Webinar : The Best Industrial Switch for Your Network

Make the right choice for reliability, performance, and long-term scalability.

Choosing an industrial switch is not just about price or port count—it’s about ensuring your network can withstand harsh environments, deliver dependable uptime, and grow with your needs. In this technical webinar, Sam Leong, Product Manager at Atop Technologies, shares proven considerations and selection strategies drawn from decades of deploying networking solutions in demanding industrial environments.

“In an industrial environment, downtime is expensive. Redundancy and fast recovery times are worth the investment.” – Sam Leong

Whether you are working on a small facility upgrade or planning a large-scale network across multiple sites, you will learn how to match switch capabilities to your operational requirements—avoiding costly compatibility issues, downtime, and performance bottlenecks.

“More features doesn’t always mean better. It means more cost. Match the switch to your real-world needs.” – Sam Leong

Download video transcript.

What You'll Learn

• Industrial vs. Commercial Switches: Key differences in durability, compliance, and operational temperature ranges.

• Core Selection Factors: How application, port density, speed, redundancy, and scalability impact your choice.

• Managed vs. Unmanaged: When to choose each, and the features that make managed switches valuable for troubleshooting and network monitoring.

• Layer 2 vs. Layer 3: Understanding functions, use cases, and integration strategies for different network layers.

• Environmental and Certification Requirements: Why compliance (e.g., IEC, IEEE 61850, ATEX) matters in substations, oil & gas, transportation, and smart city projects.

• Power over Ethernet (PoE) Considerations: Matching switch capabilities to device power needs and understanding PoE standards.

• Fiber & SFP Module Planning: Selecting the right media, connectors, and distances to ensure compatibility and performance.

“If you know you can use an unmanaged switch, you will still wish you had chosen a managed one when it comes time to troubleshoot.” – Rick Rockershousen

Who Should Register

This webinar is ideal for:

• Network and Systems Engineers responsible for designing or maintaining industrial networks.

• Controls and Automation Engineers integrating new equipment or upgrading legacy systems.

• Project Managers overseeing industrial infrastructure deployments.

• Procurement Specialists tasked with sourcing reliable, application-specific networking hardware.

• Maintenance and OT (Operational Technology) Teams looking to improve uptime and reduce troubleshooting time.