Method of performing a cross cutting operation on a travelling flexible web of material to form discrete sheets of material followed by an operation on the trailing edge of the thus formed severed sheet of material, which method comprises moving the leading edge of the web to a clamping station, clamping the leading edge of the web, cross cutting the web to form a severed sheet of the flexible web material, causing the middle of the severed sheet to bow in a pre-determined curvature whilst maintaining the trailing edge of the sheet parallel to the position in which it was cross cut, thus causing the trailing edge of the sheet to move towards the leading edge of the sheet by a pre-determined distance and then performing the operation on the trailing edge of the severed sheet.