Face to Face with Don Klimkowicz
Don Klimkowicz, the President of Materion Advanced Materials Group, has been with the company for over 13 years in several leadership positions. He currently resides at corporate headquarters in Mayfield Heights, Ohio and is responsible for the Advanced Materials Group business.
Don’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Cleveland State was the foundation for a work career spanning several technical industries. His first position was in engineering for a chemical and petroleum company in Texas. He was educated in business at the University of Michigan. He then progressed into a management role where he led global operations and distribution in North America, Europe and Africa for a major producer of sensitive pressure label stock. His next step took him to Brush Alloy, (later to be known as Materion Precision Alloys), where he was in charge of worldwide operations for four years followed by three years as president.
In his current role as President of Advanced Materials Group, Don’s focus has been on promoting Materion’s growth through innovative complete-package solutions for customers. He views this as a “win-win” situation where by “satisfying our customer’s immediate requirements and creating the technology to meet their future needs, we win their loyalty and in turn keep our company profitable.”
In addition to his commitment to Materion, Don is a committed family man. He and wife Kim have four grown children and a total of eight grandchildren. Their biggest challenge is finding time to spend with all of the family. When Materion can spare him, Don enjoys traveling with his wife to fun places and watching his grandchildren play sports.