The Ohio State University

Over the last ten years, The Motz Group from Cincinnati have been tremendous supporters of The Ohio State University Turfgrass Science Program and they have provided over $700,000 in contributions.

Motz Group President and CEO Joe Motz (left) and Senior VP Mark Heinlein are innovators in the sports turf industry. They design and build both artificial and natural grass athletic fields that have been installed worldwide at every competative sports level.  Current field installations are in the USA, South America, Brazil, Holland, Italy, Australia, and Qatar. In 2009, they will design and build 18 new fields.

Both Joe and Mark are Ohio State graduates that put great emphasis on research and technology. They have funded research over the years on many of their products, including the PAT system, high-gravity drainage system, TS-ll natural grass stabilizer, and most recently the 24/7 synthetic turf surface. This summer, they installed a synthetic turf research trial at our turfgrass research facility that will be part of a comprehensive study looking at alternative infill materials.

In addition to their field construction business, both Joe and Mark are heavily involved in the turfgrass and synthetic turf industries.   Joe was President of the Ohio Turfgrass Foundation in 1991 and presently serves on the board of the Ohio Turfgrass Research Trust. He is currently Chairman of the Synthetic Turf Council (STC).  In addition, Joe is a Presidents Club member at Ohio State and he serves on the advisory committee for the College of Agriculture. He also sponsors the annual Buckeye Sports Turf Student of the Year award. Mark was President of the Ohio Turfgrass Foundation in 2002 and presently serves on the OTF trade show committee.  He serves on the STC Ethics Committee and is a member of the review board for ASTM, overseeing specifications for sports fields. He is also a Presidents Club member at Ohio State.