A commutative local Cohen--Macaulay ring $R$ of finite Cohen--Macaulay type is known to be an isolated singularity; that is, $\Spec(R) \setminus \{ \mathfrak {m} \}$ is smooth. This paper proves a non-commutative analogue. Namely, if $A$ is a (non-commutative) graded Artin--Schelter \CM\ algebra which is fully bounded Noetherian and has finite Cohen--Macaulay type, then the non-commutative projective scheme determined by $A$ is smooth.

For a commutative local ring $R$, consider (noncommutative) $R$-algebras $\Lambda$ of the form $\Lambda = \operatorname{End}_R(M)$ where $M$ is a reflexive $R$-module with nonzero free direct summand. Such algebras $\Lambda$ of finite global dimension can be viewed as potential substitutes for, or analogues of, a resolution of singularities of $\operatorname{Spec} R$. For example, Van den Bergh has shown that a three-dimensional Gorenstein normal $\mathbb{C}$-algebra with isolated terminal singularities has a crepant resolution of singularities if and only if it has such an algebra $\Lambda$ with finite global dimension and which is maximal Cohen--Macaulay over $R$ (a ``noncommutative crepant resolution of singularities''). We produce algebras $\Lambda=\operatorname{End}_R(M)$ having finite global dimension in two contexts: when $R$ is a reduced one-dimensional complete local ring, or when $R$ is a Cohen--Macaulay local ring of finite Cohen--Macaulay type. If in the latter case $R$ is Gorenstein, then the construction gives a noncommutative crepant resolution of singularities in the sense of Van den Bergh.