Advanced materials are essential to strengthening the resilience of U.S. industries ranging from defense and aerospace to energy and consumer products. Yet decades of production shifting overseas have weakened domestic capacity and increased dependence on foreign materials.

The NSF NEO-SMART Engine in Northeast Ohio, led by Case Western Reserve University, with more than 70 regional partners, is uniting research, industry, and workforce partners to strengthen domestic advanced materials manufacturing through the development and integration of new materials (feedstock), next-generation reprocessing technology, and AI and machine learning for materials design.  

Northeast Ohio is uniquely positioned to lead this work, with a longstanding manufacturing base and one of the nation's densest concentrations of advanced materials expertise. With a focus on metals, polymers, and chemicals and coatings – materials critical to key U.S. sectors, the NSF NEO-SMART Engine will help expand domestic manufacturing capacity, grow the region’s skilled workforce, create economic opportunity and support a more resilient U.S. industrial base and supply chain.