# Materials, colours, thickness and edge banding

A material has a name, a colour and a type; each board sets its own thickness. The cut list copies both; a part needs a sheet with the same text.

## Tasks

### Can we make everything dark grey?
**Model** › select a board › right panel (a bottom sheet on a phone) › **Manage materials** › press the colour square and pick a colour. All its boards change. A generated board follows its feature: set the material in the feature's settings, or in **Furniture**.

### I want the back in 3 mm MDF
**Manage materials** › **Add material**; rename it `MDF`. Then select the back and set **Material** `MDF` and **Thickness** 3 mm: a back made by the furniture has them in **Part settings**, a hand-placed board in its own fields.

### Do the materials reach the cut list?
**Plan** › **Parts (N)** › **Make the cut list**. A part reads `MDF · 3 mm`, and **Stock (N)** gains a 2440 × 1220 mm sheet per material without one; set your size in that row. Any later model change, a colour included, makes the list stale: press **Update cut list**, or the Plan cannot optimize or cut.

### Is every edge banded?
No. The model stores no banding, so every model part starts unbanded, and its **Parts (N)** row is locked with no editor. To band, add a part by hand: **Parts (N)** › **Add**, same size and material, then press its chevron (**Expand details**). In **Edge banding**, each arrow marks one side (↑ top, → right, ↓ bottom, ← left); **Color** and a thickness set the band. Mark only visible edges. Your part stays when you press **Update cut list**.

### Does the cut list subtract the banding?
No. The cut size is the net size plus the allowance you type. Banding shows in the report **Edge banding** column and the DXF part list, not in the cut guide. For 1 mm banding, type the finished size less 2 mm.

### Which way does the grain run?
- Model: a hand-placed board › **Advanced** › **Grain**: **Along length**, **Along width** or **No grain**. A generated board has no grain field; convert it to an independent board first.
- Plan: **Grain** **Lengthwise**, **Crosswise** or **None**, plus **Allow rotation**; the part width follows the grain.

A side, top or front with grain across its long side raises a warning in design issues.

## Facts

- Materials hold no thickness, finish or grain. A deleted material moves its boards to the first remaining one; the last cannot be deleted. A new model starts with `Plywood`; **Add material** makes `New material`.
- **Type** **Automatic** reads the name and shows the match. **Solid wood** skips the oversize check.
- Thickness defaults to 18 mm and remembers your last choice; the quick buttons offer 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 19 and 25 mm.
- The material text is `name · thickness mm`; a name already ending with it stays.
- Weight: 650 kg/m³ plywood, 750 MDF, 680 particleboard, 600 solid wood, else 700. A selected board of a piece reads `12 parts · ≈ 42 kg`.
- A generated sheet is 2440 × 1220 mm, grain along the long side, count = area ÷ sheet area × 1.5, rounded up, plus one. A board over 2430 × 1210 mm is oversize.
- Banding starts off, #000000, 0 mm.

## What the assistant does itself

- Sets material names, colours and types, assigns materials, changes thickness and the grain of hand-placed boards, each in one undo step; reads materials and grain.
- Counts sheets per material and lists solid wood separately with its sheet tool.
- Cannot mark banding, edit the Plan parts, click, download, print or see Plan, Cut and Assemble; it gives the path instead.

## Labels

| English | Español | Nederlands |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Model | Modelar | Modelleren |
| Plan | Planificar | Plannen |
| Parts (N) | Piezas (N) | Onderdelen (N) |
| Stock (N) | Material (N) | Plaatmateriaal (N) |
| Manage materials | Administrar materiales | Materialen beheren |
| Add material | Agregar material | Materiaal toevoegen |
| Material | Material | Materiaal |
| Thickness | Espesor | Dikte |
| Type | Tipo | Soort |
| Automatic | Automático | Automatisch |
| Solid wood | Madera maciza | Massief hout |
| Advanced | Avanzado | Geavanceerd |
| Grain | Veta | Nerf |
| Along length | A lo largo | In de lengte |
| Along width | A lo ancho | In de breedte |
| No grain | Sin veta | Geen nerf |
| Lengthwise | Longitudinal | Lengterichting |
| Crosswise | Transversal | Dwarsrichting |
| None | Ninguno | Geen |
| Allow rotation | Permitir rotación | Rotatie toestaan |
| Edge banding | Canteado | Kantenband |
| Color | Color | Kleur |
| Add | Añadir | Toevoegen |
| Expand details | Expandir detalles | Details uitklappen |
| Make the cut list | Generar lista de corte | Zaaglijst maken |
| Update cut list | Actualizar lista de cortes | Zaaglijst bijwerken |
| Furniture | Mueble | Meubel |
| Part settings | Ajustes de la pieza | Onderdeelinstellingen |