Extrudes thermoplastic filament through a heated nozzle, depositing material layer by layer. The most accessible and widely used 3D printing method.

Uses a UV laser to cure liquid photopolymer resin layer by layer, producing parts with excellent surface finish and fine detail.

Projects UV light through a digital projector to cure an entire layer of resin at once, making it faster than SLA for batch printing.

A laser selectively fuses powdered polymer (typically nylon) layer by layer. No support structures needed — unfused powder supports the part.

Fully melts metal powder with a high-power laser to create dense, fully functional metal parts layer by layer.

Fuses metal powder using a laser without fully melting it, producing near-full-density metal parts. Often used interchangeably with SLM.

Uses an electron beam in a vacuum to melt metal powder. Produces parts with lower residual stress than laser-based methods.

Deposits liquid binder onto metal powder, then sinters the green part in a furnace. Enables high-volume metal 3D printing.

Binder jetting applied to sand to create molds and cores for metal casting, eliminating traditional pattern-making.

HP's powder-based process that uses fusing and detailing agents with infrared energy for fast, isotropic polymer parts.

Jets droplets of photopolymer that are instantly UV-cured. Capable of multi-material and full-color printing.

Feeds metal wire or powder into a focused energy source (laser/electron beam/arc) to build up or repair metal parts.

Uses arc welding to deposit metal wire layer by layer, enabling large-scale metal 3D printing at relatively low cost.

Embeds continuous carbon fiber, fiberglass, or Kevlar into 3D printed thermoplastic for parts rivaling aluminum in strength.

Large-scale extrusion of concrete or cementitious materials for building walls, structures, and architectural elements.

A rotating cutting tool removes material from a workpiece along three linear axes. The workhorse of precision manufacturing.

Five-axis simultaneous machining allows the tool or workpiece to rotate on two additional axes, enabling complex geometries in a single setup.

The workpiece rotates while a stationary cutting tool removes material, ideal for cylindrical and axially symmetric parts.

Precision turning for small, complex parts where the bar stock slides through a guide bushing close to the cutting tool.

A thin electrically charged wire erodes conductive material by spark discharge, cutting intricate 2D profiles with extreme precision.

A shaped electrode "sinks" into the workpiece via spark erosion, creating complex 3D cavities in hardened materials.

A high-pressure water stream mixed with abrasive garnet cuts through virtually any material without heat-affected zones.

A focused laser beam melts or vaporizes material along a programmed path. Fast and precise for sheet materials.

An ionized gas arc cuts through conductive metals quickly and cost-effectively, especially for thicker plates.

High-speed routing for wood, plastics, composites, and soft metals on large flat-bed machines.

Abrasive wheel finishing process for achieving very tight tolerances and smooth surface finishes on hardened materials.

Uses photoresist and acid to selectively dissolve metal, creating intricate flat parts without tooling.

Molten plastic is injected into a steel or aluminum mold cavity under high pressure. The dominant process for high-volume plastic parts.

Inflates a heated plastic tube (parison) inside a mold to create hollow parts like bottles, tanks, and containers.

A rotating mold distributes powdered plastic evenly, creating large hollow parts with uniform wall thickness and low tooling cost.

Heats a plastic sheet until pliable, then draws it over a mold using vacuum. Low-cost tooling for shells and covers.

Like vacuum forming but with additional air pressure, achieving injection-mold-like detail at lower tooling cost.

A die press forms flat sheet metal into parts through cutting, bending, and forming operations. Extremely high volume capability.

CNC press brake bends sheet metal along straight lines using a punch and die. The backbone of sheet metal fabrication.

Sheet metal is drawn into a die cavity to create deep cup-shaped or box-shaped parts like cans, enclosures, and housings.

Uses fluid pressure to form sheet or tube metal into complex shapes that would be impossible or expensive with conventional stamping.

Forces heated metal through a die to create continuous profiles — channels, T-shapes, heatsinks, and custom cross-sections.

Melts plastic pellets and forces the material through a die to produce continuous profiles, tubes, sheets, and films.

Compressive force shapes metal into high-strength parts. Produces the strongest metal parts due to grain flow alignment.

