01
True cut-contour nesting
Place assets according to their actual cut paths instead of treating every artwork as a rectangle. Set bleed, distance between assets, and clearance to registration marks parametrically for each job.
Nest
Built around the true contour.
Place artwork by its real cut paths. Work with sheets or rolls, keep paired front and reverse artwork aligned, and reuse production presets for the next job.
TRUE-CONTOUR PLACEMENT FIRST. PAIRED DOUBLE-SIDED NESTING WHEN YOU NEED IT.
THE PRODUCTION QUESTION
What will actually fit on the board?
Rectangular bounds leave usable material behind around irregular shapes. Dot Apart Nest calculates from the actual cut contours. When a job has two sides, it keeps each front and reverse pair in the same coordinated placement and rotation.
WHY DOT APART NEST
True contours first.
Two sides when needed.
02
Paired double-sided nesting
Load matched front and reverse artwork as a pair. Nest once against the real cut contour; Dot Apart keeps the reverse side synchronized with the chosen position and rotation.
03
Sheets and rolls
Plan work for sheet or roll production. Crop roll output to the required length and control margins, spacing, and registration clearance for the job.
04
Reusable production presets
Save registration, margins, marking, and output settings. Use separate print, cut, and Quote output folders to keep repeat work organised.
CONTROL THE TRADE-OFF
Fast calculation or a denser nest.
Use 90-degree rotation as the fast default. When tighter packing matters more than calculation time, enable free rotation to search for a denser result.
- 90° rotation
- Faster default nesting
- Free rotation
- Denser results with more calculation time
MORE THAN PLACEMENT
Small tools that remove production friction.
Print, cut, or both
Prepare print-and-cut work, print-only output for hand cutting, or vector-only Cut/Mill jobs. Choose the output that fits the production process.
Keep production paths intact
Preserve named cut and crease paths, including open production paths, alongside the artwork needed for output.
AutoBleed for rectangular artwork
Create a cut path at the original dimensions and add a user-defined bleed by mirroring the image edges. The original finished size remains the cutting reference.
Return to the exact nest
Save completed nests and reload the reviewed placements without recalculating. Hold sheets you want to keep while working on the rest of the job.
Set your own production boundary
Edit registration marks, board margins, bleed, and spacing. Define the clearance the job and equipment require.
Cutter registration presets
Prepare registration for Summa, Graphtec, Mimaki, Kongsberg, Zünd, and Roland workflows. Review the output against your equipment settings.
FROM ARTWORK TO PRODUCTION
One controlled path through the nest.
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01
Load the artwork and cut paths.
Import the production artwork and use its actual cut contours as the basis for placement.
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02
Set the production parameters.
Define bleed, spacing, registration-mark clearance, board margins, and the preferred rotation mode.
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03
Calculate against the real contours.
Nest the assets using their actual cut paths. For double-sided work, Dot Apart carries the chosen position and rotation to the paired reverse artwork.
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04
Export aligned production files.
Review both sides, create the required print and cut PDFs, and save the nest so the exact coordinated arrangement can be loaded again.
NEST + QUOTE
Plan the board. Then use its data.
Dot Apart Quote can read a file produced by Nest and populate the estimate with the nest data. The products remain separately licensed while working as a connected production process.
START WITH NEST
Put the full board to work.
Try true-contour nesting on your own production artwork. Bring a paired front-and-reverse file when you want to test the double-sided workflow as well.