EDM machining actually stands for electrical discharge machining. This is the term used for a machining process that is used in the process of manufacturing those parts that are made from very hard metals and their alloys. Some of the parts or objects that are produced with the use of EDM machining include dies made of hardened steel, critical components of engines and compressor blades of jet engine fans. EDM machining is a thermal process that is able to remove as well as re-deposit material on top of the object that is being machined. The area that is recast is characteristically much tougher than the regular or original surface. It also will have a desirably higher resistance to wear and tear like abrasion and corrosion.

In the process of EDM machining, an electrical discharge is made to occur between the object surface and the tool used for finishing. This discharge induces high temperatures that range between 10,000 to 20,000 degrees centigrade. In this manner a dielectric field is created that, as long as it exists, it constantly removes and then re-deposits material to the object's surface. The process allows you to introduce metal or elemental powders into the dielectric stream and this causes an alloy to be deposited.

EDM machining is a process that is also put in use in order to cut, shape and alter exceptionally hard metals. It is used to turn metals into tools that can in turn be used to cut and machine those objects that are made from softer metals. In this kind of machining, a wire that is electrically charged is moved extremely close to the object that is under machining and it is at that point that the electrical discharge actually begins. EDM machining is a technology that is extremely useful to mechanical industries today and is used in almost all tool making and metal cutting processes.