Can't make any comment on that or most of the technical as this is way over my head and I have no desire to get in the middle of a heated discussion over which company is better.
However, I did look up the steel in the Wiki, it certainly sounds like an impressive compound and it is noted for its expense: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CPM_S30V_steel
I could see the machining costs being high with such a high grade material as stainless is very hard to start with and this stuff is noted to be an exceptionally hard compound and I imagine in turn that makes machining difficult.
Whether or not that better material translates into better scanners we'll have to wait and see. However, I have no reason to doubt Bill as Pangolin usually deliver what is promised on the technical side of things.