Book excerpt: The HIP process was originally devised for diffusion bonding of nuclear fuel elements at Battelle Memorial Institute in the United States in the mid-1950s. This innovative technique has been a subject of global research and development, and was applied to the cemented carbide industry at the end of the 1960s by ASEAj Sandvik. Since then this process has been applied to many kinds of industrial materials, including tool steel, superalloys and electronic and ceramic materials. In very recent years, HIPing technology has been applied even to R& D of high temperature superconducting materials and of a composite process with self combustion reaction. On this occasion we should recognize that the 3rd HIP Conference was held in the midst of such progress of HIP technology, and that it was the first international conference which was held in Asia in the field of HIP and CIP technologies. The conference was very successful, with about 250 participants from 13 countries, including Japan. About 90 presentations, including nine invited lecturers, 44 oral and 35 poster presentations, were offered, and all contributions were at a high level and contained valuable results which had been attained in recent years.