Convert IGR to PDF

A PDF is useful when an Intergraph SmartSketch drawing must be shared, printed, archived, or opened on a computer without SmartSketch. It also provides a fixed-layout copy that recipients cannot accidentally edit as an original CAD drawing.

What the IGR format is

For the Documents category, IGR is the native drawing format used by Intergraph SmartSketch, a 2D engineering and technical-design application. IGR files can contain vector lines, arcs, dimensions, text, symbols, and other drawing objects; they are not ordinary image files.

IGR is a proprietary format, so general-purpose viewers, office suites, and PDF editors normally cannot open it. The SmartSketch version that created the file, or a compatible later version, is the most reliable reader. Do not confuse this SmartSketch meaning with unrelated file types that use the same extension.

What the PDF format is

PDF is a fixed-layout document format that preserves page dimensions, object positioning, fonts, and print appearance across operating systems. It is widely supported for technical drawing distribution, review, printing, and archival exchange.

A PDF is normally a delivery copy, not an editable SmartSketch drawing. Exporting can preserve vector geometry, but it does not preserve SmartSketch-specific constraints, layers, parametric behavior, or the full editability of the IGR source. Text may also become outlines or otherwise differ if the required fonts are unavailable.

How to convert an IGR file in SmartSketch

1. Open the file in Intergraph SmartSketch, preferably the version used to create it or a compatible release. Use File → Open and select the .igr file.
2. Check the drawing before export. Confirm the page size, orientation, drawing scale, line weights, colors, visible layers, annotations, and referenced fonts.
3. Use the application’s PDF export command, if present, such as File → Export or File → Publish, and choose PDF as the output format. The exact menu name varies by SmartSketch release.
4. If that release has no PDF exporter, use File → Print. Select Microsoft Print to PDF on Windows or the system Save as PDF option where available. Set the intended paper size and scale rather than relying on automatic fitting.
5. Open the resulting PDF in a standard viewer and inspect it at 100% and at print size. Check clipped borders, missing fonts, line weights, dimensions, symbols, page orientation, and scale.

SmartSketch is the preferred desktop converter because it understands the IGR structure. Adobe Acrobat, PDF-XChange, and similar PDF applications can combine pages, add comments, run OCR, or create PDF/A after conversion, but they generally do not open native IGR drawings.

Do not rename drawing.igr to drawing.pdf; changing the filename extension does not convert the file. If an online service rejects the file, open and export it locally in SmartSketch instead.