Compound mold tooling for controlled heat transfer

A tool for forming an article in a molding operation comprising:

• a tool body formed from a plurality of laminate sheets of a first material, the laminate sheets each being shaped to collectively form a forming surface for forming the article, and at least one of the plurality of laminate sheets being shaped to form a cavity in the tool body that is spaced apart from the forming surface;
• and
• a heat transfer material having a coefficient of thermal conductivity greater than that of the first material, disposed within the cavity for a transfer of heat from the forming surface to the heat transfer material through the tool body during a molding operation.

A method for forming a molding tool comprising:

• providing a tool body from a first material with a forming surface for forming an article in a molding operation;
• and
• casting a heat transfer region from a second material having a coefficient of thermal conductivity that is greater than that of the first material and a melting temperature less than that of the first material, to the tool body for a transfer of heat between the forming surface and the heat transfer region during a molding operation.

A method for forming a molding tool comprising:

• forming a tool body from a plurality of laminate sheets of a first material, to collectively form a forming surface for forming an article, and to collectively form a cavity in the tool body that is spaced apart from the forming surface;
• and
• disposing a heat transfer material having a coefficient of thermal conductivity that is greater than that of the first material within the cavity for a transfer of heat between the forming surface and the heat transfer material through the tool body during a molding operation.