Research on optimal scaling of parts made from stainless steel material by Selective Laser Melting

Selective Laser Melting is one of the most important 3D technologies that are used for producing metallic parts that are used in different industrial sectors (e.g. automotive). Accuracy of the realized parts is one of the most challenging issues of this technology, taking into consideration the complexity of the 3D printing process, but also particularities of this type of technology. Material’s characteristics, technological parameters (laser power, scanning speed, layer thickness, hatching distance), building strategy and part orientation are only few of the most important aspects that must be considered when determining of optimal scaling of a part is considered for compensating the shrinkage that occurs in the process of 3D printing. In this paper finite element analysis and an original software application are presented, as they were used and developed by the authors to determine the optimum values of scale factors that are required to be applied for parts that are realized by Selective Laser Melting technology using Stainless Steel material in powder state form.