The Construction and Building Sector’s Transition to Circular Resource Economy

Q&A

Documents
- qa_grand_solutions.pdf

The Call

Realdania and Innovation Fund Denmark’s aim with this call is to invest in research and innovation projects that contribute to the transition of the construction sector (hereafter referred to as the ‘sector’) to circular economy, as part of the green transition of society. The projects shall help the sector to significantly reduce the resource consumption, the embedded energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, at the same time offering a business potential.

The research shall strengthen the efforts in the entire value chain from research to development. The green transition, including circular economy, will require targeted efforts over several years. The efforts shall therefore also contribute to the building of competence and capacity in the Danish research sector.

As a tool to achieve this aim, Realdania and Innovation Fund Denmark are establishing a collaboration platform under the auspices of BLOXHUB for the selected projects in order to promote shared inspiration, exchange of experience and value creation.
Realdania and Innovation Fund Denmark invest in projects at all stages of the research and innovation value chain. Thus, we invest in both the early strategic research project, where targeted efforts and collaboration with the most competent international and/or Danish partners from relevant disciplines are crucial – and in the good project that lacks the final steps to be ready for successful introduction to the market or for commissioning.

The investment does not necessarily accompany a project all the way to commercialisation/commissioning. It is therefore crucial that the project parties themselves are able to lift the result onto the market or ensure commissioning – or have customers who can invest in or take over the project following Innovation Fund Denmark’s investment period.

The transition of the construction sector to circular economy requires interdisciplinary solutions with input from the technical/natural sciences as well as the social sciences and the humanities. Realdania and Innovation Fund Denmark emphasise that the implementation reflects the necessary interdisciplinary breadth and competencies to lead the process toward circular practice.

It will also be emphasised that the projects are holistic in coherent innovation and value chains or that, within their research and development boundaries, they are precisely associated with the totality and the values for which the results are to be used.

The call is based on ‘Agreement on Allocation of the Research Reserve for 2020’, ‘the Finance Act for 2020’, the ‘Advisory Board for Circular Economy 2016’ and the government’s ‘Strategy for circular economy’ from September 2018. On this basis and taking as a starting point the applicants’ in-depth understanding of the construction sector and their insight into international development, Realdania and Innovation Fund Denmark want to invest in projects that can create solutions to effectively transform the sector to circular resource economy. The aim is to reduce resource consumption and emissions of CO2 equivalents with effects on the climate, not just in Denmark, but globally.

The frames for the projects are very broad as long as the projects clearly address both a supply and a demand aspect. We expect projects with solutions that can be developed on an industrial scale based on common methods of design, operation, screening and materials handling. We see the need for circular solutions supported by digital structures for market platforms and business models, including digital solutions for traceability. We also think of possible models for risk-sharing by testing and introducing circular materials and construction systems and for developing new forms of ownership, contractual relationships and business models that make it attractive for end users to demand circular solutions. With respect to the strategic relevance of the projects, the applicants must position their project in relation to Danish and international research and development projects (state-of-the-art).
The overall assessment criteria are:
- Quality of research and innovation
- Value creation during and after the project period
- Efficiency in project execution
- Implementation of project results
It will be emphasised by Realdania and Innovation Fund Denmark that the projects create measurable value and contribute to sustainable development for Denmark. Thus, the projects must have considerable potential and result in new solutions, methods and business models: The partners must explain the specific quantitative value creation of their project. Value creation is broadly understood as targeted activities that lead to increased growth, employment or other value-adding measures, e.g. development of new products and services, increased productivity, lower societal costs, reduced resource consumption, reduced environmental impact, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, better quality of life and a solution to significant societal problems. It is the responsibility of the applicants to explain the different types of value creation.

Specifically, the applications will be assessed on the projects’ research and innovation qualities in a global perspective and in relation to a concrete or latent need, state-of-the-art, directly competitive or obvious scientific or technological solutions, scalability of the solution, technical, regulatory and market risks, risk management of the project plan and the viability of the projects.

In addition, the pace of development, effective use of invested resources, managerial and professional skills and the subsequent effective implementation and scaling of the project results nationally and/or globally will be carefully assessed. The value creation of the project will be assessed in relation to the size of the investment.

