For flat parts, send a .dxf — the industry standard for 2D cutting. For 3D parts and joinery, .step is best. We also accept .dwg, .ai, .f3d, .3mf, .stl — and if all you have is a sketch or a photo, that works too: we prepare CNC-ready CAD files as part of the job.

Three rules that prevent 90% of file problems:

• Export in millimeters, at 1:1 scale.
• Make sure every shape is a closed contour — no gaps, no duplicate lines. The machine cuts along vector paths, and a broken outline can't be turned into a toolpath.
• Convert text to curves before exporting, otherwise your font gets replaced on our side.

Send parts as separate shapes rather than pre-arranged on a sheet — our nesting software packs them onto the material tighter than manual layout, which directly lowers your material cost. If grain direction matters for a visible part, just mark it.

A milling bit is round, typically 4–8 mm in diameter. This has one important consequence: an inner corner can never be perfectly sharp. A 6 mm bit leaves a 3 mm radius inside every internal corner. Outer corners come out sharp — no issue there.

For most parts the small inner radius is invisible and irrelevant. It becomes a problem in one specific case: joinery. If a square tab must slide into a square slot, the rounded slot corners will block it — the tab will sit on the radii and never seat fully.

The fix is a dogbone: a small circular overcut placed in each inner corner of the slot. The bit drills slightly past the corner, clearing space for the sharp corner of the mating part. A variant called a T-bone puts the overcut along one edge instead — useful where a visible dogbone would look wrong.

You don't have to draw dogbones yourself. Just tell us which slots are joints, and we'll add the reliefs where they're needed. If you do model them yourself (many parametric furniture designers do), make the overcut radius match the tool — we cut most joinery with a 6 mm bit.

A freshly milled edge on plywood or MDF is crisp and square — genuinely sharp to the touch. For structural and hidden parts that's exactly what you want: maximum glue surface, precise fit.

For parts people will touch — tabletops, shelf fronts, children's furniture, handles, trays — you'll usually want the edge eased. This is an add-on operation, and you can choose the profile:

• Small chamfer (e.g. 1–2 mm at 45°) — subtle, modern, just removes the sharpness.
• Roundover R3 — the most popular choice: a soft, hand-friendly radius that also makes the edge far more resistant to chipping in use.
• Larger radii (R6 and up) or custom profiles — for a softer, more furniture-like feel.

Specify which edges to ease (often only the top face of the outer contour) — easing everything, including joint slots, would ruin the fits. If you're not sure, describe how the part is used and we'll suggest a profile.

Plywood is a layered material, and the top veneer can chip slightly along the cut — small tear-out fragments a fraction of a millimeter deep. How much of this is acceptable depends entirely on what the part is for, so we offer three levels:

Choosing the right level matters for your budget: paying for sanded edges on parts that end up inside a cabinet carcass is money wasted, and a standard cut on a clear-lacquered tabletop edge will disappoint. Tell us which parts are visible, and we'll mix levels within one project.

An "18 mm" birch plywood sheet actually measures somewhere around 17.5–18.2 mm depending on brand and batch. For most parts it's irrelevant. For press-fit joints and slotted assemblies it's critical — a slot drawn at exactly 18 mm may end up loose or impossibly tight.

The simple solution: flag which slots must fit the material, and we adjust them to the measured thickness of the actual sheet before cutting. As a rule of thumb, a slot equal to real thickness gives a tight hammer fit; add 0.1–0.3 mm for a sliding fit (and remember that paint or lacquer adds thickness too).

Material is often the biggest cost in a CNC job, and it's bought by the sheet. Knowing standard formats helps you design parts that nest efficiently:

1250 × 2500 mm (most common), 1525 × 3050 mm, 1525 × 1525 mm

2800 × 2070 mm, also 2440 × 1220 mm and 1220 × 3050

2800 × 2070 mm

2500 × 1250 mm

4200 × 1300 mm

Two practical takeaways:

Ten identical parts nest far better than one, so if you're prototyping something you'll produce in a batch later, ask for both prices at once.