Rhino 3D Tip: Rhino Material Optimization: Nesting, Lightweighting, and Cut-Length Reduction

Material is money. Rhino’s optimization workflows help you minimize waste while meeting performance and fabrication constraints.

Define success before you start:

• Targets: total area/volume, sheet count, cut length, part count.
• Metrics: use Area, Volume, Length, and MassProperties to quantify savings at each iteration.
• Tolerances: set units and tolerances appropriate to your process to prevent micro-slivers and failed joins.

Prepare geometry for reliable optimization:

• Clean curves with FitCrv or Rebuild to reduce control points without deviating from specs.
• Join and simplify: Join edges, then use SelDup and SelSelfIntersectingCrv to fix duplicates and self-intersections.
• Make planar where possible; planar parts nest and cut more efficiently.

2D nesting for sheet goods (laser, CNC, waterjet):

• Rhino 8 Nest: group parts by material/thickness on dedicated layers; define sheet rectangles; set spacing (kerf + safety), rotation step, and grain direction; allow mirroring only when design and material allow.
• Labels and reports: output part labels and utilization percentages to validate improvements over time.
• Grasshopper option: OpenNest provides parametric control and batch runs; bake only the best solution into Rhino.
• For developable parts, UnrollSrf/Smash first, then nest the flat patterns.

Lightweighting for 3D parts:

• Shelling: OffsetSrf (Solid=Yes) or Shell to hollow parts and control wall thickness; verify with ThicknessAnalysis.
• Topology optimization (plugins): tools like Millipede, TopOpt, or tOpos in Grasshopper can minimize volume subject to stiffness or stress constraints; follow with QuadRemesh and SubD/NURBS conversion for production.
• Multi-objective search: use Galapagos, Octopus, or Wallacei in Grasshopper to minimize volume and cut length while respecting manufacturing limits (minimum thickness, overhangs, drill sizes).

Cut-length and toolpath-aware reduction:

• Prefer continuous contours; reduce tiny segments with Convert or Rebuild to speed machining and reduce dwell marks.
• Align parts with SetPt or Orient to minimize tool retractions and travel.

Validation loop—make optimization measurable:

• Track metrics per iteration: Volume for solids, Area for sheets, Length for perimeters, and BoundingBox for packing sanity checks.
• Use Named Views and Layer States to compare variants; keep incremental saves so you can prove savings.

Export cleanly for fabrication:

• Flatten profiles with ProjectToCPlane where needed; ensure no overlaps.
• Export Selected and use DXF/DWG profiles with the shop’s layer and unit conventions.

Pro tips:

• Limit rotation steps in nesting for speed; add more only if utilization stalls.
• Lock “Sheet” layers to avoid accidental edits; keep each material in its own layer group.
• Maintain a Grasshopper template with your shop’s sheets, kerf, and minimum spacing so every project starts optimized.

Looking for Rhino, Grasshopper add-ons, or expert guidance? Explore licensing, plugins, and training through NOVEDGE. You can also browse Rhino options and related tools directly at NOVEDGE’s Rhino catalog and discover nesting/optimization add-ons via NOVEDGE search.

You can find all the Rhino products on the NOVEDGE web site at this page.