Convert AutoCAD Drawings To A Shapefile Format

AutoCAD is a great tool to edit and manipulate drawings, but sometimes we need to convert the information contained in AutoCAD drawings to a different format to study it from a different perspective. Being able to interoperate between different applications to take full advantage of their differing capabilities is essential and is part of what I cover in my CAD training courses.

An example of this is the shapefile format, which is used in Geographic Information System (GIS) software. GIS applications are used to edit and analyse spatial information and have many applications in fields like engineering, transport or telecommunications.

The MAPEXPORT commandserves that purpose, however is unfortunately not available in AutoCAD. In order to use it, you will need AutoCAD Map 3D or Civil 3D installed. This command is easy to follow but you need to be aware of the differentoptions  to include all the information needed in the shape files.

I will now take you step by step through a CAD training exercise where we export all the features from an AutoCAD drawing to a shapefile format.

First, type MAPEXPORT in the command line from AutoCAD Map 3D or Civil 3D. In the window that pops up, browse to the path in your computer where you want to store the shape files. Select ‘Shape Multiclass’ in the type drop-down and type a name for the folder that will contain the files. A new folder will be created with this name and the files generated will be stored in it. In this example we are going to call this folder ShapeFiles, as shown below:

You can also select an existing folder, but it is not recommendable because it may conflict with existing ones. You will receive a warning message if you try this, and will then give you the option to append the new files, overwrite existing ones that may exist with the same name or cancel this dialog to be able to change to a different folder.

In the next window, go to the Selection tab and click on the ‘Select all’ option to select all the objects contained in the drawing.

There are2 alternatives for manual selection. If you click on the first icon you can click on the objects in the drawing that you want to include. Clicking on the second icon will open the ‘Quick select’ window, where you can filter the different objects by their type and properties.

You can then add additional filters to your selection by selecting the layers or object classes that you want to include. Notice that an asterisk is included in the Layers field by default, which means that all the layers will be included in the filter.

On the Feature Class tab, select ‘Create multiple classesbased on a drawing object’.

If you want to include some particular attributes in the Shape files, this can be done by clicking on the ‘Select Attributes’ button and ticking the ones you are interested in.

Finally, go to the Options tab and tick ‘Treat closed polylines as polygons’. Other options available in this tab givesthe ability to convert coordinates to a different coordinate system, or to choose between 3D or 3D shape files, by clicking on the ‘Driver Options’ button.

If you click OK, a group of files will be created for each feature, as shown below:

You can now open these files directly in your GIS application or add them directly to the central directory of a ZIP archive. The latter makes it easier tosend the information to a third party if needed.

CAD training is an excellent way to brush up on your skills and provides more accurate and efficient ways of doing things on the software.

If you are looking for CAD training, take a look at our full range here.

https://www.excitech.co.uk/Services/Training/Training-Courses?LocationIds=&SupplierIds=&IndustryIds=&ProductIds=&TrainingTypeIds=&OrderByScheduleValue=&OrderByValue=&PageNo=1&StartPrice=&EndPrice=&PageType=&SearchText=CAD&StartDate=&EndDate=