Autodesk Civil 3D

Autodesk Civil 3D is an application for civil engineers built on top of AutoCAD. GIS workflows often rely on CAD data generated by outside survey, engineering, and architectural sources which are commonly provided in Autodesk's Civil 3D format. In addition to the standard AutoCAD entities found in a DWG, the Civil 3D product adds its own specific AEC entities.

Autodesk users can interoperate between ArcGIS and AutoCAD

ArcGIS provides support for Autodesk products including AutoCAD and Civil 3D. Using these Esri tools there are several ways that Autodesk users can share, update, and manage their data in conjunction with ArcGIS products. These tools enable ArcGIS users to include CAD data in their maps and analyses, migrate CAD data into the ArcGIS system, and provide GIS data to CAD users.

Read-only data

First, both standard and enhanced entities in CAD files can be read as read-only data in ArcGIS without the need for conversion. ArcGIS Pro can access data directly via a connection to Autodesk’s BIM Cloud Connection. However, since ArcGIS Pro does not currently read Autodesk’s coordinate system, you are required to specify an appropriate coordinate system. ArcGIS Pro provides visual tools to complete this georeferencing task.

CAD feature class

Second, CAD data can be migrated into GIS datasets stored within geodatabases as CAD feature classes. These CAD feature classes are treated like any other GIS dataset and can easily be analyzed, appended, merged, and copied. This data can then be made available to other desktop, web, and mobile users via ArcGIS Enterprise. It can even be made available to AutoCAD users working in ArcGIS for AutoCAD.

Export to CAD file

Third, ArcGIS Pro users can share and collaborate with CAD users by either directly exporting GIS data into CAD files, or by publishing GIS data as web services which can be consumed by CAD users. In this way, CAD data can be created from GIS data and GIS information can be shared with CAD users.

Webservices

Although each of these workflows has its own pros and cons, sharing data between CAD and GIS applications via webservices is probably the most functional and flexible solution because it ensures that the most up-to-date data can always be made available and kept synchronized across both systems. Overall, the best way for Autodesk users to interoperate between ArcGIS and AutoCAD environments is for the AutoCAD users to install and use the free ArcGIS plugin for AutoCAD provided by Esri. This plugin streamlines the workflow for exchanging smart DWG files between AutoCAD and ArcGIS users and provides the AutoCAD users with access to use and edit ArcGIS web services.

‘Share To’ ArcGIS function

Using the Esri ArcGIS plugin for AutoCAD, you can create new features directly in AutoCAD as an AutoCAD layer. At this point, these new features only live within the AutoCAD system. When you click ‘Share to ArcGIS’ the data for the new features. which were created in Autodesk, are sent to a hosted feature layer in the ArcGIS system which may be either ArcGIS Online or Enterprise Portal.