Abstract: A metal additive manufacturing machine includes a housing, a torch at least partially disposed within the housing, a media, a material, a sensor, and a control system. The media is granular and substantially similar to the material such that it can initiate and maintain an arc, if necessary, and be incorporated into the component. The media forms a flat or topographically featured structure. The material is positioned such that it is melted by the torch and forms a layer of material onto the media. The sensor is configured to measure a first data, where the first data is a distance between the torch and a layer of material. The control system is operably coupled to the sensor and configured to receive the first data and compare the first data to a first data threshold. The control system sends a command to move the torch in a z-direction.