Near net shape

Near net shape is an industrial manufacturing technique. The name implies that the initial production of the item is very close to the final (net) shape, reducing the need for surface finishing. Reducing traditional finishing such as machining or grinding eliminates more than two-thirds of the production costs in some industries.

Processes

The following are various near-net-shape processes categorized by material.

Ceramics

• Gel casting
• Ceramic injection molding
• Spray forming
• Structural ceramic production

Composites

• Lanxide process

Plastics

• Injection moulding
• Rapid prototyping

Metals

• Casting
  • Permanent mold casting
• Powder metallurgy
• Linear friction welding
• Friction welding
• Metal injection molding
• Rapid prototyping
• Spray forming
• Superplastic forming
• Cold forming
• Semi-solid metal casting
• Photochemical machining