hand gets exactly the size you type, so enter 2800 × 2070 yourself. Egger also makes MDF and laminates in other formats; check those sizes with the supplier.

Three different numbers are often called “the sheet size”:

• Nominal — the trade name, such as 8x4. Useful for ordering, not for planning.
• Actual — the manufactured size in millimetres, such as 2440 × 1220. Enter this as the board length and width.
• Usable — the actual size minus any edge you must cut away because it is damaged, not square or not clean. Enter this loss as trim, not by shrinking the board, so the drawing still shows the real sheet.

Measure a sheet when it matters. Tolerances vary by product and supplier, and an old or damaged sheet may need more trim than a new one.

1. Start with the sizes your supplier actually stocks in the material, thickness and decor you need. A theoretical saving on a size you cannot buy is no saving.
2. Check the longest part. A 2600 mm wardrobe side will not come out of an 8x4 in any orientation; it needs a 10x4, a 10x5, an Egger board or a join.
3. If the material has a grain or directional decor, check the longest part along the grain. With grain locked, part length must fit along the sheet length.
4. Run the same cut list against two candidate sizes and compare board count and the size of the offcuts. A larger sheet sometimes saves a whole board; sometimes it only produces a larger offcut.
5. Add offcuts you already own under Offcuts on your rack. They are used first, and the result tells you how many boards you still need to buy.

• Planning an Egger job on 2440 × 1220 because “all boards are 8x4”.
• Entering the sheet as 1220 × 2440 on one job and 2440 × 1220 on another, then comparing grain results. Length always runs along the grain in Cutspan.
• Forgetting the saw kerf. With a 4.5 mm cut width, five parts across a 1220 mm sheet use 18 mm in cuts before any part is placed. See saw kerf.
• Using the area of the sheet to estimate board count. Parts do not fill a sheet like liquid; only a real layout gives a number you can order against — see how many sheets do I need.