It is weighted that the individual project’s customers and core stakeholders help to shape the project and actively participate in it.

In addition to these assessment criteria, please refer to ‘Guidelines for Grand Solutions’ (published 12 December 2019) as well as ‘Agreement for the Allocation of the Research Reserve for 2020’.

The allocation of funds is based on the ‘Finance Act for 2020’.

The allocated financial frames are expected to enable investment in 3-4 projects of 2-5 years’ duration. The selected projects agree to participate in and contribute to the joint collaboration platform which will be built based on the projects under the auspices of BLOXHUB.
Applications for Grand Solution must be submitted via e-grant which is Innovation Fund Denmark’s application portal.

The assessment process is a one-phase application with interviews of selected applicants:

The Board of Innovation Fund Denmark will decide which applications will be submitted for peer review and invited to an interview. Prior to the interview, the peer reviews will be sent to the applicants via e-grant, as a consultative procedure. Representatives from Realdania will participate in the assessment process on an equal footing with Innovation Fund Denmark, while the final decision will be made by the Board of Innovation Fund Denmark. The applicants will be consulted on assessments received from Realdania to the extent required by the Public Administration Act.

Selected projects will be invited to interviews in November 2020. Projects that are not invited to interviews will be notified in October 2020. The final response to the applications will be available in December 2020 with project start in the first quarter of 2021.

The decision by Innovation Fund Denmark’s Board on either rejection or invitation to negotiations about an investment agreement will be submitted to the individual applicants via e-grant.
Documents
- the-construction-and-building-sectors-transition-to-circular-resource-economy.pdf
Documents
- Guidelines for Grand Solutions-published April 2020_0.pdf

Documents

Documents
- eng_opslagstekst_byggeriets-omstilling-til-cirkulaer-ressourceokonomi_grand-solutionsdocx.pdf
Documents
- slides-til-praesentationsvideo_final.pdf

Contact

Innovation Fund Denmark:

Jakob Dahl Wedel
Scientific Officer
+45 61 90 50 31
jakob.wedel@innofond.dk

Bo Søgaard
Scientific Officer
+45 61 90 50 99
bo.soegaard.innofond.dk

Tove Enggrob
Chief Programme Officer
+45 61 90 50 33
tove.enggrob@innofond.dk

Realdania:

Simon Kofod-Svendsen
Head of Projects
+45 20948995
sks@realdania.dk

Advice and guidance

Documents
Documents
- societal_readiness_levels_-_srl.pdf
- technology_readiness_levels_-_trl.pdf
Guidelines to e-grant

Login to e-grant
Here are the standard documents needed for the investment agreement as well as guidelines and background material for the agreement negotiations.

The project participants are free to choose if they wish to prepare the agreement material in Danish or English.

Documents

Questions and answers

Innovation Fund Denmark defines innovation as the process that, through the realization of new ideas in practice, creates value from knowledge. It is essential that the ideas have an actual application, and projects that only create new knowledge are therefore not immediately innovation projects.

Innovation Fund Denmark can invest in projects located throughout the value chain. The division between basic research, strategic research and applied research can be difficult in practice, but Innovation Fund Denmark invests in research and development that creates value and which must be implemented in society in the short or long term. It is important that the results are implemented either by the partners or a defined buyer, and Innovation Fund Denmark therefore emphasizes that there is a clear implementation strategy in the project, and that the buyer plays a significant role in the project.

Examples of concrete value creation are given in the specific thematic and in the open call.
It varies a lot from year to year and between the individual calls. The success rate based on the number of applications is approximately 10-20%.

It depends on the number of applicants and the framework for the call in question. Projects that are invited for interviews are generally of high quality. We expect those who are invited to the interview to have a success rate of approximately 40-50%. That is, if you are invited, there are expected to be great chances of obtaining an investment from Innovation Fund Denmark.
All types of innovation projects are welcome, but one must be aware that the requirement for quality, concrete value creation, efficiency and probability of implementation is crucial. Open call covers academically broader than the thematic calls. All project applications compete against each other and there are no professional preferences. Innovation Fund Denmark’s Board of Directors selects the projects that together provide an optimally balanced investment portfolio in terms of investment size, value creation, risks and location in the innovation value chain.

