Planning for Metal Additive Manufacturing

Abstract The implementation of Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies simplifies the process planning and manufacturing of parts with intricate geometry. This is because the AM can directly fabricate a part with complex geometry using variety of materials with required mechanical properties such as strength, hardness, and certain behaviour under load. The advantages of AM become apparent in many industrial applications not only for prototyping purposes, but also for making end-use products. Therefore, the necessity to plan the design and manufacturing process chain is now vital for making AM a reliable and efficient technology that can achieve the required part quality. This paper presents research on quality assessment of parts fabricated via Selective Laser Melting (SLM) as a starting phase of new process-planning model. SLM samples were manufactured, several methods for quality assessment applied, and the outcomes evaluated. The results are used in the “design for SLM” and inform the whole process planning methodology when SLM is considered for production. In addition, they will be further employed in predictive modelling and design optimisation of precision parts made via metal AM.