materials-selection
Systematic materials selection for engineering design using performance indices, Ashby charts, multi-constraint optimization, and case-based reasoning. Covers the five-step Ashby method — function, objective, constraint, free variable, index — with worked examples for stiffness-limited beams, strength-limited ties, thermally shocked vessels, and minimum-cost components. Use when choosing among metals, polymers, ceramics, and composites under competing objectives.
npx skills add majiayu000/claude-skill-registry --skill materials-selection --agent claude-code
Same command for any agent — swap --agent for codex, cursor, copilot.
Weekly change comes from our own snapshots, not the repository page — it measures attention, not adoption.
# Materials Selection Every engineered artifact is the intersection of a function, a shape, a process, and a material. Of those four, the material is the one most often chosen under conditions of incomplete information — thousands of candidate materials, dozens of potentially relevant properties, several competing objectives, and hard constraints on geometry, process, cost, and environmental impact. Materials selection is the discipline that turns this combinatorial mess into a defensible, auditable choice. **Agent affinity:** ashby (Ashby charts and performance indices), bessemer (process-material coupling) **Concept IDs:** materials-property-space, materials-performance-indices, materials-process-coupling ## The Ashby Five-Step Method The selection procedure used throughout this skill was formalized by Michael Ashby and has become the reference approach in the field. It reduces selection to five questions that can be asked of any design problem. 1. **Function.** What does the component do? A tie carries tension. A beam resists bending. A panel resists buckling. A shaft transmits torque. A pressure vessel contains a fluid. Function determines which mechanical or physical response
- The Ashby Five-Step Method
- Deriving Performance Indices
- Worked example — Light, stiff beam
- Worked example — Light, strong tie
- Worked example — Thermally shocked vessel
- Common indices, tabulated
- Ashby Charts
- Reading a chart
- The selection move
- Handling Multiple Objectives
- Weighted sum / utility function
- Pareto front
- Constraint Filtering
- Process-Material Coupling
What does the materials-selection skill do?
Systematic materials selection for engineering design using performance indices, Ashby charts, multi-constraint optimization, and case-based reasoning. Covers the five-step Ashby method — function, objective, constraint, free variable, index — with worked examples for stiffness-limited beams, strength-limited ties, thermally shocked vessels, and minimum-cost components. Use when choosing among metals, polymers, ceramics, and composites under competing objectives.
How do I install it?
Run `npx skills add majiayu000/claude-skill-registry --skill materials-selection --agent claude-code` — it drops the skill into your project so the agent can pick it up. Swap the --agent value for codex, cursor or copilot if you use one of those.
Where does this skill come from?
From majiayu000/claude-skill-registry, a repository with 534 stars. We read it straight from the repository tree rather than a submitted listing, so what you see here is what is actually published.
Is a popular skill a good skill?
Not necessarily. Stars measure attention, not adoption — a repository can trend for a week and be abandoned. That is why we show the weekly change from our own snapshots next to the total, instead of a single flattering number.