The road to 3-D printing has been paved in plastics. But it is about to take a turn.
With projects like GE Aviation's 3-D-printed fuel injector ramping up for production and what seems like the entire aerospace industry following suit, over the next couple of years the industry will begin to transition from its roots in polymer prototypes to its future in industrial-strength heavy metals.
With massive project like GE's on the horizon, this market, and the companies that enable it, are primed for a sudden, dramatic growth spurt. In the process, many makers of these metal-based additive machines – whether its laser sintering, electron beam melting or any other novel application – are in for a big bump.
The following slides identify the leaders in this field, providing a Who's Who of technology providers, machine makers and industry disruptors in the metal-printing business.
