In the past I have never felt much enthusiasm for 3d printing. I just discovered what El Reg calls "metal 3d printing". Although they’re missing a huge chance to cleverly call it "3d sintering" or even "3d sinting", I am actually quite optimistic about this technology.

Sintering is a very smart technique which can create very interesting results. Unlike thermoplastic resin (hot glue gun) 3d printing, metal sintering has the potential to make things that are actually useful. In a wild speculative way, I can imagine very exotic workpieces with difficult geometries and even clever tricks like different metals fused into the same part. It seems like a genuine amalgamation of the reasons for the 3d printing hype and the reasons to persist with traditional metalworking.

The company driving this technology, Desktop Metal, seems like they’ve got a sensible manufacturing product. The idea seems sound. Rather than replace traditional machine shops, I think that the bigger threat is to traditional small foundries. The Desktop Metal marketing literature suggests that you can "apply optional finishing methods such as machining or bead blasting for critical tolerances and finishes". It sounds like this would be perfect to combine with a benchtop milling machine.

But still, replacing an exotic metals foundry with a piece of office equipment is quite a trick. I have to say I never would have imagined the existence of an "…office-friendly sintering furnace with a peak temperature of 1400C, allowing for the sintering of a wide range of metals." That just sounds crazy but if it works then I’m impressed.

On the other hand, this same office sintering furnace is also described as "cloud-connected" so maybe it is nothing more than posturing and nonsense. I do think the concept seems reasonable. It will be interesting to see how this system performs in the real world. I am hopeful.