Convert SLDPRT to FBX

A game engine, animation package, AR/VR viewer, or real-time renderer may require FBX instead of a SolidWorks part file. Converting the model makes its geometry usable outside CAD, but changes an editable parametric solid into polygonal scene data.

What the SLDPRT format is

.sldprt is SolidWorks’ native part format. It stores a feature-based, parametric solid with sketches, dimensions, constraints, configurations, materials, and design-history features. SolidWorks assemblies use .sldasm, and drawings use .slddrw.

SLDPRT files are common in mechanical design departments and in files exchanged by manufacturers, engineering contractors, and CAD suppliers. A compatible SolidWorks release or a converter that supports the file’s version is required to read them.

What the FBX format is

.fbx is Autodesk’s 3D scene-exchange format. It is supported by applications such as Blender, Unity, Unreal Engine, Maya, and 3ds Max, and can store polygon meshes, normals, UV coordinates, materials, textures, cameras, lights, and animation data.

FBX is suitable for rendering, animation, games, simulation, AR/VR, and visualization software that cannot read SolidWorks geometry. It does not preserve sketches, feature history, equations, mates, or editable parametric dimensions.

Convert with CAD Exchanger

CAD Exchanger Desktop is a practical direct-conversion option when its installed version supports both the source SLDPRT version and FBX export.

1. Open the .sldprt file with File → Open.
2. Check the active configuration, visible bodies, orientation, and units.
3. Choose File → Export or File → Save As, select FBX, and adjust mesh or tessellation settings.
4. Use finer chordal-deviation and angular-deviation settings for cylinders, fillets, and curved surfaces; export the file.
5. Open the FBX in the destination software and verify scale, axis orientation, normals, object separation, materials, and textures.

CAD Exchanger Cloud offers the corresponding browser workflow: upload the SLDPRT file, choose FBX if it is available in the output list, convert, and download the result. Online conversion sends the design to a third party, so confidential engineering data should be processed only under an approved account or with desktop software. Format availability, file-size limits, and SolidWorks-version support can vary between service plans.

Use SolidWorks and Blender as an intermediate workflow

When direct FBX export is unavailable, export a polygon format from SolidWorks and convert that file in Blender. OBJ is preferable when SolidWorks provides it in the installed version because it can carry separate objects, normals, UV data, and material references.

1. Open the part in SolidWorks and select File → Save As.
2. Choose OBJ (*.obj) if available. Set units, coordinate system, surface deviation, and angle tolerance; use finer values for curved or detailed geometry.
3. In Blender, select File → Import → Wavefront (.obj) and load the OBJ.
4. Correct scale and orientation, inspect normals and object structure, and repair or assign materials as needed.
5. Choose File → Export → FBX (.fbx), set the required axis and unit options, and export.

Use STL only as a fallback. Import it through File → Import → STL, then export through File → Export → FBX (.fbx). STL normally contains only triangulated surface geometry and does not retain material assignments, UV coordinates, textures, or reliable object structure.

Quality and compatibility limits

The conversion tessellates the exact SolidWorks solid into a polygon mesh. Low tessellation produces smaller files but can make cylinders, fillets, and freeform surfaces visibly faceted; high tessellation improves curvature at the cost of larger files, memory use, and import time.

Set units consistently in the source, converter, and destination application. A mismatch can produce scale errors such as 25.4 or 1000 times too large or too small. Check the up-axis as well, because CAD, Blender, and game-engine coordinate conventions differ.

Configurations, hidden bodies, display states, and linked design data may not transfer. A multi-body SLDPRT may arrive as separate FBX objects or as one combined mesh, depending on the exporter. Inspect body visibility and object naming before export.

Appearance data transfers only when the converter and FBX workflow support it and the source contains usable materials. Texture paths can break after export, and OBJ-to-FBX or STL-to-FBX workflows may require UV creation and material reassignment in Blender or the target application.