PALFINGER : Reducing Off-Cuts and Increasing Nesting Productivity Across Global Manufacturing

PALFINGER is the global market leader in articulated truck-mounted cranes and a leading manufacturer of lifting, loading, and handling equipment. With manufacturing facilities across Europe and South America, the company continuously invests in digital manufacturing technologies to improve efficiency and reduce production costs.

As product complexity and production volume increased, manual nesting became a major operational limitation. Nesting quality depended heavily on operator experience, and even a small increase in off-cut rates could result in significant annual material costs.

PALFINGER evaluated several CAD/CAM systems before selecting Alma’s Act/Cut software. The software demonstrated superior automatic nesting performance, faster processing, and material optimization while supporting laser, plasma, and oxy-fuel cutting across multiple machine brands.

Act/Cut was integrated with PALFINGER’s SAP ERP system, enabling automatic transfer of nesting orders, production tracking, stock management, and off-cut calculation. The integrated workflow reduced manual administration and improved production visibility across multiple manufacturing sites.

Automatic nesting significantly reduced operator workload while delivering consistent results regardless of user experience. Cross-order nesting, filler part optimization, and automated material utilization allowed PALFINGER to process more orders with the same team while reducing material waste.