Abstract: A high-capacity low-blocking time-division switching system including a space-division switching network is disclosed for switching serial digital data words synchronously received on time multiplexed lines in a first code format wherein each data word occupies substantially an entire time multiplexed channel time period. In order to achieve high capacity and low blocking, the space-division switching network is physically large resulting in delays of the digital data words transmitted therethrough, which delays are significant when compared with the time duration of a time-division multiplex channel and which vary in accordance with the path selected. The communication paths through the stages of the space-division network are reconfigured each time-division multiplex channel time duration, but due to the transmission delays, the effective transmission period is less than the time duration of a channel.