What makes Materials Park unique? 
With its great arching dome and its semi-circular office building, the ASM International World Headquarters at Materials Park uniquely conveys the imaginative force that marks the world’s leading society for materials science and engineering. Hailed nearly 50 years ago for its futuristic design, the building is renowned today for its timelessness. In December 2006, viewers of WKYC-TV3 named Materials Park one of the “Seven Wonders of Cleveland.”

How long has ASM been around?
ASM has been the leading authority on materials information for more than 90 years. Founded in 1913, ASM’s headquarters have been located in Northeast Ohio since 1920. We have called Materials Park home since 1960.

What does ASM stand for?
ASM International – The Materials Information Society is the official name of our society.

Who designed Materials Park?
The design was the result of the vision of three men: William Hunt Eisenman, ASM's managing director for 40 years (1918-1958); Cleveland architect John Terence Kelly, and inventor R. Buckminster Fuller.

• Bill Eisenman personally donated 100 acres of farmland to the society, selected the architect, approved the final design, and drove the wooden stakes that marked the building’s footprint.
• John Terence Kelly envisioned a structure that would bring nature and technology together in a celebration of materials. The building becomes one with the surrounding countryside, while the dome creates a junction point between earth and sky. 
• The most spectacular feature of Kelly’s design is the geodesic dome or "space lattice,” which was engineered and created by the dome’s inventor, R. Buckminster Fuller. It is the largest open-work dome in the world, and was one of Fuller’s favorites.

What does Materials Park symbolize?
ASM’s geodesic dome stands as a symbol of humanity’s mastery of materials: from the minerals and laboratories they come from, to the processes that make them useful in ways that touch our lives every day. We like to say that if it’s manufactured, it involves materials. And if it involves materials, it involves ASM.

ASM gathers and disseminates information and expertise on metals and other engineering materials, particularly with respect to the manufacture, processing, characterization, selection, understanding, use and lifecycle of engineered materials. 

ASM makes it possible for materials professionals to exchange information freely. Without the free exchange of information, the progress of technology bogs down. It is ASM members in the research community that push the limits of knowledge, and ASM members in industry that apply those advances to improve productivity and make better, more affordable products.

Who are the members of ASM?
ASM serves a growing membership of 38,000 members in 100 countries. In Northeast Ohio, we have approximately 2,000 members employed in industry, R&D and academia. You’ll find ASM members in every organization that advances materials technology, including NASA-Glenn Research Center, Ford, the Cleveland Clinic, Eaton, Swagelok, Brush Wellman and Case Western Reserve University. 

ASM members make today’s products profitable, and tomorrow’s products possible. Our membership applies information and knowledge in exciting new applications that improve our quality of life in a million different ways, large and small – from today’s aircraft, cars and microelectronics to making tomorrow’s “hydrogen economy” possible.

Our members’ cutting edge interests include nanotechnology; “green” or environmentally benign manufacturing; materials for medical devices; materials for the hydrogen economy; (fuel cells and hydrogen storage, production and distribution); materials for homeland security; advanced materials for aerospace, automotive, power generation and other industries; and shape memory and superelastic technology.

How big is the dome?
Made of extruded aluminum pipe, the open-work dome stands 103’ high and 250’ in diameter, weighs 80 tons and contains more than 65,000 parts. The dome stands on five pylons, two of which rise up from courtyards set into the building.

The geodesic dome is unique among structures because every part of it works together synergistically to give it strength. This makes the dome a highly appropriate symbol for the members and chapters of ASM – each providing knowledge to strengthen the whole.

What are some of the building’s unique features?
A stainless steel "sun shield" 13’ high and 390’ long extends across the west face of the third level. The shield provides protection from the western sun without obstructing the view. The outer surface of the shield is a satin finish, the inner, soft gold. There are 4,000 louvers or openings in all.

The building houses approximately 90 staff associates within its three levels and 50,000 sq. ft. of floor space. It is made of reinforced concrete with special emphasis on uses of metals. Every door on the lobby level is stainless steel; the "floating" main stairway is also of stainless steel, hung dramatically by the use of steel rods running the height of the three levels. Copper sheeting frames the elevator. 

These days, “green” (environmentally sound) design is an important consideration for architects. The design of our building was ahead of its time, featuring an extensive roof surface covered with grass! Outside, the Eisenman Garden features more than 60 specimens of raw mineral ores and more than 70 varieties of perennials, shrub and flowering trees.

What takes place at Materials Park?
The staff of ASM works closely with our membership to create online communities, technical events, continuing education programs, magazines and technical journals to serve the changing needs of materials scientists and engineers.

The building serves an important educational role. Materials Park features a state-of-the-art materials laboratory and classroom facility, where professionals can develop and strengthen their knowledge of materials science, metallurgy, failure analysis, heat treating, surface engineering, metallography and other topics.

Materials Park also serves as home to the ASM Materials Education Foundation’s flagship program, “ASM Materials Camp.”  We believe that the growth of materials science and engineering as a profession is of critical importance for the progress of society as a whole. To make high school students more aware of potential careers in materials, science and engineering, the ASM Foundation sponsors Materials Camps with the support of local ASM chapters throughout the world. From 2000 through 2005, the program has graduated more than 1,300 students and 500 teachers.

Are the grounds open to the public?
Materials Park is located at 9639 Kinsman Rd, Russell Township. We are located next to the Geauga Park District’s West Woods and are approximately 4 miles west of Punderson State Park. The building is closed to the public, but our gardens and grounds are open from 8:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

What is Studio ASM?
ASM opened Studio ASM (located in the Idea Center at Playhouse Square) to allow us to work more closely with individuals and organizations that are driving technological and economic growth in Cleveland. This creative space also serves as an ideation center that encourages creative thinking and the development of new products to serve our members. Between Studio ASM and Materials Park, we are proud to call two of the most exciting locations in Northeast Ohio home.