We propose a framework for the configuration and operation of expensive-to-evaluate advanced manufacturing methods, based on Bayesian optimization. The framework unifies a tailored acquisition function, a parallel acquisition procedure, and the integration of process information providing context to the optimization procedure. The novel acquisition function is demonstrated, analyzed and compared on state-of-the-art benchmarking problems. We apply the optimization approach to atmospheric plasma spraying and fused deposition modeling. Our results demonstrate that the proposed framework can efficiently find input parameters that produce the desired outcome and minimize the process cost.