As a starting point, projects applied for within a specific academic theme compete only against each other and according to the subject-specific theme call. Each theme must therefore be seen as a pool determined politically. However, Innovation Fund Denmark will always ensure that the requirement for quality, concrete value creation, efficiency and probability of implementation still applies across the individual themes.

In the open call, all project applications compete with each other regardless of subject within the overall framework.
The investment framework and themes are in most cases politically decided and are typically finalized in the context of the Finance Act. Therefore, the call text and the final framework can only be published when a political settlement is submitted. Innovation Fund Denmark will strive to be able to publish preliminary call texts or themes as early as possible. In addition, the board can allocate funds to specific focus areas.

The themes and especially the investment framework can vary from year to year – but the biggest themes often recur. One can therefore make a qualified guess as to what general themes are coming up by looking at last year’s themes. Often, new themes or sub-themes will be derived from the traditional subject themes. The final calls will be announced as soon as the grant basis has been adopted. The open call is not subject-specific and embraces all areas, but has the common requirement for quality, concrete value creation, efficiency and probability of implementation.
We place great emphasis on projects not stopping when our investment ends. We want the projects to lead to value creation for Denmark. This is most easily ensured by the fact that the project purchaser is an integral part of the project. For more information, see the answer to the question “What is innovation?”.
First and foremost, the governance structure of the project and the organization must be balanced and reflect the challenges, complexity, budget and size of the project. It is recommended that the steering group, which is the project board and has the strategic management, have representatives from the most important partners and those who benefit from value creation. In addition, the members must have sufficient decision-making power to be able to resolve, for example, resource conflicts in the project. It is important that the members of the steering group are not part of the daily operation.

The project manager is the project director and takes care of the daily tactical management, both up and down, and communication with all stakeholders. Innovation Fund Denmark places great emphasis on the project manager’s qualifications for effective management of people and management of stakeholders.

It is recommended that the project administrator comes from the most financially stable partner, such as a university or GTS institute, and not from eg and SMEs.
Is it correct that you can get a quick negative response to your application?
This is correct. Innovation Fund Denmark will strive to be able to provide a quick response if the board has rejected an application – also within 100 days from the application deadline. This is in line with many applicants’ wishes for fast case processing, so that the applicant and the project team do not waste time and can move forward with a better application and / or project.

We have previously had an application rejected; can we apply again, or will we be quarantined by the Grand Solutions program?
If the project is improved, it is always possible to apply again. Innovation Fund Denmark has no quarantine period for rejected applications or applicants.

No, feel free to submit a new and improved application on the same or another project next time there is a Grand Solutions call. It is Innovation Fund Denmark’s experience that several of our best projects have experienced a previous rejection and then been improved and sharpened – also often after a good dialogue with Innovation Fund Denmark employees.

Is it an advantage if it is a university or a company that is applying?
It does not matter who the applicant is. It is the entire project, including the partners’ qualifications, motivation and contribution, that is assessed by the board. However, it is important that the buyer plays a significant role in the project.

Should the project applicant and project manager be the same person?
There does not have to be a coincidence. It is important that the project manager has the experience and qualifications and time for the specific project.

How do I insert references in the application?
It is possible to insert references in Appendix A.

How to specify external co-financing?
External funding is described in the comments field (Overview) in the budget form.

Is it possible / necessary to send letters of recommendation to the application?
In general, “endorsement letters” or letters of recommendation will not be included in the evaluation process, and it is therefore not necessary to enclose one. Evaluation of the application is based on the content of the application, which is assessed on the basis of the criteria described in the guidelines.

“I submitted the application form on e-grant but did not receive a PDF file with the entire application – now I’m not sure if you registered my submission”
After checking your application, you can choose to have the draft sent to you as a PDF file. When you finally approve and submit (Submit) application, it will be registered with a timestamp stamp immediately

After the application form is approved and submitted on e-grant, a single PDF file is created. This may take several minutes. Very close to the application deadline, where there is a lot of activity, it can take up to an hour.

Subsequently, the submitted application can be read on e-grant. It will also be possible to have it sent by email. The application can be reopened until the deadline, but remember to submit the latest version.