Combines injection molding with metal powder metallurgy to produce small, complex metal parts at high volume.

A flat metal disc is rotated on a lathe and progressively shaped over a mandrel using rollers or tools.

Molten metal is poured into sand molds. The oldest and most versatile casting method, suitable for nearly any metal and size.

A wax pattern is coated in ceramic, then melted out and replaced with metal. Produces complex, high-precision castings.

Molten metal is injected under high pressure into reusable steel dies. Produces high-volume, precise, thin-walled metal parts.

Pours polyurethane resin into silicone molds under vacuum. Perfect bridge between 3D printing and injection molding (10-50 parts).

Molten metal is poured into a spinning mold. Centrifugal force produces dense, defect-free cylindrical parts.

Wire-fed gas metal arc welding. Versatile, fast, and the most commonly used welding process in manufacturing.

Tungsten electrode arc welding with separate filler rod and argon shielding. The gold standard for precision and weld quality.

Focused laser beam creates a narrow, deep weld with minimal heat-affected zone. Ideal for precision and automation.

Electrical resistance heats overlapping sheet metal at the contact point, creating a weld nugget. The standard for automotive body assembly.

A rotating tool generates frictional heat to plasticize and join metals without melting. Produces defect-free joints in aluminum.

A filler metal with a melting point above 450°C flows into the joint by capillary action. Joins dissimilar metals with minimal distortion.

Structural adhesives (epoxy, polyurethane, acrylic) bond dissimilar materials with distributed stress and no fastener holes.

Electrochemical process that grows a hard, corrosion-resistant oxide layer on aluminum. Can be dyed in any color.

Electrostatically applied dry powder is heat-cured into a durable, uniform finish. More durable than wet paint with no solvents.

Deposits a thin metal layer (chrome, nickel, zinc, gold) onto a conductive surface via electrochemical deposition.

Deposits ultra-thin, ultra-hard coatings (TiN, CrN, DLC) in a vacuum chamber. Used for tooling, medical, and decorative applications.

Propels abrasive media at a surface to clean, texture, or prepare it. Creates uniform matte finishes.

Reverse of electroplating — dissolves surface metal to create an ultra-smooth, passivated finish. Standard for medical and food equipment.

Polymer-ceramic thin-film coating providing exceptional hardness, chemical resistance, and corrosion protection in a thin layer.

Manual placement of fiber fabric with wet resin into an open mold. The simplest and most flexible composite process.

Vacuum draws resin through dry fiber layup in a sealed bag. Better quality and lower emissions than hand layup.

Pre-impregnated fiber sheets (prepreg) are laid up and cured in a pressurized autoclave. The gold standard for aerospace composites.

Resin is injected into a closed mold containing a dry fiber preform. Produces consistent, two-sided-finish composite parts.

Continuous fiber is wound around a rotating mandrel in precise patterns to create high-strength tubes, tanks, and pressure vessels.

Robotic head precisely places narrow prepreg tows onto complex tooling surfaces. The state-of-the-art for large aerospace structures.

Manufactures printed circuit boards by etching copper-clad laminate, drilling vias, and applying solder mask and silkscreen.

Pick-and-place machines mount electronic components onto PCBs. The standard process for modern electronics assembly.

Circuits fabricated on flexible polyimide substrates that can bend, fold, and flex during use.

Thin protective coating applied to assembled PCBs to protect against moisture, dust, chemicals, and thermal shock.

Automated knife, laser, or ultrasonic cutting of textiles and soft materials with precise nesting for minimal waste.

Inkjet printing directly onto fabric for custom patterns, short runs, and on-demand production without screens or plates.

Femtosecond laser enables sub-micron resolution 3D printing — the highest resolution additive process available.

Continuous manufacturing on flexible substrates for solar cells, sensors, displays, and printed electronics at massive scale.

Combines additive and subtractive processes in a single machine — deposit material then machine it to final tolerance.

Supersonic particle deposition bonds metal powder without melting, preserving material properties and enabling large-scale deposition.

Laser-fused powder or wire coating creates wear-resistant, corrosion-resistant surface layers on components.

Creates lab-on-a-chip devices with microscale channels for medical diagnostics, drug discovery, and chemical analysis.