Extract text from PDW files
To convert your PDW file to another format, you need WinProladder or other Developer software.
To convert other file formats to the "PLC Project File" file type, you need software like WinProladder or a similar tool.
The .PDW file extension primarily identifies a project file generated by WinProladder, the specialized development environment for Fatek Automation Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs). These files contain the critical "ladder logic" code, register allocations, and symbol tables used to control industrial machinery.
A major problem for engineers and facility managers is the proprietary nature of the format. A .PDW file is a binary container that cannot be opened in standard text editors or generic CAD tools; it requires the exact version of WinProladder (strictly Windows-based) to interpret the logic. This creates a bottleneck when sharing system designs with clients who do not have the software installed, or when archiving documentation for long-term maintenance.
To overcome this lock-in, the most practical solution is converting the ladder diagrams to PDF for universal viewing and archiving. This preserves the visual logic structure without requiring the original IDE.
Secondary Use Case: In scientific research, a .PDW file may be a DNA cloning, sequence analysis, and plasmid map file created by pDRAW32. These files are used to plot circular and linear DNA structures. Like the PLC format, these are highly specific; researchers often need to convert these maps to high-resolution images (like PNG or TIFF) or PDF for inclusion in academic papers and presentations where the raw data file is useless.
Convert.Guru analyzes your PDW file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted PDF, CDW, JPG, DWG, PRG, LAD and 8XP files.
If you want to convert PDW file to INDD, QXP, PUB, PMD, PM6, PM7, PM8, PM9, PM10, PM11, OMP or P65, you can use WinProladder or similar software from the "PLC Automation Project" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert MDI, PUB, PDP, PM4, P65, COMIC, WEBTEMPLATE, PMD, SPUB, INDD, PM5 or QXP files to PDW, try WinProladder or another comparable tool in the "PLC Automation Project" 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 PDW converter.