I tend to agree with you and GR1D.
Since the very beginning Sigma has been aimed towards market wide role in many respects, that is where it's true value lies, not just for Sigma, but also for the major players in the space. It's role in America Makes, EWI, Military programs would point to this kind of industry wide facilitation
The major players want to get on and get this market going, and that means understanding and certifying the products. Having that key certification and inspection tool goes along way to creating this. Importantly it allows end users, supply chains and new entrants to be on the same page of the quality conundrum in a market that is largely fractured by different machines, different material properties and new geometries. Sigma's independence, its machine and product agnocity and it's groundbreaking technology all put it head and shoulders above any other body for this particular role. In this particular case i feel the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts. The industry needs this critical yardstick to move into production and really benefit from this technology, but the industry doesn't need to all become independent certifiers.
I still think it's plausible GE and Honeywell take a stake in Sigma to protect their interests, but i don't necessarily feel that a sole party will buy out. That being said, i think, as silversmith pointed out yesterday, as production starts, across industries, the large volume of PR3D machines that should be utilized, and recurring revenues will create some serious ongoing value over the next 5 years. A sellout now could be too early (assuming they have an idea now of some short term demand that will keep us afloat).
All in all though, as others have mentioned, all gloves are off really in this space. People from end users, OEM's, new entrants, VC's, industry titans, foreign suitors will all be scrambling around trying to see where this industry is going and what critical technology can help propel them to the top of the tree. I wouldn't rule anything out.
