Cost-effective rapid prototyping and short-run tooling with CNC composite tooling planks

Due to the increased highly competitive nature of the foundry industry, lead times from design to production of castings need to be reduced. Plastic tooling material suppliers are being required to create materials to rise to this challenge. With the aid of machinable composite tooling planks, great strides in the areas of computer-aided design (CAD)/computer-aided machining (CAM) are dramatically closing the gap between design and production of new castings. This paper will begin by examining traditional forms of tooling along with same of their advantages and shortcomings. In the foundry industry, high-density composite tooling planks are rapidly becoming the tooling medium of choice to produce patterns and cares. This paper will also examine the series of steps required to produce cost-effective prototype, preproduction and limited production foundry patterns and coreboxes utilizing composite tooling planks, along with their advantages and limitations.