Just attended a trade show for the latest in manufacturing technology. One popular item was cutting devices; plasma, water jet and laser. I did not realize there are several different takes on each type with things like injecting various high pressure gasses while cutting. And depending on the particular design the quality of the cut will differ with respect to accuracy, squareness (of the cut from top to bottom), edge finish, type and thickness of material capacity, etc. They have cutters that can handle plates of steel something like 30 foot wide by 60 foot long and a foot thick (don't quote me on the exact numbers, but it was impressive), as well as incredibly intricate minuscule patterns.
The other big thing was 3D printers and the related 3D scanners. Absolutely amazing what the latest versions are capable of; in addition to several types of plastics/polymers they have carbon fiber, stainless steel, titanium, brass, etc printing materials. And with the US patent on the 3D printer concept having run out the prices have dropped significantly.
Obviously the related software for machines is continually evolving and with it the potential to do new things. One thing that was expressed to me is the potential for a machine to receive a file that is "good" but the cut product comes out to different dimensions due to software issues (he explained it in detail but my eyes got all glazed as my mind saw images of white sandy beaches and palm trees while he was speaking a foreign language...to me at least).
Throw in the fact there are a lot more women in the trades and the show had free drinks...well it was fun (hence the reason I can't remember the actual capacity of the cutters nor explain the software issue).