NSF-CMC Reverse Logo

Critical Minerals to Critical Goods

As the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Critical Materials Crossroads Engine in the Kansas City Region, we are dedicated to onshoring the U.S. production of critical minerals and creating a complete U.S. based supply chain from mineral extraction to the manufacturing of critical goods.

We have partnered with organizations across the region, nation, and world to help achieve this goal. The breadth and depth of expertise in these partnerships ranges from local economic developers, workforce organizations, governmental officials, multinational and international corporations and entrepreneurs.

Our Mission

To develop a domestic critical materials supply chain, fostering advanced manufacturing capabilities while promoting broad access to employment and entrepreneurship.

Our Focus

  • Critical Materials Sustainability
  • Energy Sovereignty
  • Geostrategic Symbiosis

Our Goals

  • Partner Alignment

    Create a self-sustaining critical materials ecosystem within the Kansas City region focused on Innovation, Scaling, and Production.

  • Economic Growth

    10,000 direct, indirect, and induced jobs.

  • Thought Leadership

    Become a national thought leader and innovation hub for critical materials.

  • Economic Security

    Create a secure supply chain for current and future critical materials needs.

  • Workforce Development

    Technical training, reskilling and upskilling of a workforce capable of providing the skills manufacturers demand. Stackable credentials and industry buy in to create family sustaining wages.

  • Innovation Catalyst

    Technical expertise across a wide range of process and material composition of matter and improvements means the CMC is constantly pushing the boundary of the current state-of-the-art.

  • Technology Scaling

    Develop a technology maturation network that rapidly scales new innovations from lab to full-scale through the use of shared facilities, colocation and centralized business support services.

The NSF Critical Materials Crossroads Engine is building an ecosystem, led by the University of Missouri-Kansas City and supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation. The CMC connects innovation, production and workforce capabilities to grow the regional economy, create high-paying jobs and reinforce U.S. manufacturing strength.

Our Values

Drawing on the region’s natural resources, transportation assets, technical expertise, advanced manufacturing innovation and skilled workforce, the CMC ecosystem aims to produce 100,000 tons per year of refined materials for domestic markets by 2036. By uniting suppliers, innovators, and end-users in one advanced manufacturing hub, Kansas City can strengthen supply chains, accelerate innovation, and position the nation to meet the demands of an increasingly uncertain global environment.

UMKC Critical Materials Lab