Open Design Alliance

The Open Design Alliance is a non-profit membership-based consortium of software companies, developers and users committed to promoting the open exchange of CAD data now and in the future. In addition to setting standards for CAD data formats, the ODA also focuses on the practical matter of developing software libraries of exceptional quality that enable ODA members to develop applications capable of reading and writing the popular DWG and DGN CAD file formats. ODA members use the following ODA software libraries to support their efforts of developing CAD solutions:

• DWGdirect™ — Reads and writes DWG files and is based on the OpenDWG^® specification published by the ODA, which is based on the DWG format used by many CAD applications including Autodesk® AutoCAD®. The DWGdirect software libraries are continually updated, providing compatibility with all versions of DWG from 2.5 to 2008.
• DGNdirect™ — Reads and writes DGN files, is based on the OpenDGN initiative by Bentley® Systems, and is compatible with Bentley MicroStation®. Bentley Systems, a leading supplier of CAD software, has partnered with the ODA to provide software developers with high-performance libraries supporting read/write access to their native MicroStation data file format.

The ODA utilizes membership fees to fund software development of ODA libraries, which are made available to its members. ODA members then can direct their efforts on developing solutions, rather than on the difficulties of reading and writing complex CAD files. The libraries are provided free of charge to educational institutes and students to encourage and advance research in Computer Aided Design and engineering software.