This paper describes a switching network which is service independent and able to transport services of any bit rate, based on the fast packet switching concept. The control of the switching network is completely distributed; the path select is not centrally controlled, but gradually performed as the control packet is passing through the switching network. The switching network is a multistage network constructed with independent switching elements. The self-routing principle is applied. The load control of the different links between the switching elements in the network is provided by a static load control mechanism, applied to the logical connections granted on these links. Logical connections are accepted or rejected according to the already present load on each link. Possible overload caused by bursty traffic is solved by buffers within the switching elements. Simulation results are discussed, both for the static and dynamic behavior of the exchange. For both simulations, a large mix of different services is evaluated and conclusions are described.