Achieving net-shape components in Powder Bed Fusion (PBF) additive manufacturing remains a significant challenge due to inherent distortions and the fact that material choice, design and process parameters are fixed by the time the manufacturing stage is reached. These constraints limits greatly the degrees of freedom available for distortion mitigation during production. Support structures are commonly employed to control distortion, but they impose a triple penalty: increased powder consumption, longer build times, and costly manual post-processing. Meanwhile, market pressures and customer expectations for near-net-shape components amplify both economic and technical challenges. Simulation-based pre-distortion enables engineers to anticipate and compensate for thermomechanical distortions. However, the accuracy of these models can be constrained by underlying assumptions and variability in materials and machines, often resulting in components failing to meet tight dimensional tolerances. This presentation introduces a novel hybrid methodology that integrates a measurement-based pre-distortion feedback loop into the simulation workflow to enhance build accuracy. The approach is implemented within Simufact Additive, a commercial software solution developed by Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence. By combining simulation and measurement-based pre-distortion, the proposed workflow enables engineers to achieve high dimensional accuracy and cost efficiency in net-shape PBF builds. The presentation will also showcase industrial case studies demonstrating the practical benefits and robustness of this approach across a range of real-world applications.

Keywords: net-shape manufacturing; PBF; simulation; pre-distortion; additive manufacturing