Extract text from EPLAN sheets and archives (BLA)
To convert BLA files to another format, you need EPLAN Electric P8 or other Data software.
To convert other file formats to the "Engineering & Archive Data" file type, you need software like EPLAN Electric P8 or a similar tool.
The .BLA file extension is notoriously ambiguous, primarily serving three distinct functions in the real world. First, it is widely used as an electrical engineering drawing sheet or cable list by EPLAN Electric P8. This is a heavily proprietary format that locks data inside a closed ecosystem, forcing users to rely on expensive software subscriptions just to view a wiring diagram. Second, .BLA is frequently utilized as a generic, renamed ZIP archive by various applications, such as X-Mouse Button Control, to store backup configurations. Finally, it can function as a compiled script file for the Lua programming language.
Because of its fragmented nature, standard online converters almost always fail to process .BLA files. If it is an EPLAN cable list, you are dealing with a closed, proprietary format that is extremely difficult to open or convert externally. Typically, only the original software can properly read or export this data to standard targets like PDF or CSV. When it acts as a compiled script, the file is essentially binary data that requires decompilation rather than simple conversion.
However, there is a realistic workaround. Just drag and drop your file into convert.guru to see what it is and convert it if supported. If our analysis detects an underlying embedded ZIP archive, viewing or extraction is instantly possible. Even if it is an obscure proprietary EPLAN file or a compiled Lua script, convert.guru can inspect the file, bypass the confusing extension, and reveal internal readable text content.
Convert.Guru analyzes your BLA file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted EOX, CPJ and EPJ files.
If you want to convert BLA file to CSV, JSON, XML, YAML, YML, TOML, INI, CFG, CONF, DAT, DB or SQL, you can use EPLAN Electric P8 or similar software from the "Cable List & Archived Data" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert DBF, XML, SQLITE, XLSX, SQL, TSV, ACCDB, YAML, MDB, CSV, ODS or JSON files to BLA, try EPLAN Electric P8 or another comparable tool in the "Cable List & Archived Data" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our BLA converter.