The Complete CATIA to FBX Conversion Guide

July 08, 2025

General Information

This guide is part of the RapidPipeline 3D Formats Knowledge Database. It shows how to convert CATIA to FBX, if you'd like to know more about the formats, please check out the following links:

Converting and Optimizing CATIA Files to FBX

There are various ways to convert between CATIA and FBX. With RapidPipeline, you can easily convert and and optimize CATIA files, at scale. It supports FBX, as well as many other file formats (examples: 3dsMax, glTF, OBJ, PLY, STEP, STL, USD, USDZ, VRM), at high quality.

Below you can find a video explaining how to convert your files:

What are CATIA and FBX files commonly used for?

The CATIA file is a format mostly used for Advanced 3D design, engineering and manufacturing applications.
The FBX file is a format mostly used for interactive 3D & rendering applications.

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Comparison of Features Supported by CATIA and FBX

FeatureSupported by CATIA Supported by FBX
Morph TargetsPartial0 Yes
Rigid AnimationsYes Yes
Skinned AnimationsPartial1 Yes
AnimationsYes Yes
Free-Form SurfacesYes No
Geometry CompressionPartial2 No
Quad MeshesYes Yes
Basic 3D GeometryYes Yes
PBR MaterialsYes3 Yes4
Transparent MaterialsYes Yes
Vertex ColorsYes Yes
MaterialsYes Yes
Scene CompositionYes No
Hierarchical Scene GraphYes Yes
Scene NodesYes Yes
Standardized FormatPartial5 No6
Embedded TexturesYes Yes
Multiple UV ChannelsYes Yes
Normal MappingYes Yes
Procedural TexturesPartial7 Partial
Texture CompressionPartial8 No
Texture TransformsYes Yes
TexturingYes Yes

0 - Basic morphing capabilities available through parametric modeling and feature-based design changes.
1 - Limited support for skinned animations, mainly through assembly motion simulation rather than character animation.
2 - CATIA supports various compression techniques for geometry data, particularly in the 3DXML format, though not as extensively as dedicated compression formats.
3 - CATIA supports physically-based rendering materials, especially in newer versions with advanced visualization capabilities.
4 - Multiple PBR models are supported as there is no standard for materials in FBX.
5 - While CATIA files are proprietary, the software supports many industry standards and has openly published the 3DXML format specification.
6 - Compatibility of all properties strongly depend on particular compatibility of the tools that export / import the DCC file, as there is no clear standard for this format.
7 - CATIA supports procedural materials and textures through its advanced material system, though primarily focused on engineering applications.
8 - Basic texture compression is supported, mainly for visualization and lightweight formats like 3DXML.

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Limitations of CATIA Files to FBX Conversion Workflow

The following limitations should be taken into account when converting CATIA files to FBX format:

CATIA Feature (not supported by FBX)Limitation Details
Free-Form SurfacesFree-Form Surfaces illustratedlack of support for Free-Form Surfaces illustrated
Free-Form Surfaces: supported in CATIA, but not in FBX.

Free-form surfaces allow a CAD user to design surfaces with advanced controls over curvature and continuitiy. While these surfaces are common for CAD models (in the form of so-called boundary representations or "B-reps"), they need to be converted to polygonal triangle or quad data to work with most 3D rendering engines - a process called tessellation. In this example, a surface patch is used to describe a part of a curved surface of a product. Without support for this feature, the free-form surface has to be tessellated into quads or triangles.
Geometry CompressionGeometry Compression illustratedlack of support for Geometry Compression illustrated
Geometry Compression: supported in CATIA, but not in FBX.

Geometry compression describes the process of compressing the representations of a 3D model's geometry, usually a triangle mesh. 3D geometry compression does not change the topology of a 3D model, but just changes the way that a 3D model and its 3D positions and related vertex data is stored. Geometry compression can be lossy (just like JPEG compression in image processing can be lossy, for example), in which case one might notice slight artifacts like variations in 3D vertex positions (compared to the uncompressed 3D model). However, such differences are often not noticeable. There are only very few standards for geometry compression, like glTF's support of Draco compression and similar extensions.
Texture CompressionTexture Compression illustratedlack of support for Texture Compression illustrated
Texture Compression: supported in CATIA, but not in FBX.

Texture compression refers to a process of compressing 2D texture images for memory-efficient rendering (and sometimes for efficient transmission). The decompression of compressed texture data is therefore performed on-the-fly during rendering, so that it never has to be stored in unpacked form, but can be kept as-is in GPU memory. Formats supporting texture compression methods, such as the ones offered by glTF through KTX2 containers, therefore allow 3D models to use a smaller memory footprint on the client device during rendering. This can speed up rendering time, and also make it possible to store and use larger amounts of texture data than it would otherwise be possible.
Scene CompositionScene Composition illustratedlack of support for Scene Composition illustrated
Scene Composition: supported in CATIA, but not in FBX.

Scene Composition describes the process of composing a scene through links from a main scene that pull in various other scenes/3D models. This can also happen in a nested fashion (through multiple levels of linkage). With a target format not supporting this feature, references to external models must be resolved and the content be baked into one 3D model, which is then saved in that target format.
Standardized FormatStandardized Format illustratedlack of support for Standardized Format illustrated
Standardized Format: supported in CATIA, but not in FBX.

Standardization plays a huge role in 3D model formats. With a format being standardized, every application will have a clear way of how to load or store data using this format. This makes it easier to re-use the 3D model across different applications, but also to make sure it will still be accessible and usable after a couple of years.

What's the best way to get CATIA files into my 3D applications, and are there alternatives to using FBX?

Doing 3D conversion right, especially at scale, can be tricky, as 3D data is in general a rather complex (yet very powerful!) medium. This also applies to CATIA and FBX files - the conversion guide above provides a rough first idea about that. Once you know what you would like to do, tools like RapidPipeline can help you perform the necessary steps, and to even automate the process for thousands or even millions of files.

Especially when introducing pipelines and workflows at scale in an enterprise context, it is usually good to rely on dedicated tools and expertise, making sure you do not introduce any steps into your 3D workflow that are detrimental to the final output's quality, or that take your team too much time (and money).

If you're interested to hire dedicated expertise from the best in the field to help your company reach your goals fast and reliably, please do not hestitate to contact DGG. Being the creators of RapidPipeline, and ambassadors for open 3D standards for more than a decade, we have been building some of the world's most advanced 3D pipelines, having processed many millions of 3D assets.

Therefore, our expertise will help you to reach your goals faster, at scale, and with the least possible friction, since we are focused on maximum interoperability.

To get started with 3D data conversion and optimization today, sign up for a free account!

If you have any questions, feel free to chat with our human team.

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3D Knowledge Team

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