Guide to e-grant: https://ufm.dk/forskning-og-innovation/tilskud-til-forskning-og-innovati…

e-grant technical issues
Phone hours: 9 – 12, tel .: 3392 9190
Email: support.e-grant@fi.dk
Applications are assessed on the basis of the criteria as described in the guidelines. The Board of Directors decides which applications are sent for peer review and invited for an interview with Innovation Fund Denmark. The received peer reviews are sent for consultation to the applicant via the project’s contact person.

On the basis of an overall assessment consisting of internal assessments, assessments from peers, any party consultation responses and project interviews with the applicant, the Board of Directors decides which applications will be invited to investment negotiations.

Employees, management, the board and research experts may be involved in the assessment of the application.

In addition, applications are sent for peer review. The Foundation sends all peer reviews for consultation with the applicant, where it is possible to comment on peer review.
No, it’s a supplement to the application, not a TV show. Selected applicants will be asked for a brief introduction of the project of 15 minutes, and then it will be a confidential conversation about the project with Innovation Fund Denmark’s employees, management, external consultants and possibly board members. The purpose of the interview is to clarify any ambiguities in eg goals, value creation and plan or discover additional potentials. The interview format is chosen to save the applicant’s time and most effectively provide a comprehensive decision basis for the specific application.
It is important that projects relate as well as possible to the specific call. At the same time, the Fund has its three overall decision criteria: quality, value creation, efficiency and implementation, which work independently of the specific calls. Ultimately, the assessment is based on the most important quality and potential for value creation.
For industrial research, the focus is on the acquisition of new knowledge, etc., and for “experimental development” the focus is on the utilization of existing knowledge.

The EU definition of industrial research and experimental development is described in the EU General Block Exemption Regulation: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32014R0651&… (definitions in paragraphs 85 and 86, Article 2, page 25).
As a starting point, all partners (business organizations, interest groups as well as organizations and companies) that carry out financial activities, ie. provider of goods or services in a market, apply the budget rules for companies in Denmark and abroad under section 3.4.1 of the guidelines, including the maximum investment ratios.

If a partner carries out non-financial activities, Innovation Fund Denmark has, after a specific assessment the opportunity to increase the maximum investment rate. Inquiries must be made in good time before the application deadline.
Innovation Fund Denmark’s investment is conditional on the project parties entering into an investment agreement with the Fund on the project’s organization within 60 days of the written invitation to the investment negotiation. The project must then be started no later than 60 days after the investment agreement between the partners and Innovation Fund Denmark has been signed by all parties.
Yes. The most important thing is that the results of the project benefit Denmark. International knowledge plays a very large and important role here, and it is essential that the project’s ability to create growth and employment in Denmark is argued.
SSH is an abbreviation of ” Social Science and the Humanities ” (in Danish often called HUM / SAMF) and includes a large number of research disciplines or disciplines such as economics, politics, law, psychology, history, linguistics, media studies, pedagogy, philosophy, sociology, ethnography and many more.

Innovation Fund Denmark requires that there is a plan for the implementation of the solutions, and here SSH can sometimes help.

Innovation Fund Denmark places great emphasis on Grand Solutions’ projects focusing on solutions that are in real need of – and that can be implemented.

This often means that projects can integrate humanities and social science research and innovation from the beginning. These disciplines can often contribute valuable knowledge related to eg behavior, incentives, regulation and market conditions.

This kind of knowledge can, for example, help to clarify how a given technology, idea or solution will affect the individual, organization or society in general and provide input on how any barriers to implementation can be overcome.

Contact

Technical questions regarding e-grant
Phone hours: 9:00 – 12:00, phone: 3392 9190
Mail: support.e-grant@fi.dk
Technical support regarding e-grant

General questions regarding Grand Solutions

Peter Aadal Nielsen
Phone: 6190 5064, mail: peter.aadal.nielsen@innofond.dk

Thomas Mathiasen
Phone: 6190 5063, mail: Thomas.Mathiasen@innofond.dk

Main phone number to Innovation Fund Denmark
Phone: 6190 5000, Phone hours: 9:00 – 15:00

The program

Any legal entity in Denmark or abroad can be a project participant and receive funding from Innovation Fund Denmark eg.:
- Businesses
- Research institutions
- Public institutions
You can apply for funding for projects that create societal value and/or economic value in Danish public and private companies and/or from buyers in society, for example from citizens, the state, regions and municipalities.

