Sintering:
Sintering is a heat treatment process in which a large quantity of loose aggregate material is subjected to a sufficiently high temperature and pressure to cause the loose material to become a compact solid piece. The amount of heat and pressure administered during the sintering process is slightly less than the material’s melting point. [Corrosionpedia]
Noted in a press release I ran across, “Siemens expands additive manufacturing portfolio through acquisition of Atlas 3D“:
Siemens announced today that it has signed an agreement to acquire Atlas 3D, Inc., a Plymouth, Indiana-based developer of software that works with direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) printers to automatically provide design engineers with the optimal print orientation and requisite support structures for additive parts in near real-time. Atlas 3D will join Siemens Digital Industries Software, where its solutions will expand additive manufacturing capabilities in the Xcelerator portfolio of software.