Cisco Industrial Networking Specialist

Industrial Network Specialist

Information Technologies (IT) is a booming industry filled with growth and potential. Because it is always growing, the educational requirements to stay relevant must also grow. Cisco, an IT leader in education, has recently introduced a number of new certifications to their list of professional certifications. One of these new certifications is the Industrial Network Specialist.

Overview

Cisco Industrial Networking Specialist certification is broadly for IT and OT (operational technology) professionals who are already a part of (or are seeking to become a part of) the manufacturing, process control, and oil and gas industries. The individuals in these fields should have some experience with installing, maintaining, and troubleshooting network systems. Cisco goes on to explain that this certification, “…provides plant administrators, control system engineers and traditional network engineers with an understanding of the networking technologies needed in today’s connected plants and enterprises.”

Requirements and Exams

Prerequisites and training: Though there aren’t any formal prerequisites for individuals interested in attaining their Industrial Network Specialist certification, Cisco does recommend a training course to better prepare candidates for the certification exam. This training is the Managing Industrial Networks with Cisco Networking Technologies (IMINS). After finishing the training, participants are required to take and pass the 600-601 IMINS exam in order to complete the training for the Industrial Network Specialist certification.

Taking the Exam: Cisco reports that the exam will test the certification hopeful’s knowledge on the OSI layers of IP networks; furthermore, the exam will test the knowledge of networking devices, including routers, switches and cabling.

Recertification:  Because of the constantly changing IT environment, the Industrial Network Specialist certification has to remain current. For this to happen, certification holders have to participate and pass one of the recertification requirements in order to keep their certification. Currently Cisco has four: pass the current required exams, pass the current CCIE written exam, pass the current CCDE written exam, or pass the current CCDE Practical Exam. Certification holders have two years from their initial certification date to complete the aforementioned requirements in order to recertify.

Conclusion

The Information Technologies field is forever growing to meet the demands of emerging and current technology. If IT professionals want to remain current in their respective fields, it is necessary for them to stay up-to-date. The Industrial Networking Specialist allows IT professionals to not only remain up-to-date and current, but they also achieve the clout that comes with holding a world-respected certification from Cisco.