A customizable powder bed containment system for use with a direct metal laser melting (DMLM) system includes a plurality of interlinkable containment walls mechanically couplable on a build plate of the DMLM system as well as mechanically coupleable to another interlinkable containment wall of the plurality of interlinkable containment walls, and at least one actuator mechanically coupled to at least one interlinkable containment wall of the plurality of interlinkable containment walls. The at least one actuator is operable to selectively raise the at least one interlinkable containment wall of the plurality of interlinkable containment walls axially relative to a build surface of the build plate.