Many technical people in Japan normally call the power metal "$B>F7k(B"(Sintered), or some people simply call "$B%Q%&%@!<%a%?%k(B." The power metal part is made by blending certain types of powdered-form metals and bonding agents and pressing it into a mold (called Die and Punch) to create a certain shape. However, this part is very brittle when it is just molded (this is called, $B!H(Bgreen parts$B!I(B). The parts must be baked (kind of heat treat) in the oven, and the heat (sintering process) will melt the bonding agents to hold the powder metal in place. This process makes the part to be strong and durable. Sorry for the long explanation. If you have further questions, send an e-mail.

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Note added at 2006-02-14 21:32:26 (GMT)
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$B>F7k!J(BSintered Metal)
Some thing happened to my characters above, and some portions became illegible. I am sorry about that. Here is my answer that I wrote.
Many technical people in Japan normally call the power metal this way. The power metal parts are made by blending certain types of powdered-form metals and bonding agents and pressing them into a mold (called Die and Punch) to create a certain shape. However, this part is very brittle when it is just molded (this is called, $B!H(Bgreen parts$B!I(B). The parts must be baked (sintering process) in the oven, and the heat will melt the bonding agent to hold the powder metal in place. This process makes the part durable. Sorry for the long explanation. If you have further questions, send e-mail.