How to make a cutting list for melamine board
A good cutting list uses fewer boards, avoids miscut panels and leaves measured offcuts for the next job. This is the step-by-step process shops use for kitchen cupboards and built-in cupboards, from drawing to saw or to the board supplier.
Step by step
Write the parts list
For each panel note a name, length, width and quantity. Length runs with the grain. Group panels by board and thickness: 16 mm melamine, 16 mm supawood, 3 mm backs.
Pick the board and check its size
Melamine and supawood boards in South Africa are usually 2750 × 1830 mm, some 2440 × 1220 mm. Allow for edge trim if the factory edges are chipped.
Enter the saw kerf
Every cut removes the blade width, usually 3 to 4.4 mm on a panel saw or beam saw. Without it panels come out short and the board count is wrong.
Mark the edging on each side
Show which edges get edging (PVC or ABS) and whether its thickness comes off the cut size. 1 mm and 2 mm edging change the finished size.
Set the grain direction
Doors and drawer fronts on woodgrain melamine must not rotate. Plain white panels can rotate and fit better.
Optimise the layout
For a panel saw use through-cuts. For CNC, free nesting works. Compare fewest boards with fewest cuts and choose what pays.
Print, cut and edge
Take the plan to the saw, or send the cutting list to your cut-and-edge supplier. Label every panel and keep offcuts with their size written on them.
Tips that save boards
- Use your offcuts first: shelves and small sides often fit in them.
- Cut several cupboards of the same board together to lower waste.
- Check odd sizes before cutting: 72 mm instead of 720 mm ruins a board.
- Enter the board price in rand to see what each plan saves.
Cutting list questions
How many boards do I need for a kitchen?
Add up the area of all panels and divide by the usable area of a 2750 × 1830 board for the theoretical minimum. The real number depends on layout, kerf and grain. A cutting list optimiser gives the exact count and draws every board.
Can I send the cutting list to my board supplier?
Yes. Verneer prints a cutting list per board with sizes and edging, exports CSV and sends the plan by WhatsApp, ready for a cut-and-edge service.
Is there a free cutting list optimiser?
Yes. On Verneer’s Free plan you can optimise as often as you like and open one full plan per week, on desktop and phone.