Menu path
Generate Panels > Linear Nesting
🧾 What Linear Nesting does
Linear Nesting takes all panels from your roof, orients them according to lap direction arrows, and combines them into a single continuous length of coil material. This creates an optimised panel sequence list that forms the basis of your cutting list, significantly reducing waste.
⚠️ Prerequisites before starting
Before using Linear Nesting, ensure you have:
Generated panels for your roof model
Defined lap direction arrows on your panels (critical for successful nesting)
Set up your metal panel profile with default maximum sheet lengths
Important: Without lap direction arrows, the software cannot rotate panels effectively, resulting in minimal nesting success. Insert arrows showing how a roofer would naturally lay out the roof for best results.
🔧 How to use Linear Nesting
Complete your roof model with panels generated
Insert lap direction arrows using the lap direction tools
Go to Generate Panels > Linear Nesting
Confirm you want to nest the sheets
Configure the Linear Nesting defaults dialog box settings
Click OK to process the nesting
Review the generated sequence and cutting diagrams
🧾 Linear Nesting settings
Setting | Description |
Maximum sheet length | Determines sequence order - reducing length increases waste. Uses profile default from Set-Up > Metal-Panels. Enter zero (0) to ignore maximum length. Very small lengths produce results similar to Tally-Panels (but Linear Nesting accounts for overlap). |
Max. button | Calculates and displays the longest possible sheet length from your roof model to help determine optimum panel length. |
Nesting of narrow pieces | Choose to either combine narrow pieces into the nesting sequence or ignore them and add to end of coil. |
Detailing of narrow pieces | If narrow pieces go to end of sequence, choose collective or individual annotation. |
Create New Sheet for Square Cut Pieces | Controls for bundling panels into manageable packs. Use with Combine Lengths option. |
Combine Lengths of Sheets | Additional controls for bundling panels into manageable packs. |
No. of Planes to Process Together | Forces nesting within adjacent roof planes (roof sections). Reduces need for installers to carry pieces across the job site. |
🛠 Generated outputs
Linear Nesting creates several automatic outputs:
Panel sequence diagram: Saved as model 'RW-Sheet-Sequence' in same database
Panel cutting diagrams: Saved as model 'RW-Sheet-Cutting' in same database
PCF file: Piece Coordinate File detailing perimeter coordinates (filename:
.PCF)
All diagrams are automatically formatted for A4 and letter size printing at 1:100 scale. Multi-page sequences are automatically broken into printable strips.
🛠 Narrow piece handling options
The software provides different ways to handle narrow pieces:
Added to end: Narrow pieces simply added to sequence end
Incorporated in nesting: Narrow pieces nested within the sequence
Collectively annotated: Narrow pieces grouped together
Separately annotated: Each narrow piece individually detailed
🛠 Reviewing results
Panel sequence and cutting diagrams show detailed annotations:
Panel layout drawing with roof annotations
Pre-processed sequence fitting A4/letter format
Detailed page showing panel sequence and annotations
Cutting details formatted for standard paper sizes
Enlarged cutting page showing nested sheet dimensions
🔧 Gen-Panels 'Show' options
Available from the Pulldown menu only, these options let you:
Review Nesting Calculations
View nested Panel Sequence
Examine nested Panel Cut drawings
Return to original model without losing work
Use Show Original Model to return to your job with panels drawn according to original definitions. Print reports via Reporting > Print Drawings.
💡 Optimising Linear Nesting success
For best results:
Insert lap direction arrows matching natural roofing installation sequence
Use consistent lap directions on simple hip configurations for near-zero waste
Consider limiting planes processed together for practical installation
Use the Max button to determine optimal sheet lengths for your job
The cutting list sequence can be modified by selecting sheets with minimum sequence numbers.
Export Cutting Details
The generated cutting list can be exported as a text file for transfer via your network or memory stick to the controller of the cutting/marking machine.
Machine format, CSV or PCF file formats.