A buyer can be an end user of the innovation, but it can also be a public or private investor who is willing to invest in the project after the Fund’s commitment is completed.

It can be an advantage if the purchaser(s) of the project’s results and other core stakeholders are involved as active participant(s) in the design of and through the project.
Grand Solutions projects will range from DKK 5,000,000 – 40,000,000
The money can co-finance expenses for salaries, equipment, other project-related costs, external services, etcetera.

The budget must include all direct project costs, meaning costs that can be directly attributed to the project, regardless of whether the costs are to be covered by Innovation Fund Denmark or will be covered by the project participants themselves or another party.

For further details, please see the programme guidelines.
The projects are of 1 to 5 years duration.

Application

The application process for the Grand Solutions programme consists of two phases.

In phase 1, all interested applicants submit a short letter of interest, outlining their project. On this basis, applicants will either receive an invitation for phase 2 or a rejection.

In phase 2, the invited applicants submit a final application, describing their project in detail. When Innovation Fund Denmark has assessed all applications, the fund makes a decision as to which projects will be invited to enter negotiations for an investment agreement.

The application material for both phases must be created and submitted via the electronic application system: www.e-grant.dk. You must register as a user of the system with either a username and password or with MitID before you can create an application.

You create a new application by finding the correct call under “Search Options” and pressing “Start your application”. Note that the list of search options is sorted alphabetically and that the names of all calls from Innovation Fund Denmark start with “IF”.

You must write your application material for both phases in English.

You can find a guide to e-grant on the website of the Danish Ministry of Education and Research.
In both phases, the application consists of an electronic application form designed in the electronic application system e-grant (www.e-grant.dk), which you must fill out in English.

Your application must have an official title (maximum 180 characters including spaces), which briefly describes the project for which you seek investment. You must also enter an acronym.

You can find the Grand Solutions guidelines below under “Guidelines and general terms and conditions.

Application for phase 1

In phase 1, the application is a letter of interest and must contain:
- Official project title and acronym
- Short summary of the project (maximum 600 characters)
- Overview of the expected budget and duration of the project
- Requested total investment from Innovation Fund Denmark
- Foundation and concept of idea (maximum 1,800 characters)
- Quantifiable goals (maximum 1,200 characters)
- State of the art and competition (maximum 2,400 characters)
- Expected impact (maximum 1,200 characters)
- Description of the project’s methods used (maximum 1800 characters)
- Contribution for up to 5 core project participants (maximum 600 characters per participant)
- Description of any other project participants and their contributions to the project (maximum 500 characters per participant).
- Description of competencies and experience for up to five key people (maximum 600 characters per person)
- Literature list (maximum 1200 characters)
- Budget overview (see the instructions in the application form in e-grant for further information)
The following optional appendices can be attached to the electronic form: Appendix A: Figure (max. 1 A4 page with max. 1 figure)

Application for phase 2

In phase 2, the application is a full application. The content of the electronic application form for phase 2 and the corresponding appendices will be announced in the invitation to applicants who make it to the next round. You can find more information on which adjustments are allowed from phase 1 to phase 2 in the programme guidelines

You can also see a preliminary outline of the application form for phase 2 below – please note that this is only a preview of the expected application form and that the final form may be subject to change.

Documents
The programme text for Grand Solutions has been updated in February 2024. To learn more about the changes to Grand Solutions, visit our Q&A here.

Evaluation

The applications are assessed by four committees with members who convene and qualify evaluations on committee meetings. The committees have the competence to assess as well as make decisions and are thus the bodies in which applications are evaluated and decisions on investments are made.

The committees consist of 10-18 members, divided between established international researchers and impact specialist with extensive knowledge of Danish affairs.

In phase 2, the applications are also assessed by external evaluators, and evaluations that are subject to consultation are sent to the applicants as part of a consultation process.

Applicants who are not invited for phase 2 or to enter an investment agreement after phase 2 will receive a rejection stating why.

