Converting CAD files to PDF

Convert CAD files (DWG and DXF) to PDF when you need to share drawings, store records, or integrate with document workflows. PDF output makes drawings accessible to people who don’t use CAD tools.

How Nutrient supports this workflow

Nutrient .NET SDK converts CAD files to PDF through a single API call.

You don’t need to manage:

• CAD file parsing
• Vector rendering of technical drawings
• Layer and dimension handling
• Line weights and drawing styles

Use the SDK API to handle conversion logic in your application.

Complete implementation

This example shows a complete CAD-to-PDF conversion flow. This line sets up the C# application. The using directive brings in the Nutrient SDK namespace:

using Nutrient;

This line opens the CAD file. The using declaration(opens in a new tab) ensures the document is automatically closed when it goes out of scope, preventing resource leaks:

try
{
    using Document document = Document.Open("input.dwg");

This block exports the file to PDF and saves it as output.pdf. The try-catch block handles potential errors using NutrientException:

    document.ExportAsPdf("output.pdf");
    Console.WriteLine("Successfully converted to output.pdf");
}
catch (NutrientException e)
{
    Console.Error.WriteLine($"Error: {e.Message}");
    Environment.Exit(1);
}

Summary

The conversion flow has two steps:

1. Open the CAD file.
2. Export it as PDF.

Nutrient handles CAD parsing and PDF rendering, so you don’t need to implement format-specific conversion logic.