Aluminum Vacuum Forming Mold Design

I’m gearing up to produce a run of thermo-formed packaging trays and need a production-ready aluminum mold modeled from scratch. Because I don’t have any sketches or CAD in place, I’ll rely on you to translate the tray’s functional requirements into a clean, machinable design that a CNC shop can cut directly. What I need you to handle • Develop the complete 3D geometry of the mold body and backing plate, incorporating proper draft angles, vent holes, fillets, and radiused corners suited for thin-gauge sheet forming. • Optimise cavity layout for cycle time and material yield while respecting the limits of my forming equipment (I’ll share platen size, clamping stroke, and sheet thickness once we start). • Provide manufacturable files—STEP or IGES for machining, plus STL for any quick prints or simulations—and a 2D dimensioned drawing that documents critical offsets and tolerances. Acceptance criteria 1. All features conform to aluminum CNC machining best practices (no undercuts that require secondary ops). 2. Draft angles ≥ 3° on all pull surfaces; wall thickness uniformity maintained. 3. Venting scheme tested in CAD flow simulation or clearly justified analytically. 4. Deliverables open flawlessly in Fusion 360 and SolidWorks 2022 without feature errors. If you have prior examples of food-grade or electronics packaging tooling, that’s a plus—I’m keen to see screenshots or photos. Let’s talk through the tray specs and lock in the toolpath-friendly design together.