Before you start

Drop policies apply to fabrication quotes, not stock-only quotes. (Fabrication sales only.) If your store isn't set up for fabrication yet, contact your Stella Source Customer Support Rep.

You may also hear this called a "remnant policy." Both terms refer to the same thing.

What a drop policy does

When a customer orders a fabricated part, Stella Source nests the part on a piece of your stock material and figures out how much of that stock is consumed. Your drop policy tells us what to do with the leftover piece:

• If the leftover is big enough to be reused, your customer is charged only for the material they used.
• If the leftover is too small to be reused, your customer is charged for the full piece of stock.

You set the size thresholds. Stella Source applies them every time someone orders. Without a policy in place, the default is that drops are not kept. Your customer is charged for the full piece of stock on every fabrication order.

Pro-Tip: Your customer doesn't see this. The nest, the drop, and whether the drop was retained are visible to you only. Your customer sees the final price on their quote, not how it was calculated.

Plate and sheet vs. linear

Stella Source uses two kinds of drop policy, one for each type of stock material:

• Plate and sheet applies to flat, rectangular stock. Length and width are both consumed during cutting, so you set a minimum length and a minimum width.
• Linear applies to tube, bar, and structural stock. Only the length along the X-axis is consumed during cutting, so you set a minimum length only.

You can have different policies for different material groups, and policies can vary by company location if your store has more than one.

How linear drops are handled

After Stella Source nests the part and accounts for kerf and chuck, it compares the leftover length to the minimum length in your policy:

• If the leftover length is greater than your minimum, your customer is charged only for the material used.
• If the leftover length is less than your minimum, your customer is charged for the full stock length.

How plate and sheet drops are handled

Plate and sheet works the same way in principle, but with two dimensions to compare. Depending on how the leftover compares to your minimums, one of three things happens:

• Vertical crop. The leftover length is greater than your minimum, but the leftover width is not. The drop is the full width of the sheet by the leftover length.
• Horizontal crop. The leftover width is greater than your minimum, but the leftover length is not. The drop is the full length of the sheet by the leftover width.
• L-shape crop. Both the leftover length and the leftover width are greater than your minimums. The drop is an L-shaped piece that preserves both dimensions.

If neither the leftover length nor the leftover width meets your minimums, no drop is kept. Your customer is charged for the full sheet.

How to get your drop policy turned on

To get yours enabled, share your preferences with your Stella Source Customer Support Rep. Have these ready:

• The material types you want a policy for, for example aluminum plate, carbon tube, stainless bar.
• Your minimum dimensions for each. Linear materials need a minimum length. Plate and sheet need both a minimum length and a minimum width.
• Whether the policy is the same across all your company locations, or different by location.

Your Customer Support Rep turns your preferences into a policy and enables it for your store. Once it's live, every fabrication quote that uses those materials follows your rules automatically.

Troubleshooting

My customer was charged for a full sheet even though material was left over

The leftover piece was likely smaller than the minimums in your policy, or your policy may not cover that specific material. Check the breakdown on the quote, then reach out to your Customer Support Rep if the result doesn't match what you expected.

My drop policy didn't apply to a quote

Drop policies apply to fabricated parts. If the item was stock-only or a Misc. item, the policy doesn't apply.

I want to change my minimums

Send your updated thresholds to your Customer Support Rep. We'll swap the policy on your store.