ATLANTA, GA, USA, Oct 21, 2025 – IronCAD, a leading provider of innovative CAD software solutions, proudly announces the release of IronCAD 2026. Designed to empower CAD designers in Industrial Equipment Machinery and Metal/Steel Fabrication manufacturing, this release introduces powerful features to boost productivity, streamline workflows, and enhance design precision.
Key Highlights of IronCAD 2026 Include:
Multiple Application Window Support for Scene and Drawings (ICD and DRAFT)
Work seamlessly across multiple monitors with dedicated 3D Scene and 2D Drawing windows, each featuring a tailored Ribbon Bar UI in the same single instance of IronCAD. Changes in the 3D Scene update instantly in the Drawing with a single click, enhancing multitasking, speeding up iterations, and improving the overall user experience.
Smart Annotation Add-On License
IronCAD introduces a new add-on license for Smart Annotations, offering automated dimensioning with precise control. Users can define specific dimensioning locations on objects, supporting adjustments to models or components in patterns. These points enable exact precision in automated dimensioning, accelerating drawing creation, minimizing manual cleanup, and ensuring manufacturing-ready drawings.
Continued Improvement to IronCAD’s AI Chatbot with AI Design Assistant Foundation
IronCAD 2026 introduces Stage 2 of its AI capabilities with the AI Design Assistant Foundation, featuring enhanced Python scripting support. This includes:
- Multiple Database Support: Enhanced backend support for multiple database connections, enabling customer- and industry-specific knowledge integration, supporting both public and private AI learning models
- Python Scripting Foundation: Leverage IronCAD’s API and automation programming in a Python scripting environment, standard in AI development, for seamless design automation
- AI-Driven Chatbot: Real-time optimization suggestions analyze design questions, recommending manufacturability, cost reduction, and technical considerations directly within IronCAD’s interface, providing instant answers and model guidance without leaving the workspace
- AI-Driven Modeling: Machine learning algorithms suggest design components from catalog content and established parameters, accelerating the design of assemblies by recommending components and setting parameters to meet requirements. Future capabilities will include building designs with intelligent rules, enhancing productivity and configure-to-quote processes. This new foundation streamlines design workflows, enhances decision-making, and accelerates productivity with AI-powered automation and real-world design considerations.
General Modeling Improvement
- Quick Parameter Display and Edit: Edit driving parameters (e.g., length, width, radius) directly in the 3D Scene using a quick-access parameter editor upon selection, speeding up parametric adjustments and simplifying iterative design
- Disc CAM Generator: Create Disc CAMs with customizable motion paths (linear, harmonic, cycloidal, polynomial) and extrudable 2D sketches, enabling rapid and precise CAM design for mechanical systems.
- Improved Sketch Region Selection: Handle closed boundaries for extrusions, simplifying complex sketch extrusions and reducing cleanup time.
IronCAD Drawing Improvements
- 2D TriBall for ICD Curve Placement: A 2D TriBall enables precise curve placement, copying, and patterning in ICD curves, accelerating template creation and ensuring 2D/3D workflow consistency.
- Smart Cursor for ICD Annotations: Graphical alignment support ensures accurate dimension annotation placement in ICD, enhancing drawing clarity and reducing manual adjustments.
Sheet Metal Design Improvements
- Sheet Metal Corner Seams for Three-Corner Conditions: Close complex sheet metal corners with varying side lengths, rivaling Inventor’s capabilities, simplifying enclosure design and enhancing fabrication precision.
IronCAD Native Translator Enhancements
The IronCAD Native Translator Add-on has been updated to support the latest file formats from leading 3D CAD systems, ensuring seamless interoperability. Supported formats include:
- CATIA V5: V5R8 – V5–6R2025
- Pro/E (CREO): 16 – Creo 12.4
- UG NX: 11 – NX 2506
- Inventor: V11 – V2026
- SolidWorks: 98 – 2025
- SolidEdge: V18 – SE 2025
- JT Import: 8 – 10.2, 10.3, 10.5, 10.6, 10.7, 10.8, 10.9, and 10.10
- IFC: IFC 2×3, IFC 4×2, IFC 4×3
- Rhino: V2–8
- DXF/DWG: 2.5 – 2026
Cary O’Connor, General Manager and Senior Vice President of Product and Strategy at IronCAD, stated, “IronCAD 2026 reflects our dedication to empowering designers with tools that enhance precision and streamline workflows. The integration of advanced AI capabilities alongside our robust CAD features ensures our users can achieve unparalleled productivity and innovation in their design processes.”
Availability
IronCAD 2026 is now available for download. For a comprehensive overview of features, visit www.ironcad.com.
About IronCAD
IronCAD is the premier provider of 3D design software for Industrial Equipment & Machinery Manufacturing, Metal Fabrication and Tooling Manufacturing, Assembly Layout and Design of Industrial Equipment and Facilities, and Modular Product Manufacturers markets. IronCAD’s innovative solutions empower engineers and designers to achieve greater productivity, streamline collaboration, and accelerate product development. With a focus on user-friendliness, flexibility, and affordability, IronCAD provides cutting-edge tools that enable businesses to stay ahead in today’s competitive landscape. For more information, visit https://www.ironcad.com.
