Reading Cutting Patterns

Anatomy of a Pattern

A pattern is one blade setup on the parent reel. It has:

• a sequence number — the order patterns are meant to be run in;
• a set of strips — each a width and how many times it appears across the reel (e.g. 900 mm × 3, 700 mm × 2);
• a blade configuration — the exact cut positions across the deckle;
• a run-for weight (MT) — how much paper to put through this setup before repositioning the blades;
• a used width, a waste width (mm) and a waste %.

The run's cutting plan is the ordered list of its patterns. It can be printed or exported to PDF.

Waste Percentage

A pattern's waste % is its trim width divided by the available deckle. The run's overall waste % is total trim across all patterns as a share of paper consumed. Deckle Plus flags a pattern green under 1%, amber under 3%, red above.

Expected vs Created

Because patterns run for whole quarter-MT amounts and a width can appear in several patterns, the weight a plan produces for a width rarely equals its target to the gram. The result's Expected vs Created table makes that visible: any width where created falls short of expected is highlighted, so you can decide whether the shortfall rolls to another run.

Pattern Sequence

Patterns are ordered to minimize blade movement between setups — strips that carry over from one pattern to the next are kept in place where possible. Operators normally run them top to bottom; the system records which pattern was run in which order regardless.

Editing Patterns

Before a run starts, Planners and Admins can fine-tune the accepted plan: adjust a pattern's run-for weight, add remarks, or delete a pattern. Every change is written to the run's audit log and can be reverted to an earlier snapshot.

Manual Patterns

You can also build patterns by hand rather than optimizing — in a sandbox, which has a manual pattern builder. Lay out the strips yourself, see the waste update live, then apply the sandbox to a run.