282 Int. J. Materials Engineering Innovation, Vol. 3, Nos. 3/4, 2012 Copyright © 2012 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd. Statistical analysis of compressive strength for the reliability of parts produced by direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) C.D. Naiju* School of Mechanical and Building Sciences, VIT University, Vellore 14, Tamil Nadu, India Fax: +91-416-2243092 E-mail: cdnaiju@vit.ac.in *Corresponding author M. Adithan Academic Staff College, VIT University, Vellore 14, Tamil Nadu, India Fax: +91- 416-2243092 E-mail: director.asc@vit.ac.in P. Radhakrishnan Institute of Advanced Studies, PSG Tech, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India Fax: +91- 416-2243092 E-mail: rkp_n@yahoo.com Abstract: A study was carried out to find the reliability of components manufactured by direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) for compressive strength. An orthogonal array of modified L8 experimental design using Taguchi’s experimental design techniques was developed and used. Test results were analysed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) technique to identify the main process parameter that influences the compressive strength. It has been found that infiltration had more influence on compressive strength as compared to other process parameters. Regression analysis shows that regression model for compressive strength is within the significance level and adequate within 90%. Detailed investigations on reliability using Weibull analysis shows that the distribution plot and were considered as a good design for Weibull analysis. The Weibull distribution method can be used for describing the distribution of times to compressive strength of rapid prototyped components using DMLS for functional applications. Keywords: direct metal laser sintering; DMLS; Taguchi method; compressive strength; analysis of variance; ANOVA; Weibull.