Can serious engineering tasks be done using 3d printing methods?

My daughter has been getting into 3d printed dragons, snakes, etc.

I've seen 3d printed car parts made to replicate NLA ie out of production OEM plastic (mostly body/trim) parts.

Does 3d printing as it stands currently have a place for serious engineering tasks where precise methods, materials, etc. are required? I don't believe there is any sort of 3d printing for metal parts - only for stuff made from plastics.

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FreddieUK · 70-79, M

I think it's developing fast and could be scaled up for quite big engineering projects. I don't fully understand it, so find it a bit disconcerting to see the ease at which processes which involved several people and a lot of time are now apparently so simple.

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vingtor44 · 61-69, M

"Additive Manufacturing" using a half dozen or more different technologies is already displacing many metal machining operations in hundreds of aerospace and military applications. The fields of study would be mechanical engineering and materials science.