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How to convert ESRI ShapeFile (.shp,.cshp) to PLY (Stanford .ply)?

PolyTrans|CAD+DCC performs mathematically precise CAD, DCC/Animation, GIS and BIM 3D file conversions into all key downstream 3D packages and file formats. Okino software is used and trusted throughout the world by many tens of thousands of 3D professionals in mission & production critical environments, backed by respectable personal support directly from our core development team.

ESRI ShapeFile

The ShapeFile format was defined by Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc. (ESRI) for storing simple vector data elements, most often used for GIS datasets and GIS flat maps.

The Okino geometry import converter reads in the point, line and polygon-area geometrical vector data from a ESRI "Shape File". These files are often created using ESRI's ARC/INFO, ARC/VIEW and ARC/GIS. The file extensions are .shp (geometry data) and .cshp (ESRI ShapeFile project file, which makes reference to other .shp files on disk).

PLY

PLY can generally be considered a simple, 1990s-era, university research oriented polygonal (mesh) 3D file format designed to store data from 3D scanners. It was developed by Greg Turk and others in the Stanford graphics. Its design was inspired by the Wavefront .obj format.

PLY was meant to be a simple, easily parsable file format and hence only conveys basic geometry information for a single object definition with polygon vertices, vertex colors vertex normals and UV texture coordinates. No materials nor hierarchy, lights or cameras are supported.

ESRI ShapeFile import converter's overview

PLY export converter's overview