Special conditions in 2024:

In 2024, letters of interest for phase 1 of the application process will be assessed internally and by external evaluators (including a consultation process for applicants) and decided by Innovation Fund Denmark’s board of directors. The reason is that the new committees are introduced for the first time in 2024 and will not be functional until later this year. Applications for phase 2 will be evaluated by the new committees in the second half of 2024.
Applications for the Grand Solutions programme are evaluated based on three overall decision criteria:
1. Quality of idea
2. Impact
3. Quality of execution
You can find further information on the three overall criteria and their sub-criteria in the guidelines for phase 1 and phase 2 of Grand Solutions. Please note that the sub-criteria for the two phases are not identical.
In phase 1, applicants will receive either a rejection as response to their letter of interest or an invitation for phase 2, in which applicants must submit a full application. The decision will be notified to you via e-grant.

In phase 2, invited applicants will receive either a rejection or an offer of investment and thus an invitation to negotiate an investment agreement. The decision will be notified to you via e-grant.
Applicants for Phase 1 of Grand Solutions will receive a response after 10 weeks.

Applicants who progress to Phase 2 can expect a 12-week response time in this phase itself and a total time horizon of 9 months from the time the expression of interest is submitted in Phase 1 until they receive a final response in Phase 2.
The programme text for Grand Solutions has been updated in February 2024. To learn more about the changes to Grand Solutions, visit our Q&A here.

From approval to project start

An investment from Innovation Fund Denmark is conditioned by the project parties entering into an investment agreement with the fund on the organisation of the project no later than 60 days after receiving the written invitation to investment negotiations.

The project must be started no later than 90 days after this investment agreement has been signed by all parties.

Innovation Fund Denmark may demand repayment of parts of the investment if the agreed conditions are not met. You can find more information in the investment agreement and the document containing the general terms and conditions for the programme.
Below, you will find the standard documents needed for the investment agreement negotiations.

You are free to choose whether you want to prepare the agreement in Danish or English.

Documents
The project can start as soon as there is an approved investment agreement and it must start no later than 90 days after the agreement has been signed by all parties.

During the project

The payment is generally made two times a year and is handled in collaboration with Innovation Fund Denmark and the financial administrator appointed by the project.
Innovation Fund Denmark is an active partner in all Grand Solutions projects and engages proactively with the project for its entire duration. Specifically, Innovation Fund Denmark appoints one or more investment officers to carry out this task.

The project follow-up and the requirements for accounts and reporting will be evident from the investment agreement that Innovation Fund Denmark enters into with each project.
Innovation Fund Denmark may terminate the investment ahead of time if the Fund considers that there is insufficient progress, the project proves aimless, or if the project is unable to achieve the objectives which the Funds’ investment to the project is based upon.

There will be an ongoing dialogue between the appointed Investment Officer from the Innovation Fund as well as with the steering group of the project about the progression of the plan.
At the project’s last steering group meeting, the completed accounts are reviewed and the project’s progress and results are evaluated.

Guidelines and general terms and conditions

Documents

Process in case of missing consultation

Innovation Fund Denmark has become aware of an error in the processing of some of the applications for the Grand Solutions, Innofounder and International programmes in the years 2015-2021. Applicants who want to clarify whether the error is relevant to them, and possibly wishes to raise a claim for compensation, can contact Innovation Fund Denmark. Read more here (in Danish)

Process in case of lack of recognized researcher

Innovation Fund Denmark has become aware that a case processing error has occurred in connection with the appointment of reviewers in the evaluation of applications for the programs “Industrial Researcher”, “Grand Solutions” as well as the two international programs “EUREKA” and “bilateral collaborations”. Applicants who wish to clarify whether they are covered by the error, can read more here

Sammenligning af EUDP- og Grand Solution-programmer

Calls

Here you can find and download call texts

Documents

The Construction and Building Sector’s Transition to Circular Resource Economy

Who?

What?

How much?

Application proces

18 August 2020

October 2020

November 2020

December 2020

Q&A

Documents

The Call

Documents

Documents

Documents

Documents

Documents

Contact

Advice and guidance

Documents

Documents

Documents

Questions and answers

Contact

The program

Application

Application for phase 1

Application for phase 2

Documents

Evaluation

From approval to project start

Documents

During the project

Guidelines and general terms and conditions

Documents

Process in case of missing consultation

Process in case of lack of recognized researcher

Sammenligning af EUDP- og Grand Solution-programmer

Calls

Documents