Hypertherm, a US-based manufacturer of advanced cutting systems, has announced a major version update of its ProNest nesting software that allows even greater productivity enhancements and efficiency for metal fabricators and others within the cutting industry.

ProNest 2012 contains a number of new features and comprehensive improvements that make it even easier for users to increase the cut quality, productivity, and profitability of their cutting operation - whether it be plasma, laser, oxyfuel, waterjet, or combination punch. New features and enhancements to ProNest 2012 include:

• Work Order Processing module - connects to ERP system; helps maximize material utilization, increase productivity, and achieve better on-time delivery
• Material grade and gauge functionality - increases nesting flexibility and costing accuracy when working with parts and plates of varying grades and gauges, and
• 2D CAD part creation and editing functionality - provides the ability to create new part geometries for nesting and may be used to edit existing geometries imported from an external CAD program.

"Getting the most from their new or existing cutting system is a must for any business owner today and ProNest 2012 is a critical contributor, helping users run an efficient, profitable operation," said Derek Weston, Product Marketing Manager for Hypertherm's software team. "ProNest 2012 incorporates many years of cutting expertise, including feedback from software users around the world.

The end-result is a nesting solution that makes it easy to achieve maximum productivity, from every machine on the floor, regardless of the cutting process or machine brand." ProNest has been the industry's leading nesting software for two decades, offering best-in-class performance and reliability with a straight-forward, easy-to-use design.

ProNest is also a component of Hypertherm's Integrated Cutting Solutions, providing support for True Hole