INSTITUTE OF APPLIED ECONOMICS APS

Their core work

ApHER is a Danish SME that provides applied economic analysis — particularly life-cycle assessment (LCA), carbon footprint evaluation, and cost-benefit analysis — for the construction and building materials sector. Despite its general name, the organization specializes in the economics of sustainable construction, contributing economic modeling and environmental impact assessment to EU research projects on alkali-activated materials, waste recycling, and urban resilience. Their role in consortia is to quantify the business case and environmental payoff of new construction technologies.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

ApHER entered H2020 in 2017 focused on thermal energy storage (NewSOL) and quickly pivoted toward sustainable construction materials — alkali-activated binders, concrete durability, and carbon footprint analysis (DuRSAAM, 2018). By 2019-2020, their focus broadened to include construction waste recycling (WOOL2LOOP) and urban resilience assessment (CURE), signaling a shift from materials-level economics to system-level sustainability evaluation including nature-based solutions and urban environmental quality.

Moving from material-level cost analysis toward broader urban and circular economy assessment, making them increasingly relevant for green building and smart city consortia.

How they like to work

ApHER has never coordinated a project — they consistently join as a specialist participant or third-party contributor, providing economic and environmental assessment expertise to larger consortia. With 55 unique partners across 22 countries from just 4 projects, they operate in large, diverse consortia rather than small focused teams. This pattern suggests they are a trusted niche contributor that larger groups bring in for specific analytical tasks rather than a consortium-building organization.

Despite being a small SME with only 4 projects, ApHER has built a remarkably wide network of 55 partners across 22 countries, reflecting participation in large pan-European consortia. Their reach spans most of the EU with no obvious geographic concentration beyond their Danish base.

What sets them apart

ApHER fills an uncommon niche: applied economic analysis specifically tailored to sustainable construction and green building materials. While many partners in construction research consortia are materials scientists or engineering firms, ApHER brings the economic lens — LCA, carbon accounting, and cost modeling — that helps translate lab results into business decisions. For consortium builders, they offer a rare combination of economics expertise with deep domain knowledge in alkali-activated materials and circular construction.

Highlights from their portfolio

• NewSOL
  Largest single funding (EUR 150,704) and their only project outside construction materials — focused on concentrated solar power thermal storage.
• WOOL2LOOP
  Directly addresses circular economy in construction by recycling mineral wool waste into geopolymer products via alkali-activation — strong industry relevance.
• DuRSAAM
  MSCA training network on alkali-activated materials — positions ApHER within the academic training pipeline for next-generation sustainable construction researchers.