Desktop Metal’s BMD and Microwave Sintering: A New Era for Metal Additive Manufacturing

At RP Platform, we were eager to learn about Desktop Metal’s latest breakthroughs—Bound Metal Deposition (BMD) and microwave sintering. BMD blends metal powder with a plastic filament binder and prints via a process akin to fused deposition modelling. Microwave sintering, on the other hand, uses metal injection moulding feedstock mixed with a binder and cures in a custom‑designed furnace.

These innovations signal a pivotal shift in additive manufacturing, highlighting several industry‑wide trends:

1. As AM steadily expands from rapid prototyping to full‑scale production, technologies that enable efficient batch manufacturing are emerging. While they won’t replace established methods like CNC machining anytime soon, they give manufacturers new, cost‑effective options to explore.
2. Support material design is becoming more sophisticated, prioritising easy removal to cut post‑processing time. Streamlined workflows translate into faster, more agile production cycles.
3. Combining proven materials with cutting‑edge processes ensures that prototypes can match the mechanical properties of final parts—critical for sectors such as automotive and aerospace.
4. Integrated software tailored to each printer underlines the importance of cohesive solutions. Though compatibility with popular AM platforms remains to be fully validated, the trend toward end‑to‑end ecosystems is encouraging.

We look forward to witnessing the first commercial parts fabricated with these transformative technologies.